Thanksgiving dinner will be a little disappointing for surprisingly light Chris Weidman

Chris Weidman

It’s Thanksgiving at the Weidman household, and UFC middleweight champ Chris Weidman has 50 people coming over to celebrate.

The way his weight cut is going, he could probably afford to pour a little extra gravy on his plate. But he won’t do it.

“My wife’s going to make me a separate meal, so it’s not going to be everything I want,” Weidman told MMAjunkie Radio. “But it’s alright. I like to be disciplined, and it’s sacrifices like that that make everything pay off at the end.”

In advance of his fourth attempted title defense, which comes at UFC 194 against Luke Rockhold (14-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC), Weidman (13-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) is living a lot leaner than before. He’s hired a nutritionist. He’s given up drinking. And the result has showed in the number on the scale.

“I’m more like a 170-pounder,” Weidman said Wednesday, three weeks prior to his co-headliner Dec. 12 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena. “I weigh like 192, 193 (pounds) in the morning. I’ve got my weight down really low for this one.”

Rockhold has talked a good game heading into the bout, which is expected to help push the pay-per-view event into blockbuster territory for the UFC. That’s perhaps why Weidman is so close to his target, though he maintains he’s simply interested in fighting the best opponents he can.

For his past two fights, he’s also had a new nutritionist on call, so he’s had some help.

“I really didn’t get out of shape between fights, and it kept my weight down low,” he said. “I’ve been just living a healthy lifestyle. I don’t drink any more, so I think that keeps the weight down, too.”

Weidman’s guests probably won’t join him in abstaining, but he’ll get a different type of satisfaction from the holiday. If successful at UFC 194, he’ll make up for it regardless.

“I don’t mind making sacrifices,” he said. “I’ve missed Christmases and Thanksgivings from my wrestling days to my fighting days. It’s part of the sport, and it motivates me.”

For more on UFC 194, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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