Vitor Belfort: Win Over “Jacare” Moves Me Into No. 1 Contender Spot

Despite suffering a one-sided defeat at the hands of then-UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman last year, Vitor Belfort believes he can challenge for the title again very soon.

Belfort (25-11) is set to meet Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in a key middleweight showdown later this year at UFC 198 from Brazil. During a special press conference on Wednesday, “The Phenom” explained his stance.

“I’m sure that the winner of this fight deserves to fight for the belt,” Belfort said (thanks to MMAjunkie.com for transcribing). “Something that’s given can be taken away, but something that’s conquered, nobody can take away. ‘Jacare’ and I deserve it.

“It’s a matter of training and focusing on this fight and destiny is made today, so we’ve got to focus on today.”

Following the Weidman loss, Belfort rebounded with a finish of Dan Henderson in November. He also holds a knockout win over current division kingpin Luke Rockhold from 2013 in Brazil.

“I know that my opponent is a world champion so I’m preparing myself,” Belfort said. “”It’s MMA, it’s a mix of martial arts so you have to study the moments, perception and enjoy it. You’ve got to do this with pleasure. There’s nothing better than fighting someone at this level.

“The biggest virtue of a champion is to fight against champions. I think that’s martial arts.”