When Vitor Belfort enters the octagon to challenge Chris Weidman for the UFC middleweight championship in February, it will be well over a year since "The Phenom" last fought. But Belfort isn't worried about ring-rust after such a long layoff, instead he sees it as an advantage.
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Belfort became the number-one contender for the 185-pound title after consecutive knockout victories over Michael Bisping, Luke Rockhold and Dan Henderson in 2013. He was supposed to challenge Weidman in May, but he was forced to withdraw from the bout after testing positive in a random drug test in February. Despite not fighting at all in 2014, Belfort is confident he will be able to perform well when he finally gets his title shot.
"The fact that I haven't fought in 2014 will only make my opponents surprised with my performance," Belfort told MMAFighting.com. "I had time to adapt myself and evolve even more. Despite not having fought, I worked hard at Blackzilians and spent this whole time getting ready to win my third world title in a different weight class in the UFC."
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Belfort, a former light heavyweight champion, was granted a license by the Nevada State Athletic Commission over the summer. He and Weidman were expected to fight at UFC 181 in December, but the champion had to pull out of the fight with a broken hand forcing the bout to be pushed back to February.
"The year of 2014 was really full of postponements and twists, but I'm positive that those adversities will only make me stronger and ready for the next challenges," Belfort said. "I was expecting to fight and win the title, but I believe that everything happens for a reason. My training routine is intense, it's part of my lifestyle. I will continue focused on reinventing myself and getting stronger every day, waiting for the fight."
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