Chris Weidman did not have a very good 2021 after suffering a horrific leg break against Uriah Hall at UFC 261. He's been focusing on healing up and making a big return to the cage.
Chris Weidman spoke about his UFC return on MMAFighting‘s The Fighter vs. The Writer podcast. The former champion realizes he's getting older and is looking to return in the first half of 2022.
“I want to fight before I turn 38 in June,” the UFC middleweight said. “That’s my goal. I hate seeing the older age on the screen when I get introduced. I’ve always been like that, even when I was in my 20s. I don’t want to be 29, I want to be 28 for the next one. So I still have that in me a little bit, now I’m just way older. So if I could fight around early June, that would be great. Again, there’s a lot in the air and it’s very unpredictable.
“This is a very serious injury,” the former UFC champion continued. “I’ve been through lots of injuries before, obviously you know I’ve had 25 surgeries. This is very different. There’s a lot of moving parts. So I have goals when I’d like to fight but I’m not going to die over a month or two difference. I am coming back and I am coming back in 2022.”
The injury has not fully healed and Chris Weidman is not ready to get back to the UFC yet. He detailed the status of his leg injury.
“I’m doing everything,” UFC middleweight, Weidman said. “My leg’s not where I need it to be yet, to be happy going into the octagon against world-class guys and think I can be the best in the world. It’s not there yet just because of strength and a little bit of pain I’m still dealing in the lower leg while moving around.”
