Mousasi challenges Belfort to catchweight bout

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort was quoted in an interview with the Brazilian MMA website Tatame.com earlier today as saying he would not fight former DREAM middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi at Affliction III on Aug. 1 unless the fight was contested at 185 pounds.

M-1Global.com was able to speak with Mousasi soon after his return to Holland following Tuesday’s submission victory over Mark Hunt in the first round of DREAM’s “Super Hulk Grand Prix.” When asked whether he would return to 185, Mousasi was steadfast in his committment to continue fighting at light heavyweight and heavyweight.

“I cannot make the weight, otherwise I would have continued to fight at 185 and not given up my DREAM middleweight title,” Mousasi responded. “I cannot make 185 anymore and that is final.”

Belfort’s refusal to fight Mousasi at any other weight besides 185 pounds has created some controversy considering his previous campaign to fight Fedor Emelianenko at heavyweight. Mousasi expressed some confusion regarding Belfort’s recent change in philosophy.

“I am very surprised that Belfort was willing to challenge Fedor at heavyweight yet is unwilling to fight me at a catchweight,” he said. Mousasi then went on to issue a compromise challenge.

“If (Belfort) does not want to fight at middleweight, why not fight me at a catchweight?”

Mousasi was also asked if he felt offended by Belfort’s statement in which he is quoted as saying “I see no option to go up, even because he isn’t a challenge, a man with much name. To go up, I don’t see him as a challenge.”

“To be honest, I don’t really care,” answered Mousasi, before adding, “But for me, his comments are strange because his paycheck will be unchanged whether he fights a bigger name than me or not. It is also strange that he does not see me as a challenge when many rankings have me ranked higher than him at middleweight.”