UFC 261: Chris Weidman snaps leg throwing kick vs. Uriah Hall – the same way he beat Anderson Silva
Anderson Silva #AndersonSilva
By Matt Erickson | April 24, 2021 10:50 pm
In perhaps the most horrifically ironic result in MMA history, Chris Weidman snapped his leg throwing a kick against Uriah Hall – the same way he beat Anderson Silva nearly eight years ago.
The first kick Weidman (15-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC) threw, with his right leg, Hall (17-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) lifted his left leg to check it. When he did, Weidman’s lower right leg folded like it was made of rubber. Weidman then stepped on the leg and went down. The fight was stopped immediately just 17 seconds in.
In December 2013, in his first defense of the UFC middleweight title against Silva, whom he beat for the belt earlier that year, Weidman checked a Silva kick and snapped Silva’s leg. The only real difference between the Silva kick that Weidman checked, and the Weidman kick that Hall checked more than seven years later was left leg vs. right leg.
The injury kept Silva out for more than a year and is known as one of the most gruesome injuries in the sport’s history.
Weidman’s left leg was put into a compression boot and he was taken from the cage on a stretcher. During replays shown in the arena, the reported 15,000 fans in attendance let out seemingly unanimous groans. The event was the UFC’s first in front of fans since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prayers up for Chris Weidman, who stretchered out of the arena after that nasty leg injury. 🙏💔#UFC261 | Full story: https://t.co/haxvaTGbog pic.twitter.com/G4WXTgVPLa
— MMA Junkie (@MMAjunkie) April 25, 2021
The first fighter in @ufc history to win without a single strike thrown #UFC261 pic.twitter.com/zxyu5XhYu3
— danawhite (@danawhite) April 25, 2021
“I’ve got nothing but respect for Chris Weidman,” Hall told Joe Rogan after the fight. “He’s truly one of the best. It is a crazy story that he was the first man I fought that defeated me, that introduced me to fear. … I wanted to put on a great performance. I feel so bad for him. I hope he’s OK. I wish the family well. It’s the sucky part of this sport. … I hope he recovers.”
UFC 261 took place Saturday at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. The event was the UFC’s first in front of fans since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 261 results include:
Gallery Uriah Hall def. Chris Weidman at UFC 261: Best photos List Twitter reacts to Chris Weidman’s leg break against Uriah Hall at UFC 261 Gallery UFC 261: Best photos from Jacksonville Gallery UFC 261: Official scorecards from Jacksonville