From his vantage point on the 17th floor balcony of the Crown Plaza Hotel, Gilbert Melendez has an epic view of downtown Chicago. Wonders of modern architecture and civil engineering spill out before him, but something else has his attention.

There is a large spider working it's way down a web and battling the city's signature whipping winds every bit of the way. Melendez's gaze falls somewhere between impressed and captivated as a multitude of surrounding elements fail to register.

Neither the cluster of deep-gray colored, thunderheads looming ominous over Lake Michigan nor the invisible attack of sweater-thick humidity can break his focus in the moment.

"I've watched this thing work for a few days now," Melendez says. "The little one will come out first like he's checking things out before the big boy comes creeping down. Every time the big one gets out there too far in the wind it looks like he's going to get blown right off the side of the building, but he hangs on. That spider is tough, man. I dig it."

When someone from inside the room suggests the spider be disposed of, Melendez shuts down the situation in a heartbeat.

"Just leave it be, man. We have established a mutual respect. He does his thing up over there and I have this space. There's a balance because we both know what's up," Melendez says confidently.

In addition to the entertainment of an Animal Planet special playing out in real time, the resilient arachnid's quest could very well be something Melendez finds familiarity in.



The past three years of his professional life have been turbulent by all measures. The longtime Strikeforce lightweight title holder believed he'd continue his championship ways upon arrival to the UFC, but Melendez's path has traveled in a different direction.

Melendez has found success in only one of his four showings inside the Octagon, and the one-year suspension he received after failing a post-fight drug test for his bout against Eddie Alvarez served to add weight to his slide.

With the chips down it would have been easy for Melendez to abandon his ambitions, but he refused to break. Instead, the notoriously gritty fighter used the time away to reconnect to what started his journey in the first place.

"I've been fighting my entire life in some form or fashion," Melendez says. "Nothing ever came easy to me, and that's where the work ethic came in. I had to work hard to accomplish the things I wanted to accomplish, and I was raised in a household where quitting wasn't an option. My father set a great example of what hard work looks like, and even when I was little my mother was an 'Oh well.' person.

"I'd come to her complaining about something and she'd look at me and go, 'Oh well.' That was her way of saying she wasn't going to fix it and I had to address whatever was in front of me. Learning those lessons young definitely set the tone for the person I would become as an adult, and helped lay the foundation for the fighter I would be."

When it comes to problems, Melendez had a few of them on his hands following UFC 188. He would be forced to the sidelines for a year because of his infraction, but during that time would be forced to face the reality of having suffered back-to-back losses for the first time in his 14 years as a professional mixed martial artist.

Under any other circumstances Melendez would dive back into the gym, work to make adjustments until his next opponent materialized and set his focus on redemption once a date was put on the calendar. Yet, with so much time out of action, gym therapy wasn't going to work.

The former title challenger needed to find another way, and he credits his sense of positivity and incredible support system for helping him navigate rough waters.



"I've always been a guy who tries his best to look on the bright side of things and in that situation there weren't too many positives to grab onto," Melendez says leaning forward with hands folded. "I made a mistake and I had to take a hard look at things, but slowing down actually allowed me to better appreciate some really important things in my life.

"I have an incredible family that loves and supports me and they really helped me understand this situation with losing a few fights and my time away wasn't going to be life or death. No matter what happened I would have so much love in my life and that made me want to be better for all of them. It also made me want to be a better fighter, and I believe I'm going to show my improvements on Saturday.

"I'm going to remind everyone who Gilbert Melendez is."

The perennial lightweight contender will make his return to action on Saturday night when he steps in against Edson Barboza at UFC on Fox 20 in Chicago. The Brazilian's versatile attack has made him one of the most dangerous strikers in the lightweight division as Barboza has proven capable of putting his opposition away in a multitude of fashions.

The biggest hinderance to Barboza's trajectory thus far has been a lack of consistency inside the Octagon.That said, the 30-year-old Mark Henry-trained fighter has looked on point as of late.

