Baldwin's Weidman wins again

The rise of Chris Weidman, a 2002 state high school wrestling champion and a graduate of BHS, to the top of the mixed martial arts world continued over the weekend when the 185-pound prospect bested Tom Lawlor in the first round of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s UFC 139.

Fighting in San Jose, Calif., Weidman, a two-time All-American wrestler at Nassau Community College and Hofstra, evaded his opponent’s blows in the opening seconds of the bout, scored a takedown before the first minute expired and established a fight-clinching chokehold at 2:52 of Round One. Weidman (who was 4-0 in the Ring of Combat fighting league and has won 3 consecutive fights since joining the UFC,) was in such a tight clench with Lawlor (7-4) that he had to tell the referee that Lawlor had lost consciousness. In what commentators called a show of good sportsmanship, Weidman stayed on the mat with his vanquished foe, rubbing his chest until he came to.

In a stroke of good fortune for Weidman, the undercard for UFC 139 — the bouts shoring up the marquee match between Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson and former UFC titleholder Mauricio “Shogun” Rua — was filled with quick, decisive fights. This meant that Weidman’s convincing performance was shown in full on Spike TV’s coverage of the event.

Weidman, who trains with another Nassau County product, Matt Sera, has been perfect in 2011 prompting mixed martial arts pundits to predict 2012 could be a breakout year for the middleweight. Many are already calling for fight promoters to pit Weidman against a higher class of opponent.