As Anderson Silva prepares for his comeback, reigning middleweight champion Chris Weidman has declared his intentions of having his own lengthy title reign.
"The Spider", whom Chris Weidman won the title from, spent seven straight years of his fighting career at the top of the heap, as the undisputed UFC middleweight champion and top pound-for-pound mixed martial arts fighter in the world.
He has faced the who's who of the 185-pound division, such as former UFC champions Rich Franklin, Forrest Griffin, and Vitor Belfort, PRIDE FC and Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson, and former top contender Chael Sonnen, among others.
While Anderson Silva's comeback may not mean an immediate title shot, Chris Weidman is still hoping that he can duplicate or even surpass "The Spider's" accomplishments.
In an interview with The Great MMA Debate Podcast, "All-American" explained his intentions of being the sport's biggest name and how he intends to go about achieving it.
"I want to be known as one of the greatest of all time," Weidman explained. "To do that, I've got a current list of guys in front of me in my weight class to fight and beat that can give me a legacy."
Doing so means having to overcome every obstacle he may face along the way as the champion. Standing in his way right now is former light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida, whom he will be facing on Saturday at UFC 175.
"I've just got to keep winning," Weidman continued. "Keep winning fights. Hold on to the belt as long as possible. Clear out the division, maybe some super fights and call it a day."
Anderson Silva's comeback could potentially be against the infamous Nick Diaz in 2015. And for "The Spider", a third fight against Chris Weidman "is not in his plans."
"All-American" shared the same sentiment, adding that he is "happy to move past" this said chapter of his fighting career.
"I was visualizing fighting that guy since I got into the sport," Weidman said of Silva. "So he was a big motivating factor in my life for a long time so to move past it is kind of bittersweet."
"Now I get to start my own era and show everybody what I'm made of," he added.
