Chris Weidman on UFC 162 Title Shot: ‘I’m Already Feeling That Belt Around My Waist’

On Saturday, the unbeaten New Yorker will put that philosophy to the test when he challenges longtime UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva in the main event of UFC 162.

“I feel like any goal you have, you kind of have to live from that goal, so I’m living with that belt on right now,” Weidman said Tuesday on Fuel TV’s “UFC Tonight.” “I’m already feeling that belt around my waist. I just have to make it happen on Saturday, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

Though Silva has long been regarded as one of the sport’s top pound-for-pound talents, Weidman is confident that he will take gold from “The Spider” when the men meet at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

“I will beat Anderson Silva on Saturday, and I’m going to be going for the finish,” said Weidman. “I honestly have a hard time visualizing this fight going five rounds, with all due respect.”

Weidman has also applied his mental confidence to the taxing media schedule which accompanies a fight of such magnitude. Though the continual attention from the press could serve as an irritant, Weidman has instead tried to appreciate the process leading up to his first world title bout.

“Just like anything, you gotta go in there with a positive attitude, and you’ll get positive results,” Weidman said. “If I came in not looking forward to the media, then I’m going to be miserable all day. I just came in with a good attitude and tried to enjoy it.”

In Silva, Weidman faces arguably the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. The Brazilian has never lost in the UFC and has successfully defended his middleweight crown a record 10 times. The ramifications of beating “The Spider” have not been lost on Weidman, who says that winning the title would be a monumental achievement.

“It would be a lifetime’s worth of work paying off,” Weidman said. “It’s a life-changing fight for me and my family. [Winning] would be absolutely huge.”