Axel-triple toe combination, a triple Lutz, and a triple Axel. Weir also two-footed the landing on his triple flip, which was supposed to be part of a combination jump but was not because he eliminated a double-toe loop. He received low marks for an upright spin because he did not clearly change skating edges. Lysacek won his second straight gold at Nationals. He and Weir tied for first place, both with a combined score of 244.77 points, but Lysacek was named the U.S. champion because following ISU regulations, he won the free skate (162.72 points to Weir's 161.37 points). It was the first tie at U.S. Nationals since the establishment of the new scoring system. Despite protests from Weir's fans and the media, including charges of homophobia, the results stood. Stephen Carriere, the 2007 World Junior champion, came in third place with 228.06 points. U.S. Figure Skating named Lysacek, Weir, and Carriere eligible to compete at the Worlds Championships. Weir chose not to compete at the Four Continents Championships due to fatigue; he was replaced by Jeremy Abbott, who came in fourth place at U.S. Nationals. Lysacek withdrew from Worlds due to injury; Abbott replaced him as well. At Worlds, Weir was in second place after the short program. His triple Lutz-triple toe combination was "sky high", and he performed high-quality footwork and spins. The Chicago Tribune said his free skate "wasn't memorable", and called it "conservative but relatively error-free". He did not include a triple-triple combination, and his quadruple jump was downgraded to a double. Weir won his first worlds medal, a bronze, with a total score of 221.84 points, and secured three slots for the American men in the 2009 Worlds championship. 2008–2009 season Weir started off the 2008–2009 season, when he was ranked seventh-best in the world, struggling with skate boot problems; his blades were not aligned properly on the new skates he purchased over the summer and did not have the time to break in replacements. For the first time in his career, Weir competed at Skate America, the first Grand Prix event of the season. He came in second place in the short program by less than one point behind Lysacek, and came in second place overall, with 225.20 points. Japanese skater Takahiko Kozuka won the gold medal at the event; Lysacek came in third place overall. Both Weir and Lysacek made minor errors in