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Rafael Fiziev underwent surgery after breaking his nose while receiving the first punch from Rafael dos Anjos during his win at UFC Vegas 58 on July 9.
In a new episode of The MMA Hour, Fiziev revealed the instance when he broke his nose in his fight with the Brazilian. He also gave an update on his injury after undergoing surgery on Wednesday:
"I think this first round, with his first punch. Yeah, I think his first left hand. The whole fight I feel my nose closed, can't breathe. I'm feeling great after surgery just a couple of days ago to take off this s*** out from my nose. After surgery, five days I can't sleep on the broken nose, it's really s*** man. But, now it's good, it's all good."
Despite the injury, the Kyrgyzstani fighter continued to keep up with his opponent, eventually securing a KO in the final round. With the win, 'Ataman' now extends his streak to six fights. He called out Justin Gaethje for a fight in his post-fight interview.
Ironically, Gaethje is also recovering from surgery to the nose and could return towards the end of the year. With Fiziev continuing his hot streak in the lightweight division, he will provide 'The Highlight' with a stern test if the two are to fight in the near future.
Watch Fiziev reveal his injury status on The MMA Hour below:
Rafael Fiziev believes Dustin Poirier is avoiding a potential fight
Rafael Fiziev believes former interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier is ducking a potential fight with him. Speaking to Andrew Whitelaw from Sportskeeda MMA, Fiziev claimed that 'The Diamond' runs away from fights, while avoiding fighters like him:
"He still tries to run for sure, if everything will be good, you see, just remember my words. This guy, he runs, he [will] never want to fight with people like me."
Poirier is coming off a loss to Charles Oliveira, who was stripped of his title after failing to make weight at UFC 274 against Justin Gaethje. With Fiziev one of the most in-form fighters in the lightweight division, he could well pull off a monumental upset against Poirier in a potential match-up.
Watch the entire exclusive with Rafael Fiziev below:
