Chris Weidman may be ready to retire — but he wants to do it on his terms.
That’s why coach Ray Longo is hoping UFC matchmakers will give the former middleweight champion one more “fair” fight to cap off what Longo believes is a Hall of Fame career, based on the “All American’s” stellar, four-year run from 2011-15.
Didn’t work for this ex-champion, but it’s worth a shot.
“He’s got some decisions to make,” Longo told the Anik & Florian Podcast (transcribed by Farah Hannoun). “I think he wants to go out on a win. But I think I’d like to see them set up one last fight that’s fair, and then that’s it. Then it’s over. Just go out — I think he deserves it. He beat the greatest of all time twice, and I think he was a company man.”
After losing his middleweight title to Luke Rockhold at UFC 194 back in late 2015, the now 39 year-old Weidman dropped six of his next eight, with five of those losses coming by way of knockout or technical knockout (including this grisly leg break).
“The (Lyoto) Machida fight was great, the (Vitor) Belfort fight, and he had some really good fights,” Longo continued. “(He) came around at the right time, dethroned (Silva) before he started to slip. That guy was on top of the world when Weidman got rid of him, and then you saw (Silva) flounder after that. So I think that’s a Hall of Famer, for sure, and I hope they treat him like one. I think that’ll make him happy.”
Happier than that “sneaky” Bellator deal.
Weidman (15-7) returned from a two-year injury layoff at UFC 292 last month in Boston but came up short on the judges’ scorecards. He also suffered another leg injury and will likely be out of action until 2024, or forever if UFC President Dana White gets his wish.