Chris Weidman has returned to victory. However, his path to success was rather unconventional.
In Atlantic City on Saturday, the ex-UFC middleweight titleholder secured a win against Bruno Silva. Weidman managed to finish the seasoned opponent after landing a counter in the third round.
Upon reviewing the footage, the truth became apparent. A slow-motion replay revealed that Weidman had inadvertently inserted his left fingers into Silva’s right eye before striking his left eye with his right hand. This sequence left Silva staggered and susceptible to the subsequent ground-and-pound that ultimately ended the fight.
The fight encountered several interruptions due to eye pokes by Weidman, occurring in both the second and third rounds. In the latter instance, both fighters inadvertently poked each other in the eye simultaneously. This was disappointing considering Weidman, aged 39, displayed a level of dynamism not seen in years, a period during which his record stood at 2-7.
Following the fight’s conclusion, there was a prolonged delay as referee Gary Copeland and the judges deliberated. Initially, there was speculation of a potential no-contest decision, but ultimately Weidman was declared the winner. Silva expressed visible frustration throughout this process.
During his post-fight interview, Weidman admitted to the eye poke and suggested that Silva’s decision to immediately drop to the ground instead of remaining standing was the cause of the confusion:
Following the interview, the ESPN broadcast clarified that the bout had officially been declared a unanimous decision victory. The judges determined that the eye pokes inflicted by Weidman had rendered Silva unable to continue, prompting the fight to be decided by the scorecards. Each of the three judges scored the match as a 30-27 victory for Weidman.
The comprehensive clarification provided was that following the eye pokes, the fight was stopped and taken to the scorecards. It was determined that the eye pokes had caused significant interference, leading to the fight’s cessation before it could be restarted. Initially declared as a TKO victory, the commission conducted a review and concluded that the eye pokes had impacted the fight too severely to allow for a TKO victory. Consequently, the fight was halted, and the scoring was based on the rounds completed up to that point. The judges scored the first two rounds in favor of Weidman, and the third round was scored up until the moment of the stoppage.