Weidman took down Belfort and unloaded a series of punishing shots, forcing referee Herb Dean to stop the title fight at the 2:07 mark of the first round.
It was Weidman's third successful title defense, following a stoppage of Anderson Silva in December 2013 and a decision over Lyoto Machida at UFC 175 in July 2014.
Weidman was in trouble in the early minutes as Belfort connected on left hands and uppercuts that forced the champion to go on the defensive. He was able to take control of the fight, however, and Belfort had no answer for the brutal ground-and-pound that Weidman unleashed.
"He hit me with some good shots, but I've been there in sparring," Weidman said after the fight, as quoted by the Associated Press. "I was just covering, covering, covering, and I was ready to come back."
Belfort, for his part, offered no excuses.
"He got me in a bad position, and he got some strikes. There's no excuse. He was a better man tonight," said the Brazilian fighter.
Weidman remains unbeaten in his MMA career with a 13-0 record, while Belfort dropped to 24-11.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
