Newly vocal UFC middleweight Gegard Mousasi is talking up his next opportunity, hoping to get a fight before the end of the year.

After dispatching Vitor Belfort (25-13 MMA, 14-9 UFC) earlier this month at UFC 204, Mousasi (40-6-2 MMA, 7-3 UFC) wants to let it ride and will fight in his usual weight class or step up to light heavyweight, he told MMAjunkie.

So who’s on his list?

While many linked Mousasi to a potential bout with Anderson Silva (33-7 MMA, 16-3 UFC), who took his spot at UFC 200, he bluntly declared the former middleweight champ was “not going to take the fight.”

Then there’s Uriah Hall (12-7 MMA, 5-5 UFC), whom he blasted at the UFC 204 post-event press conference. He said the matchup “doesn’t make sense for the UFC, and seeing as how Uriah Hall beat him only 11 months ago, it’s hard to argue.

“So probably, they’re going to make me wait,” reported Mousasi, who’s the No. 7 ranked fighter in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA middleweight rankings.

There is one matchup that excites the former Strikeforce light heavyweight champ, however. UFC President Dana White recently declared Nick Diaz (26-10 MMA, 7-7 UFC) “ready to go,” and Mousasi would be happy to welcome the onetime UFC welterweight title challenger back to the octagon.

He’s just a little skeptical about his chances of getting the fight.

“With Vitor Belfort, they didn’t give me the fight because I asked for it,” Mousasi said. “They gave that fight to me because Vitor Belfort asked for that fight. So, hopefully, Nick Diaz is going to ask for that fight, and then I can fight him.”

Mousasi pulls no punches about his career prospects – that’s for sure. Check out the above video for more with the former champ, and check out the full interview with Mousasi below.

And for complete coverage of UFC 204, check out the UFC Events section of MMAjunkie.