What's next for Chris Weidman after his dominant win at UFC Fight Night? (Opinion)

Chris Weidman put up an impressive performance against fellow contender Omari Akhmedov as he picked up a unanimous decision victory in his return to the Middleweight division. "The All American" dominated Akhmedov with his grappling skills, and looked much sharper than he has in his previous fights. Omari Akhmedov was a tough opponent, and proved his mettle in the second round, connecting several significant strikes.

Both Weidman and Akhmedov exchanged strikes on multiple occasions, however, it was Weidman's ground game that made all the difference. Weidman dominated the last round and won the fight in a dominant fashion. With a spectacular win in his return-fight to the division, Weidman kick-started his goal to grab the Middleweight gold yet again.

"That wasn't my favorite fight at all for myself but I got the W and there's a lot that goes into it for me and my family so it's just good to get it done with." - @ChrisWeidman reacts to Facetiming his wife after winning at #UFCVegas6 and discusses how he feels after the victory pic.twitter.com/eofE3zNfI2

— UFC News (@UFCNews) August 9, 2020

Chris Weidman jumped to Light Heavyweight division in his last fight, losing to Dominick Reyes in the first round. Weidman has always been a Middleweight and looked in great shape in his fight against Akhmedov.

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What's next for Chris Weidman?

UFC Fight Night: Weidman v Gastelum

There are not a lot of options for Chris Weidman in the near future. Most of the fighters are fresh of a fight, while others are scheduled to take each other on at some point in the future. Akhmedov was ranked #11 in the UFC Middleweight rankings. Weidman is currently unranked, and will likely face a top-10 opponent next.

Ever since dropping the title to Luke Rockhold back at UFC 194, Weidman has lost four of his last six fights. Alongside this win, Weidman has a notable victory against Kelvin Gastelum.

UFC 230 Weidman v Souza

The UFC Middleweight division looks absolutely packed. With Israel Adesanya set to take on Paulo Costa at UFC 253, and Robert Whittaker set to take on Jared Cannonier at UFC 254 after an impressive win over Darren Till, the division is stacked with many interesting fights to offer. It was recently reported that Yoel Romero would take on Uriah Hall in October. Both Jack Hermansson and Derek Brunson picked up impressive victories against Kelvin Gastelum and Edmen Shahbazyan respectively. With all the top-10 fighters active in the division, it will be interesting to see Weidman's next opponent.

Matt is one of the best in-fight instructionists in the sport. https://t.co/Kr7ef95vjM

— Mark La Monica (@LaMonicaMark) August 3, 2020

It won't be surprising if UFC goes ahead with a rematch between Chris Weidman and Kelvin Gastelum. Chris Weidman picked up a submission victory in the third round when both these fighters met inside the octagon back in July of 2017.

However, Derek Brunson is an interesting choice for Weidman going forward. Brunson put up an impeccable performance against rising prospect Edmen Shahbazyan and is regarded by many as the gatekeeper of the UFC Middleweight division. If Chris Weidman can get past Brunson, it will certainly bring him closer to fighting for the Championship belt. Brunson is currently ranked #7 in the rankings and is enjoying a three-fight win streak. It will be a battle between two credible wrestlers with an equally impressive striking game.

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