After UFC 205, Chris Weidman finally found some common ground with Michael Bisping

NEW YORK – Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman and current title holder Michael Bisping haven’t always seen eye to eye. But following UFC 205, Weidman now says he and “The Count” stand on some common ground.

“I started thinking about it before this fight, and these people failing PED tests, I just feel like they shouldn’t even be fighting anymore,” Weidman told MMAjunkie at Saturday’s post-UFC 205 news conference. “But a lot of guys I’ve fought in the past have failed for steroids – a good majority of my last, like, six fights. So I’ve been fighting these guys, and (Yoel Romero) was another guy who failed a drug test, and I’ve got to go out there and try and get a ‘W.'”

Sure enough, recent Weidman opponents Vitor Belfort, Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva have all dealt with various PED-related issues.

Weidman (13-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) faced top contender Romero (13-1 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who recently completes a six-month suspension issues by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, at Saturday’s UFC 205 event at Madison Square Garden. While the fight was tightly contested early, Romero landed a flying knee in the third round and finished Weidman off with big punches on the floor.

For Weidman, the result was especially disappointing. A native New Yorker, Weidman played an active role in recent years in helping to get MMA legalized in The Empire State, and he had long envisioned a perfect night in his Madison Square Garden debut.

“It was a dream come true,” Weidman said. “It was everything I imagined – until I lost. But that walk-out was truly special for me, just all the dreams being realized.

“I’ve had so many ups and downs in this sport and so many times where I thought this was going to get legalized and I imagined fighting here in New York. For it to finally happen, and to have a crowd like that and that type of support after traveling around the world and fighting everywhere else besides my own home state, it was a dream come true walking out.”

With the win, Romero is now expected to face Bisping, who has previously made it clear he doesn’t think the Cuban wrestler deserves a title shot due to his prior infractions.

Weidman said he’s now leaning in a similar direction but will do his best to not let the Romero loss spoil his memories of a long-awaited New York appearance.

“It’s very tough,” Weidman said. “It was a very tough night. This was not the way I imagined this going. But I still see the beauty in the little things I got to experience – that walk-out, the weigh-ins, every part of it. I felt the love, so it was nice.”

To hear more from Weidman, check out the video above.

And for complete coverage of UFC 205, check out the UFC Events section of the site.