The Strangest Injuries Fighters Sustained in the Octagon

MMA is a rather violent and very intense form of fighting that is done in the cage, where fighters go through all sorts of rigorous tests. Although the excitement of fighting and the techniques of different martial arts are engaging in MMA, it is also very dangerous. Bleeders, who are used to going through the most severe pains, have received some of the most peculiar and gruesome injuries in the course of the fighters’ evolution. Such injuries are not only severe but also peculiar and unusual, which makes the audience, athletes, and coaching crews stunned.

Here we take a look at some of the strangest and most unforgettable injuries that fighters have received in the Octagon.

Matt Mitrione’s Double Eye Swelling

Former NFL player turned mixed martial artist Matt ‘The Big Slow’ Mitrione has faced his fair share of hard-hitting opponents, but his fight against Travis Browne at UFC Fight Night 81 in January 2016 shocked fans. In the match, Mitrione received not only one but two incredibly unpleasant eye injuries. Browne poked Mitrione in the right eye, and the eye began to swell immediately, but things escalated to the stranger when Browne landed a clean shot that made the left eye swollen as well. At the end of the fight, Mitrione’s both eyes were swollen, and he could not even open them properly.

This feeling Mitrione later described as being as if he felt like his ‘eye was going to pop out of my head’. The swelling was horrendous, and Mitrione’s face looked like something out of a horror film. It was horrifying to see both of his eyes swell up in such a manner, and although eye injuries are not a rare occurrence in MMA, it had never happened that both his eyes were swollen.

Anderson Silva’s Leg Snap

One of the most horrific incidents in MMA history is the leg injury of Anderson Silva in his fight with Chris Weidman in December 2013 at UFC 168. Silva, who is arguably one of the best fighters in mixed martial arts, was in the process of trying to regain the middleweight belt when he attempted a leg kick, which was met with a good check by Weidman. The impact of the collision led to Silva’s shin being broken and folded around Weidman’s leg in an awful display of human body.

The incident of the leg break of Silva shocked the MMA community, and fans and commentators could not believe their eyes when they saw it. Silva fell to the ground and was writhing in agony as his leg was dislocated. The injury needed surgery to put a titanium rod in his leg, and it took him over a year to be back on his feet. This injury is a vivid illustration of the dangers that the fighters are exposed to every time they step into the Octagon.

Alistair Overeem’s Lip Split

Alistair Overeem, one of the scariest heavyweights in MMA, fought Jairzinho Rozenstruik in the December 2019 UFC on ESPN 7. After four rounds of intensive fighting, it was seen that Overeem got closer to the win. Nevertheless, only a few seconds before the end of the final round, Rozenstruik delivered a punch that cut Overeem’s lip in what can only be described as one of the most unexpected manners.

The punch landed right on Overeem’s upper lip and cut it almost in half up to the nose as a result of the punch. Blood gushed out, and his bottom lip hung low as he moved around the Octagon like a punch-drunk fighter. The extent of the injury was rather gruesome, but Overeem was rather composed and even walked out of the cage on his own. The cut needed many stitches to close it, but it just shows how strong and hardy any of the MMA fighters are, given that Overeem did not even flinch at having a part of his face cut open.

Jon Jones’ Toe Break

It is a known fact that even the best fighters are not safe from freak injuries, and Jon “Bones” Jones is considered one of the best fighters in MMA history. In his match against Chael Sonnen at UFC 159 in April 2013, Jones clearly won the fight, which was stopped in the first round. However, during the fight, Jones suffered a bizarre and painful injury: His right big toe was avulsed, or nearly severed from the rest of the toe.

Jones himself could not know how serious the injury was until after the bout, when he tried to look down and found his toe loose. It was a bad break that the bone was actually broken through the skin, and I don’t know how the fight wasn’t stopped because of it. If the fight had continued for a longer duration, Jones may have had to retire from the bout, and this would have shifted the fortunes of the match. Although the injury was as peculiar and repulsive as it could have been, Jones was able to take the victory; however, the fight was a clear indication that not even toes would be safe in the course of the fight.

