A horrific injury to former UFC middleweight champion, Chris Weidman, saw Uriah Hall claim victory without a single kick in the UFC 261 fight on Sunday.
15,000 fans were left stunned as Hall claimed the middleweight bout in Jacksonville, Florida, after just 17 seconds as Weidman’s tibia broke through his skin.
The 185-pound rematch was instantly called off and ruled a TKO for Hall (17-9) inside VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
CBS reported that Weidman (15-6) ironically scored a similar victory over Anderson Silva in their 2013 middleweight title rematch that left the former champion sidelined for a full year.
The 36-year-old however bowed out in style after his leg was placed into a compression sleeve as he could be seen giving the crowd a thumbs up while being stretched out with a painful look on his face.
Weidman’s injury comes moments after light heavyweight Jimmy Crute suffered a TKO loss to Anthony Smith following a different leg injury that forced the cage-side doctor to rule Crute couldn’t continue.
Reacting after the fight, an emotional Hall said: “I got nothing but respect for Chris Weidman. He is truly one of the best. It is a crazy story that he was the first man I fought that defeated me and introduced me to fear. I didn’t know what fear was and during that time we went different paths. He was the first one to defeat Anderson [Silva], I was the last. It’s just crazy how we ended up here again.”
“I wanted to put on a great performance but I just wish him and his family well,” Hall said. “It’s the sucky part of this sport, it’s the hurt business but I have nothing bad to say about him. I hope he can come back from it. You are still the best, Chris.”
