Kelvin Gastelum is of the opinion that the latest trend in “big money fights” and marquee events have questioned the point in rankings.
Gastelum’s first-round KO of Vitor Belfort on Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 106 headline fight may very well be his most important win to date. Following the bout, Gastelum once again targeted another former UFC champion in Anderson Silva while passing comments on the validity of the promotion’s rankings, and if they make any difference to how fights are scheduled. Gastelum stated (via MMAJunkie) following his victory at Centro de Formacao Olimpica do Nordeste in Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil that fights such as Michael Bisping vs Georges St-Pierre have somewhat confused the pathway to a title shot:
“What’s the point of having contenders, what’s the point of having rankings if we’re not going to follow the rankings, if we’re not going to follow the No. 1 contenders? It just doesn’t make any sense. Now, everybody wants those big ‘money fights,’ and it just doesn’t make any sense to have any rankings if we’re going to keep doing that kind of stuff.”
Despite Kelvin Gastelum’s comments suggesting that he is against the current landscape which has seen a fighter who has been absent from the UFC walk straight into a title shot, he is determined to work hard in order to get his chance:
“I’ve just got to keep winning fights (and) keep making noise,” said the 25-year-old. “I’m not a very loud person; I’m not a very obnoxious person, but the way I want to keep making noise is beating big names.”
