Chris Weidman Reflects On “Nightmare” UFC 261 Injury
It didn’t register to Chris Weidman until after the fact that he was in big trouble at UFC 261.
Weidman, a former UFC middleweight champion, hurt himself in his bout against Uriah Hall after hitting a heavy low kick. His right fibula and tibia snapped and it wasn’t until he planted his foot that he felt something. “The All-American” couldn’t continue and had to undergo surgery. Weidman finally got a chance to reflect on the moment and what was going through his mind.
“As soon as I hit him with that kick, I knew it was super hard,” Weidman said on Instagram Live (h/t MMA Fighting). “It was so concussive, the sound I do remember. Now looking back, it was my whole leg snapping but I didn’t realize that. I just thought it was a crazy good leg kick that landed super hard. I remember looking at Uriah Hall in the face and he had this poker face on and I’m like ‘yeah, bro, I know that one hurt you.’ I knew he was going to be feeling that and all I could think about was like I land one more of those, he has to go down cause that was freaking brutal.
“As I put my foot down, I don’t remember putting my foot down and feeling any of the pain or anything like that cause I was still focused on letting him know that I was good. I guess as my leg snapped underneath me, I happened to look down and when I see my leg look like rubber, that’s when I think I just went into a crazy, weird spot. I went face down and it was like a nightmare. In my head I’m like there’s no way that was my leg. There’s no way I was just looking at my leg and my leg was looking like that.”
Hall was declared the winner but looked extremely distraught. The injury was similar to how Anderson Silva hurt himself against Weidman back in 2013 at UFC 168. Since getting a titanium rod put in the area, Weidman has been going through an intense PT program.
During the session, Weidman went on to say that he will probably have to be on blood thinners for about 45 days. This is a result of a compound fracture suffered as a result of the injury. He will continue to keep people informed of his progress via social media. It has not been an easy road for him over the years, and it is unknown when Weidman would be set to return to the octagon.
“I’ve had 23 surgeries in my life,” Weidman went on to say. “I’ve been through a lot of ups and downs but I will say this is the most traumatic and most painful thing I’ve ever been through. I know it’s going to take a long time. It’s really tough for me… I do think I’ll fight again. I’m staying really positive with that. I need to start working out quick, even if it’s upper body stuff. I need to find out when I can do that.
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