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The great Anderson Silva's attempt to win the middleweight title back from his conqueror Chris Weidman ended in a gruesome leg injury. A checked leg kick from Weidman in the second round of their rematch broke the tibia and fibula of Silva's left leg. The fight was ruled a TKO win for Chris Weidman due to injury and it turned out to be the last title fight of Anderson Silva's fighting career. The visual of the Spider being carried away on a stretcher, crying in agony is something a lot of old-school fight fans struggle to forget or to get desensitized to.
Seven years after the unfortunate ending, Chris Weidman found himself in Anderson Silva's shoes. A checked leg kick from Uriah Hall at UFC 261 broke Weidman's leg and sent him crashing to the mat. As Weidman was being carried away on a stretcher, crying in agony, it reignited memories of the ill-fated end to Anderson Silva's aspirations.
(Video contains disturbing visuals, viewer discretion advised)
Chris Weidman's untimely fall from grace
Chris Weidman became the UFC middleweight champion by taking out one of the greatest fighters of all time in Anderson Silva. After the title fight rematch ended in a leg injury, Chris Weidman went on to defend his title on two occasions against Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort. Everything pointed to Weidman becoming the next long-reigning middleweight champion after Anderson Silva.
However, Weidman's undefeated run came to an end against Luke Rockhold at UFC 194 in December 2015. After reigning over the division, Chris Weidman went 1-5 in the UFC, losing by knockout to Yoel Romero, Gegard Mousasi, Jacare Souza, and Dominick Reyes in subsequent bouts. The only win amid the losing skid came against Kelvin Gastelum in 2017. Weidman was able to win the fight via third-round submission after getting dropped early in the fight.
A unanimous decision win over Omari Akhmedov in August 2020 brought Chris Weidman back in the rankings. Weidman entered the UFC octagon to face Uriah Hall in hopes of becoming a contender again. But destiny left Weidman at the same spot it once left his biggest victim, Anderson Silva, being carried away on a stretcher, crying in agony.
