Bellator 286 started in the most brutal way possible. Richard Palencia (10-1 MMA) found himself writhing in pain, clutching his lower leg.
Palencia threw a calf kick which his opponent Cee Jay Hamilton (16-9 MMA), checked perfectly. Immediately, he stumbled back, putting pressure on the injured leg, which inevitably gave way.
He then collapsed in extreme discomfort, clutching his leg. Hamilton immediately notified the official about the apparent injury with disgust on his face. The referee waved off the fight just 12 seconds into the second round. Hamilton snaps Palencia’s nine-year unbeaten streak and secures the upset TKO victory in Long Beach.
Check out the gruesome injury in the video below:
Richard Palencia joins an interesting list of fighters
After going undefeated in amateur and pro MMA, Palencia suffered his first defeat in what some would call a very unfortunate way. He joins a list of high-calibre fighters who have suffered the same injury. More recently, the leg breaks of Conor McGregor and Chris Weidman come to mind. Anderson Silva also suffered the same injury against Christ Weidman before Weidman suffered the same injury in a bizarre twist of fate.
Cee Jay Hamilton snaps his two-fight losing skid and gets his first win inside the Bellator cage. After back-to-back losses to Magomed Magomedov in his Bellator and then Matheus Mattos just a few months later. After two cancelled bouts, Hamilton found himself on a fifteen-month layoff leading up to his fight with Palencia.
Palencia put his hand up to the crowd as he was stretchered out by medical staff. He seemed to be in relatively good spirits as he was being transported from the cage. The injury is a Severe one that sees athletes sidelined for months and sometimes years.
An update later from Simon Samano of USATODAY sports said, per a Bellator official, Palencia suffered a broken fibia and tibia, both bones that make up the calf.
Bellator 286 had some crazy moments. Let us know some of your favourites in the comments below!
Featured image credits to Bellator MMA
