Chris Weidman can only watch as Luke Rockhold and Michael Bisping battle over the middleweight title that he once held for over two years.
The former champion's focus is on his health now.
Although, he was supposed to face Rockhold at UFC 199 on June 4 in a rematch of their last fight that ended with Weidman losing the belt to Rockhold; instead, a neck injury forced him from the bout and he was subsequently replaced by Bisping.
Appearing on The MMA Hour on Monday, Weidman explained that he has been gathering information on how to handle the situation in anticipation of an impending surgery.
"It's going to be sooner rather than later," said Weidman, according to MMA Fighting's Chuck Mindenhall. "The other thing I was running into is some doctors who were saying you've got to get this taken care of now, like ASAP, because the nerve is getting damaged every second of every day.
"And then other doctors were like, you know, there's a good chance if you just wait another couple of weeks it just goes away completely. I don't know what to believe. But looks like I'm going to be getting surgery in the next week or two."
Weidman is currently considering the "Dr. Jho Technique", a procedure that would involve drilling a small hole in his neck to remove the herniation.
Dr. Jho was recommended to him by professional wrestler Kurt Angle and UFC hall of fame member Mark Coleman, two athletes with their own history of neck problems.
Other than a scar, Weidman isn't expecting there to be any lingering effects from the surgery that will prevent him from training. A best-case scenario sees him being prepared to fight in his home state of New York at UFC 205 at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 12.
Whether it's for the title or not, it will mean a lot for Weidman just to know that he can safely compete again.
"I mean, everybody's just concerned about my well-being right now," Weidman said. "Obviously I want to fight for the belt, but the main thing is I get my neck taken care of."
