UFC: Uriah Hall opens up on weight cut that hospitalized him

Talented middleweight Uriah Hall will break his hiatus at UFC 226 in July as he faces another dangerous middleweight in Paulo Costa. Hall last fought in September 2017 against Krzysztof Jotko. He made a comeback to defeat Jotko in the second round and snapped his three fight losing streak.

Hall was scheduled to fight former UFC heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort at Fight Night 124 in January. However it was announced that Hall did not make it to weigh-ins as he fainted en route to the weight-ins and the bout was cancelled.

Paige VanZant called it one of the scariest things she’d ever seen. Hall doesn’t remember much of the incident, yet he tried to recall in an interview with ESPN.

“I was walking to the elevator and boom, just like that, I collapsed. I was in the elevator holding on to my best friend – apparently I bit him, to hold on to him. I passed out again … woke up and there were EMTs, a guy was trying to get a needle in me, and I remember swinging. I wasn’t in control of my body.

“I woke up in the hospital and was screaming for water. ‘Give me water! Give me water!’ They said, ‘We can’t give you water yet,’ for whatever reason. I grabbed my sister and said, ‘Tell them to please give me a sip of water.’ I never felt so thirsty in my life. They finally gave me a sip, and I passed out.”

Hall confirmed that he suffered ‘acute kidney failure’ and even had a ‘mini-seizure’.

“I made weight,” Hall said. “And I remember just feeling, ‘alright, let me just make it downstairs to the scale.”

“The guys at the UFC (Performance Institute) said he’s the, what’s the word – he doesn’t take it serious,” White said after Hall’s bout was called off. “He doesn’t take his training serious. He doesn’t do what anybody tells him. He does his own thing. A week before the fight, he went to L.A. and was hanging out in L.A. in clubs and stuff. So, not good.”

“I’ve cut weight over 20 times,” Hall said. “I’m used to it. That one margin of error, that’s what cost me. I neglected a health issue. I didn’t pay attention to my body. My will took over – I would say my ego took over. There’s a time you need to listen to your body.”