Barboza's most recent showing came against Anthony Pettis at UFC 197 back in April, in a fight where he outclassed the former champion en route to a unanimous decision victory on the judges' scorecards. Defeating Pettis was undoubtedly the biggest win of Barboza's career and he'll be looking to keep his momentum rolling in Chicago.

Melendez has a far different perspective when it comes to his collision with Barboza on Saturday.

"[Barboza] is the type of dangerous that makes me excited to get in there," Melendez says just as his father walks into the room. Gilbert Sr. gives his son--or "Tito" as he calls him--a quick hug then backs out onto the periphery of the conversation.

"He's coming off a win over Pettis and is poised to make a run toward title contention. You combine those things and that makes him the exact type of opponent I want to be fighting.

"I think our styles will make for an interesting matchup because we both bring different things to the table. There's things he likes to do, and those who have allowed him to do so have had their nights end badly. I bring a different set of problems to the cage. I'm going to have to control certain elements and utilize my strengths to open up the opportunities I'm confident I can capitalize upon.

"A win over Barboza won't put me right back into title contention, but it will solidify that I'm back in the mix at the top of my division."



While Melendez has spent the lion's share of the past several years in the championship realm, incidental labels won't be attached to the co-main tilt at UFC on Fox 20. And even though his is a mindset fixed on proving he's the best 155-pound fighter in the world, the race to validate that particular goal has muddied up his mental during his time on the biggest stage in MMA.

Despite his three-year reign over Strikeforce's lightweight division, Melendez was constantly pegged with criticism. There was no doubt his performances inside the cage were impressive, but many in the MMA community believed Melendez wouldn't be able to duplicate that success had he competed in the UFC.

Rather than feed into nonsensical debates Melendez chose to use the situation as fuel. He was determined to prove he not only belonged in the UFC, but was best lightweight fighter on the planet.

"All I heard for years was that I would get trashed by UFC guys and I couldn't wait to get inside the Octagon and prove them wrong," Melendez says. "But it goes back way further than that. Whether it was on the wrestling mats or traveling halfway around the world to fight in Japan; being the underdog was something I got used to. I had to earn my place, and when you're constantly in that position it builds a crazy hunger to succeed.

"I'm big enough to admit that hunger changed a bit over the past few years. When you are fighting just to pay the bills I promise your motivations are going to be different than when you're financially comfortable. When I signed that new contract after my fight with Diego [Sanchez] I was suddenly in a place where things I care about the most in my life were taken care and that was strange to me. Maybe I got too comfortable in some areas. 

"I had to reconnect with that quest for respect," he adds. "That chip on my shoulder may have gone away for a little bit but I promise you it's back now. My back is against the wall and that's going to bring out the best in me. I'm going to prove to everyone Gilbert Melendez is still a force in this division."

Just as the conversation concludes, a breeze kicks up outside that sends a cool wave of air through the thick fog of humidity and into the room from the balcony. Melendez takes a quick look outside, and after monitoring the tense skies closing in over the city, he ducks back into the room to grab his gym bag.

"A storm is coming," he says in a laid back Southern California chill fashion. The comment is a play on his nickname, but while he's half-joking in his delivery, he's fully motivated in intention.



There's a visible excitement coursing through Melendez that seems to be in sync with the elements fixing to cut loose outside the window. The storm cuts loose moments later and sheets of rain whip and pound against the thick pane of glass behind him. It's clear Melendez is charged up to move into what is next for him, and in the immediate sense, that's one final session before his bout with Barboza.

As Melendez and his team begin to make their way out the door the mood is light and and someone in the group reminds the former champion of the spider he was so fixated on earlier in the evening. Without offering the slightest look behind him Melendez is confident all will be well.

"That spider is going to get where it's looking to go," he says. "When you're that tough it doesn't matter what is thrown your way."