In the coming weeks there is going to be a lot of talk about Chris Weidman and if he can be the man to finally stop Anderson Silva’s immortal reign over the UFC Middleweight division. Weidman trains with Matt Serra, who has become a mainstay in his corner and a vital part of his team, but it appears that due to some circumstances, Serra will not be able to travel to make it to the fight, which will leave Weidman without one of his mentors in his corner.
According to trainer Ray Longo, Serra won’t be able to make the trip out to Las Vegas for UFC 162. In April, it was discovered that Serra had thoracic outlet syndrome, which caused his rib and collarbone to compress a vein, restrict blood flow and cause clots. He required surgery to remove his first rib, the one closest to his collarbone. Unfortunately since then, he had another setback.
While the onetime welterweight champion is currently on the mend with a better outlook, the health scare combined with the June 8 birth of his third daughter Sofia forced his decision. Weidman has been a part of the Serra-Longo fight team from his first day in the sport, and in a way he is trying to emulate his coach by upsetting one of the sport’s all-time greatest champions, as Serra did to Georges St-Pierre in 2007.