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Some UFC fighters have been lucky enough to survive near-death situations. The amount of hard training, discipline, and dieting that goes into preparing for a fight can have huge side effects.
Mixed martial arts is a full-contact sport and injuries are always going to be part and parcel of the activity. The sport also encompasses numerous other aspects like weight cutting which, if done wrongly, could prove very dangerous for a fighter's well-being.
However, in this article we aren't talking about injuries, but some of the near-career-ending medical issues, which apart from taking away a fighter's career, were close enough to kill them.
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So let's take a look at 5 UFC careers that were nearly ended by medical issues.
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#5. Khamzat Chimaev - UFC welterweight
Khamzat Chimaev, along with some other UFC athletes, caught COVID-19 during the pandemic. Chimaev got infected while he was in Sweden and continued to train despite being ill. 'Borz' ended up in the hospital several times as he was facing severe breathing issues.
It got so bad that his coaches and manager were concerned for his life. As his condition wasn't getting better, he was flown to Las Vegas for treatment. He was given medication and told to rest by the doctors. The Swedish wrestler then went to the gym and sparred a few rounds.
But after reaching home, he started coughing up blood. He subsequently announced his retirement on Instagram.
Chimaev flew home to Chechnya, where he took proper rest and care of himself. He eventually recovered from COVID and started training once again.
#4. Micheal Bisping - UFC middleweight
Michael Bisping was head kicked by Vitor Belfort and after the fight, he found out that he had a detached retina. Bisping had two surgeries performed on his eye but to no avail. The retina was getting detached again and again. Bisping was experiencing a lot of pain once he reached home and was taken to the hospital where they performed a minor surgery on his eye which took the pain away.
Doctors told 'The Count' that he may never be able to fight again, but the British striker didn't listen to them and eventually made his way to capturing the UFC middleweight championship. Bisping’s accomplishments are unique because he was able to beat Anderson Silva, Luke Rockhold, and Dan Henderson with vision in just one eye.
#3. Brock Lesnar - UFC heavyweight
Brock Lesnar was then at the top of his career in mixed martial arts after capturing the title and defending it against Frank Mir. Lesnar was booked to fight Shane Carwin next but had to pull out. He was suffering from infectious mononucleosis.
Dana White announced that Lesnar was not well and wouldn't be able to compete for some time. The heavyweight champion had also developed diverticulosis which requires immediate surgery. On the operating table, the doctors found out that his intestines had been leaking as well, which had been causing him serious pain.
He was cleared of diverticulosis but it came back in 2011 and this time he had a foot of his colon removed. Lesnar made a return against Alaister Overeem, a fight which he lost very badly but given what he had gone through, the performance was quite understandable.
#2. Robert Whittaker - UFC middleweight
Robert Whittaker was booked to defend his title against Luke Rockhold at UFC 221 but had to pull out due to a staph infection. Unfortunately, the infection wasn't treated properly and before the Australian knew it, the infection had tainted his stomach.
The infection started to eat away at Whittaker's organs. 'The Reaper' somehow managed to regain his fitness and recover from the illness. At UFC 234, after making weight for his fight against Kelvin Gastelum, the former middleweight champion started to experience sharp pain in his stomach.
The pain got worse and worse and he was eventually shifted to the hospital. Whittaker was diagnosed with an abdominal hernia and a twisted and collapsed bowel. He was on the verge of getting his intestines busted, which could have meant him losing his life.
Whittaker was out for another eight months before finally returning to face Israel Adesanya in Australia.
Here is a video of Whittaker discussing his injuries with Ariel Helwani:
#1. Khabib Nurmagomedov - UFC lightweight
In 2017, Khabib Nurmagomedov was heading for the biggest fight of his life against Tony Ferguson for the interim lightweight championship. But 'The Eagle' almost died from a bad weight cut and was rushed immediately to the hospital. Nurmagomedov said every part of his body was in pain and he felt like he was about to die. Previous injuries combined with the near-death experience caused by the botched weight cut took a massive mental toll on him.
The Russian wanted to end his fighting career as he wasn't able to tolerate the setbacks that came continuously at him. He was motivated by his father to continue fighting despite these major difficulties and he did just that, capturing the lightweight title in the process. Nurmagomedov retired with an undefeated record of 29-0.
Watch this video explaining every injury Khabib Nurmagomedov suffered:
