5 times a UFC fighter suffered a serious injury mid-fight and went on to win

#2. Georges St-Pierre – torn groin vs. Thiago Alves at UFC 100

Georges St-Pierre was able to fight through a torn groin to defeat Thiago Alves

Widely recognized as the greatest fighter in MMA history, Georges St-Pierre won the UFC welterweight title for the second time in April 2008. He went on to defend it successfully on nine occasions before stepping away in 2013.

Which title challenger was his toughest test is probably a fair debate. While many fans would point to his final victory over Johny Hendricks, there’s no doubt that the fight that left him with the most damage came against Thiago Alves.

‘The Pitbull’ earned his shot at GSP by beating the likes of Matt Hughes, Karo Parisyan and Josh Koscheck. When it came to a fight with the Canadian, he was sorely overmatched.

Alves was unable to get his trademark violent Muay Thai game going, particularly his leg kicks. When GSP began to take him down with some heavy double leg takedowns, it looked like he’d cruise to victory.

However, the Canadian had an issue when the third round ended. As he headed into his corner, he told coach Greg Jackson that he’d torn his groin. In a classic response, clearly recognizing the toughness of his fighter, Jackson simply told St-Pierre that he didn’t care, and even told him to hit Alves with his groin!

Sure enough, GSP came out for the fourth round looking no worse for wear and continued to dominate ‘The Pitbull’ en route to a five-round decision win, before promptly heading off to rehab the injury.

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#1. Jon Jones – broken toe vs. Chael Sonnen at UFC 159

Had Jon Jones' toe injury against Chael Sonnen been noticed by the referee, he likely would've lost his title

It’s probably fair to say that Jon Jones’ light heavyweight title defense against Chael Sonnen at UFC 159 was probably one of the most one-sided title bouts in the promotion’s history. However, had things gone slightly differently, it could easily have been Sonnen coming away with his hand raised as the new champion.

Essentially, the fight went exactly as Jones had hoped. He took ‘The American Gangster’ down early on, pinned him to the ground and then went to work with elbows and punches until referee Keith Peterson had seen enough.

Incredibly, though, it was only when the fight was over that Jones noticed he’d suffered a serious toe injury in defeating Sonnen. The injury was so gnarly that ‘Bones’ had to immediately be offered a stool to sit on, as it looked like he might collapse due to the shock.

Replays eventually showed what happened; as Jones attempted to take Sonnen down early in the fight, his toe rolled underneath his foot, snapping and almost tearing off entirely.

It was the kind of injury that would immediately have forced a doctor to stop the fight had it been noted. So, had Jones failed to finish ‘The American Gangster’ before the end of the first round, he likely would’ve lost his title via TKO.

As it was, though, ‘Bones’ held onto the gold, although he did explain that the injury and the rehab that followe, prevented him from going on vacation to Jamaica directly after the fight. Given what could’ve happened, this was clearly the lesser of two evils!