Chris Weidman believes it’s “kind of disrespectful” for him to be on the UFC 292 prelims in his return fight

Chris Weidman is a bit disappointed he is fighting on the UFC 292 prelims.

Weidman is set to make his highly-anticipated return to the Octagon after breaking his leg during his fight against Uriah Hall at UFC 261 in April 2021. Since then, he has been rehabbing and had multiple surgeries to return and vowed he would fight again. He’s now set to return at UFC 292 against Brad Tavares but is the prelim headliner which he says is a bit disrespectful.

“I’m the king of the prelims now, let’s go,” Chris Weidman said to ESPN. “A long time, it’s kind of disrespectful, to be honest. I’m not gonna pretend like it’s not. To be out for two years with a broken (leg), I broke my leg on the mats of the UFC on a pay-per-view, first card since COVID, first fully packed arena in Jacksonville, put my body on the line and they put me on a prelim?

“That’s a bad idea. You know what? It probably works out for everybody at the end of the day because it’s a little bit of motivation. Like, ‘Alright, motherfers, you disrespect me like that. What, you think I’m done?’ You think I’m here to just see how I feel? No, I’m here to make a statement,” Weidman continued.

Chris Weidman using prelims as motivation

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Chris Weidman says he is using being on the prelims as motivation to prove to everyone that he still is a title contender at middleweight.

When Weidman does make the return to the Octagon at UFC 292, he’ll face Brad Tavares. The former UFC middleweight champion enters the fight as a massive underdog but is confident he has all the tools to get the win.

Should Chris Weidman beat Brad Tavares at UFC 292, he is hopeful to get a top-10 opponent and start to work his way back up the middleweight ranks.