Chris Weidman wasn’t expecting to be named to the 2026 UFC Hall of Fame class.
Weidman (16-8 MMA, 12-8 UFC), a former UFC middleweight champion who defended his title three times and scored an all-time octagon upset at UFC 162 in July 2013 when he halted the record winning streak of Anderson Silva, was thrown for a loop earlier this month when news broke that he would be enshrined in the Hall of Fame this summer.
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Weidman will join a 2026 class that includes former UFC champions Demetrious Johnson and Dominick Cruz, longtime UFC writer Thomas Gerbasi, as well as the UFC 248 classic fight between Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Zhang Weili.
UFC made a point to keep the news of Weidman’s induction hush before surprising him with a video package during UFC 327 in Newark, N.J. The plan went well, because Weidman said he truly had no idea.
“It’s a huge honor – I was completely caught off guard with it,” Weidman told MMA Junkie Radio. “Was not expecting it. I was working the desk and they asked me and Dustin (Poirier) to walk down cageside they could pan one of the camera over to us during one of the fights and promote the post-fight show. Me and Dustin were both saying the same thing. We’re like, ‘It’s a little weird. Why can’t they just do that same shot from the desk?’ But they had a plan. They surprised me. I was completely clueless and it was an awesome surprise and I’m honored. It was very exciting and it’s been such a long road, and to get the love like that and be honored with the ultimate honor you can get, is really cool.”
After starting his career with 13 consecutive victories that included two wins over Silva, and defenses against Vitor Belfort and Lyoto Machida, Weidman fell off from peak form and went 3-8 in his final 11 fights under the UFC banner.
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Given his end, Weidman never felt certain his day would come to join the most prestigious acknowledgment of legacy the sport offer.
“After I had my first loss, I lost a lot,” Weidman said. “Thank God they measure you from your prime. Because if it was my post-prime, I’m not in the Hall of Fame. I’m glad I did some great things while I was young and it’s cool to be respected for that.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Chris Weidman ‘caught off guard’ by UFC Hall of Fame induction
