Ray Longo is nervous about how Chris Weidman’s leg will hold up in his return.
Weidman (15-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC) returns from an over two-year long layoff against Brad Tavares (19-9 MMA, 14-8 UFC) on Saturday at UFC 292, which takes place at TD Garden in Boston and airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
Weidman suffered a gruesome leg break in his past outing against Uriah Hall at UFC 261 in April 2021, which required multiple procedures to repair.
“I’m a little nervous,” Longo told CBS Sports. “I’m a little nervous about the injury, because if he fights the fight we want him to fight, he’s telling (reporters) he’s going to kick the guy as hard as he can – and he might. He’s that guy. I just … I don’t know. I’ll get over it, but I think I’m a little nervous about the leg. It would kill me if he hurt that leg again.”
A titanium rod was placed in Weidman’s right leg, but Longo remains worried. He says leg kicks are part of Weidman’s weapons, so he expects him to throw them.
“Supposedly, it’s like a bionic leg now,” Longo said. “He did throw it in the gym, but he didn’t go shin to shin. It was on the heavy bag, but he was whipping it. He was a vicious leg kicker back in the day. (He) never really got to show it too much in the UFC, but he dropped a lot of guys in the gym with leg kicks back in the day. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. That’s the only thing I’m nervous about. I just don’t want to see him get hurt with the leg.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.
