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The UFC is no place for the faint-hearted. Naturally, every time a fighter steps into the octagon, they’re risking life and limb on a quest for fans, money and fame.
While the UFC quite rightly prides itself on its excellent fighter safety record, we have seen a number of nasty injuries inside the octagon that have made fans wince over the years.
Thankfully these kinds of injuries are not a common occurrence in the UFC, but when they do happen, it’s both nasty to see and hard to take your eyes off.
With this mind, here are five of the nastiest-looking injuries in UFC history.
#5. Conor McGregor – broken ankle – UFC 264
Conor McGregor is easily the biggest star in UFC history. However, even star power couldn’t prevent ‘The Notorious’ from suffering a horrendous injury at UFC 264 in his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier.
Looking to avenge his loss at UFC 257, McGregor came out fast, using some low kicks to soften Poirier up. But when ‘The Diamond’ managed to force him into the cage and then escaped a guillotine, it was all downhill for the Irishman.
He took some heavy shots from underneath Poirier. When he escaped to his feet, he ate a big combination that caused him to stumble back before falling to a seated position against the fence.
McGregor was saved by the buzzer signifying the end of the round, but it quickly became clear that he couldn’t continue, and the fight was stopped. When replays were shown, it became evident what’d happened. As McGregor stumbled back, his left ankle rolled, snapping his tibia in the process.
We’ve seen various suggestions since, including that McGregor initially injured his ankle when Poirier blocked a low kick, but nobody can really be sure of that.
‘The Notorious’ was at pains to attempt to ensure that the fight was announced as a doctor’s stoppage rather than a TKO. To tell the truth, it didn’t make a whole lot of difference.
This was still one of the nastiest injuries in UFC history, and it was no surprise to see McGregor leave the arena on a stretcher afterwards. How long it’ll be before we see him in the octagon again is anyone’s guess.
#4. Jon Jones – broken toe – UFC 159
Jon Jones’ UFC light heavyweight title defense against Chael Sonnen at UFC 159 was among the most straightforward of his career. ‘Bones’ took Sonnen down and worked him over from the top. He eventually stopped ‘The American Gangster’ via TKO with just 30 seconds to go in the first round.
If Sonnen had been able to survive for those final 30 seconds, Jones could well have lost his title thanks to one of the most horrible-looking injuries in UFC history.
The injury came to light after the fight was over. Jones glanced down at his left foot during his post-fight interview and suddenly had to sit on his stool in horror.
Essentially, Jones’ left big toe was practically hanging off. Not only had the toe become dislocated during the fight, but it was also badly broken, with the bone clearly sticking through the skin. It was a horrifying visual and quite how ‘Bones’ hadn’t noticed the injury during the fight was anyone’s guess.
How did he suffer the injury? Replays appeared to show that the toe snapped while Jones was driving forward for a takedown. This makes it one of the most unfortunate and freakish injuries in UFC history, as well as one of the worst to see.
Thanks to his ground-and-pound though, Jones managed to stop the fight before anyone noticed his toe hanging off, meaning he held onto his title – and spent five months on the shelf to heal up.
#3. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira – broken arm – UFC 140
There have been a number of broken arms in UFC history, with the most recent suffered by Jamahal Hill at the hands of Paul Craig at UFC 263. However, easily the nastiest broken arm was suffered by legendary heavyweight Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 140.
Nogueira faced old rival Frank Mir, and ‘Minotauro’ was desperate to avenge a loss he’d suffered at the hands of Mir at UFC 92 in 2008. Early on in the fight, it looked like he’d pull it off.
Nogueira wobbled Mir with a series of punches. When the former champion shot in desperately for a takedown, Nogueira made the error of diving for a guillotine rather than attempting to finish him with strikes.
Mir looked to be in trouble inside the hold before quickly reversing it. In a beautiful piece of grappling, he managed to switch position entirely and get a kimura lock on the Brazilian’s right arm.
Nogueira tried to roll free, but to no avail. Mir then torqued on the limb, which broke like a twig, making an audible snapping sound that horrified the crowd.
When the fight was said and done, Nogueira’s arm was hanging limp at his side, as he’d suffered probably the worst arm injury in UFC history. Unfortunately, he was never really the same again.
#2. Anderson Silva – broken leg – UFC 168
When Chris Weidman unseated legendary UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva at UFC 162, it would’ve been easy for ‘The All-American’ to get carried away with his achievement.
However, Weidman’s cornermen – Ray Longo and Matt Serra – actually weren’t impressed with the amount of leg kicks he took in the opening round. And so they drilled Weidman on exactly how to check a leg kick.
Nobody could’ve seen the impact that the training would have on Weidman’s rematch with ‘The Spider’, which came six months later at UFC 168.
The first round clearly went to Weidman, who once again hurt Silva with his striking. It was clear that the former champion needed to turn things around in the second round. Silva came out on the offensive and went back to the strike that’d worked so well in their first fight – the leg kick.
Except when he threw a left leg kick this time, Weidman quickly pulled his leg into the air to check it. Silva’s shin connected with Weidman’s, and as he stepped back, it suddenly became clear what’d happened.
His leg had snapped, and was now swinging all over the place like it’d been transformed into a flipper. Silva collapsed in agony, and his attempt to regain the UFC middleweight title was over in an instant.
‘The Spider’ would return after rehabbing the injury, but won just one of his next seven UFC fights – and never gained revenge on Weidman.
#1. Chris Weidman – broken leg – UFC 261
As the old saying goes, “what goes around, comes around”. Anderson Silva was not able to gain revenge over Chris Weidman after breaking his leg in their rematch. But when Weidman fought Uriah Hall at UFC 261, it was hard not to believe that karma was working somehow.
The fight began and after the two middleweights touched gloves, Weidman attempted some jabs before throwing a hard leg kick with his right leg.
Hall didn’t outright check the kick as Weidman had done against Silva. However, it was instantly clear that the strike hadn’t gone how ‘The All-American’ was hoping it would.
With a scream of agony, Weidman collapsed to the ground. As referee Herb Dean stepped in to stop the fight, UFC fans were treated to the horrific visual of a clear break in his shin. The former champion’s leg was flapping around just as Silva’s had done some seven years prior.
If anything, this was a worse injury than the one suffered by Silva, as replays seemed to suggest Weidman put all of his weight on the broken limb after throwing the kick.
Whether Weidman will ever return to the UFC following this injury is anyone’s guess, but it’s safe to say that fate definitely conspired against him in this fight.