Leslie Smith’s Exploding Ear

In her UFC debut fight in November 2014 at the UFC 180 event, Leslie Smith fought Jessica Eye in a bantamweight category, and this particular fight was one of the strangest cases of injury in UFC history. Eye struck a good punch, which hit Smith’s ear, which had been previously swollen due to hematoma formation. The punch to the head made Smith’s ear burst, and blood started to come out of it in a very disgusting fashion that made the audience wince.

Smith, the warrioress that she was, did not give up easily, and she was still fighting with her ear that was hanging by the thread. The referee, however, had no option but to stop the bout because of the extent of the injury. Smith’s ear that was detached from the head almost beyond recognition remained one of the most sensational injuries witnessed in the Octagon.

Tim Sylvia’s Broken Arm

In one of the initial UFC events, the heavyweight contender Tim Sylvia fought Frank Mir for the title of the vacant heavyweight champion on June 19th, 2004 at UFC 48. The fight was not long, but it was one of the most brutal that gave the most shocking moment of the injury in MMA history. Mir, a submission specialist, submitted Sylvia with an armbar in the course of the first round of the fight. When Sylvia attempted to muscle her way out of the submission, Mir tightened the armbar, and there was a snap.

In the match, Mir had injured Sylvia’s arm, and in fact, Sylvia’s forearm was actually broken in that very match, but Sylvia wanted to keep on fighting and seemed to be ignorant of her plight. The fight was stopped by the referee, which did not go well with Sylvia. He had a cast on his arm, which he claimed had been broken and had to be operated on to put a metal plate. The desire of Sylvia to continue fighting with a broken arm is both inspiring and disturbing, as it reveals just how hardhearted these MMA fighters are.

Randy Couture’s Torn Ear

Other legends of the sport, such as Randy Couture, also had their own share of fights, and one of the strange injuries that he had was not in his title fight bout but when he was fighting with Vitor Belfort in UFC 46 in 2004. In the initial rounds of the fight, Belfort landed a punch that hit Couture’s eye and opened up a gash on his eyelid. As much as the cut was painful and a cause for worry, Couture also left the ring with an even rarer injury whereby his ear was almost bitten off.

The clash was stopped because of the deep gash, and Couture was defeated by a technical verdict in the match. Although not as unpleasant as some of the other injuries on this list, the interaction of the eyelid cut and the torn ear was perhaps one of the most bizarre incidents in the history of MMA.

Corey Hill’s Leg Break

Corey Hill’s leg break at UFC: The incident of Fight for the Troops in December 2008 is one of the most gruesome and shocking injuries ever seen in the Octagon. Hill, a featherweight fighter who was 6’4” tall, was a tall fighter in the division. In one of the rounds, Hill was in the middle of his battle with Dale Hartt when he attempted a leg kick, which was blocked by Hartt. To be specific, Hill’s leg was broken in a manner that made it look like the Anderson Silva kick.

His lower leg was twisted at a very unnatural angle, and the poor man fell to the canvas, writhing in pain. The fight was stopped right away, and Hill had to be taken to the hospital for surgery. Due to the severity of the injury, it took over one year for Hill to fully recover from the injury. Unfortunately, Hill was never able to play at the same level after the injury, and it became one of the most significant events in his football career.

Mike Perry’s Nose Break

Mike Perry is a tough nut who loves to get into wild scraps and was left with one of the most grotesque injuries this year after his fight against Vicente Luque at UFC Uruguay in August 2019. Luque delivered a knee to Perry’s face that broke his nose and bent it to the point where it was pointing in several different directions.

Perry was hit very low, but he never gave up, and he was able to stand till the last round was called. The only part that suffered a lot was his nose, which was badly damaged and needed to be reset and reconstructed through surgery. The photo of Perry’s distorted nose is one of the most iconic moments in his career, and it gives a glimpse of how violent MMA is as a sport.

Conclusion

MMA fighters know that injuries are part and parcel of the game, but some injuries are not ordinary injuries. These peculiar and violent wounds are a good indication of the strength and endurance of the athletes who enter the cage. MMA has witnessed some of the sickest and weirdest injuries ever seen in sports, from exploded ears to snapped legs and shattered faces. Still, the pain and the scars are there, and yet fighters keep on pushing their bodies to the limit, which in effect underscores the fact that they are among the most rugged athletes known to man.