Shaquille O'Neal was left visibly stunned when UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili lifted him off the ground. Standing at a listed 5-foot-4, Weili weighs in at just 115 pounds for her UFC fights, while likely walking around somewhere around 130 pounds between fights. Given that, few could have predicted that she would be capable of lifting 7-foot-1 Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal.
After Weili approached O'Neal, he seemed to be ready to let her throw a punch at him. Putting his hands behind his head, the four-time NBA champ was ready to let the UFC champ unload on him, when she explained with the help of a translator that she wanted to see if she could lift him using a 'high-crotch' takedown for leverage.
Once Shaquille O'Neal understood the request, he quickly found himself being lifted off the ground by the women's strawweight champ. Immediately, O'Neal's eyes got big as he realized what was happening, before Zhang Weili put him carefully back down on the ground.
The situation quickly caught the attention of fans online after the UFC champ posted the footage on her Instagram. Given that while wearing shoes, Zhang Weili barely comes up to Shaquille O'Neal's chest, the fact that she was able to lift him took many fans by surprise.
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Shaquille O'Neal's previous interaction with a high-profile member of the MMA community
Shaq's recent run-in with Zhang Weili wasn't the only interaction he's had with a famous person from MMA community. Last summer, O'Neal boarded a boat and met up with one of the most influential members of the MMA community - Hasbulla Magomedov.
Hasbulla, unlike Zhang Weili, is not a UFC champion. In fact, he isn't even a UFC fighter. Despite that, he has garnered tremendous popularity online for his hilarious antics, and his friendship with Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov and lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
Amid a world tour that saw him meet with fans all around the globe, Hasbulla linked up with Shaquille O'Neal. The video quickly went viral as the 3-foot-4 personality was in awe when the Hall of Famer walked through the door. Over the course of the day, they filmed videos together, including the one below
In fact, some fans may remember that in 2010, Shaq was actually a playable character in the UFC Undisputed video game. Although, he never competed in the sport, it's safe to say O'Neal respects MMA fighters and the training they do.
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