A former UFC champion is making his long awaited return. This afternoon Mark La Monica broke the news that former middleweight champion Chris Weidman (15-6) will be making his return as he takes on Brad Tavares (19-8) in August.
The bout takes place at UFC 292 in Boston on August 19th. Before diving into Chris Weidman and his return, let’s focus on his opponent for August 19th in Brad Tavares. Tavares will be looking to snap out of his current two-fight losing streak that’s seen him bounced from the middleweight rankings.
Tavares has been with the UFC for over 13 years now. He made his octagon debut in the Ultimate Fighter finale against Court McGee where he came up short in winning TUF. However, he’s had a lengthy and successful octagon career to this point.
Last time we saw Tavares was against Bruno Silva back in April. Tavares was knocked out in the first round. That was really the first loss of his octagon career where he lost against a guy who wasn’t near the top of the division. Notable losses include Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker, Dricus Du Plessis and Yoel Romero.
Tavares has been in there against top competition so he isn’t going to be afraid of the moment. This Hawaiian is going to be looking to play spoiler at UFC 292.
UFC 292’s Return
Now let’s move over to the main story of this fight and that’s former UFC champion Chris Weidman. This will be the first time we’ve seen Weidman inside the octagon since April 2021. Weidman was on the first PPV that welcomed back a full arena in Jacksonville.
Weidman took on Uriah Hall in that matchup. It was Weidman’s second fight since returning to 185 after a one-fight stop at light heavyweight. In his first fight, Weidman defeated Omari Akhmedov and was the betting favorite against Hall. However, on the first powerful leg kick he threw, Weidman snapped his leg at UFC 261.
It’s been a long recovery for Weidman who has had many setbacks along the way. However, he’s finally healthy and he’s ready to return. When he makes the walk, Weidman will be 39-years-old. No telling how much longer he’ll be fighting, but it will be great to see the former champ make the walk after such a devastating injury.