News, views and top stories in your inbox. Don't miss our must-read newsletter Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Next Saturday, Chris Weidman and Luke Rockhold will clash in what many are anticipating as one of the UFC’s biggest fights of the year.

Unfortunately for both Rockhold and Weidman, their bout will play second fiddle to the main event of Conor McGregor taking on Jose Aldo, a fight that has dominated the headlines and recent UFC 194 media build-up, reports James Edwards from MMA Latest News.

Weidman has been king of the UFC’s 185 lbs division since he took the belt from the legendary Anderson Silva in 2013. After shocking the world and knocking out Silva to capture the gold at UFC 162, Weidman has defended the belt impressively conquering Silva again in an immediate rematch and a dominant performance against Vitor Belfort at UFC 187.

(Image: Getty)

Training out of Sarah-Longo in New York, Weidman has recently talked about how his camp for Rockhold has been his best ever. Weidman claims his fight preparation has been taken to new levels, giving up alcohol and sparring more rounds in the gym than he ever has before. Speaking recently on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Hour show, Weidman said Rockhold will not be prepared for what he has in store for him when the cage door is closed on Saturday night:

"The good thing is that [Rockhold] has no idea what I'm bringing to the table for this fight. I could just stand and try to knock him out. I could take him down and submit him. He has no idea what I'm going to bring, and that excites me. And I really could go either direction. I feel like if I wanted to, I could stand and knock him out. And I feel like if I wanted to, I could take him down and submit him."

(Image: Getty)

Weidman however will come up against an opponent who knows what it is like to hold MMA gold. As a former Strikeforce MMA champion, Luke Rockhold understands the requirements to be a champion and he comes into the fight with an equally as impressive record as Weidman.

Rockhold has collected some big scalps in the Middleweight division and is currently riding a four fight win streak. His wins include names such as Costas Philippou Tim Boetsch, Michael Bisping and Lyoto Machida.

Read more:McGregor vs Aldo everything you need to know

His dominance over these top UFC contenders has given Rockhold a great deal of confidence heading into his fight with Weidman and he is adamant that next Saturday will be his night to take his first UFC gold.

Speaking on the UFC 194 media call last week Rockhold said: “Chris is about to find out, he's got a lot of holes in his game and he just hasn't fought anybody who's been able to exploit them until now. He's going to fight a guy who's not going to... I'm not going to sit there and cower down and let him control the ring. I'm going to stop him in the middle of the cage, I'm going to dominate him, and then I will finish him."

(Image: Getty)

Despite being the heavier weight-class, a factor that would normally dictate a higher card placing, neither Weidman nor Rockhold are begrudging that the Aldo vs McGregor featherweight bout is taking centre stage at UFC 194. Speaking about this recently on UFC Tonight, Rockhold seemed to care very little about their placement on the card and seemed totally focused on the task at hand:

“I don’t have a fighting country behind me! The Irish are behind Conor, and Jose is the longest reigning champion,” he said. “I’m going to go out there and perform and make that night my night.”

Whilst the bout may have a shadow cast over it, fight fans around the world will bewell aware of the potential that the fight has. This 185 lbs clash has all the makings for a fight of the year candidate with both fighters in their prime and both looking in the best shape of their life on the biggest card of the year.

Chris Weidman versus Luke Rockhold is a fight next Saturday that you simply cannot miss. UK fans can watch it LIVE on BT Sport and you can follow LIVE updates from Las Vegas right here on Mirror Sport.