"That was gnarly!" - Fans react to exact moment Chris Padilla's nasty elbow left Rong Zhu's eye sealed shut at UFC Vegas 97 

Chris Padilla's KO win over Rong Zhu at UFC Vegas 97 has garnered attention from fans worldwide. Many admired Padilla's vicious right elbow, which left Zhu unable to continue, while some expressed their support for the latter's quick recovery.

Padilla squared off against Zhu in a lightweight bout on the main card of UFC Vegas 97, which is currently taking place at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Padilla entered the fight with a four-fight win streak. The 28-year-old's most recent fight at UFC Vegas 91 was his promotional debut, where he beat James Llontop via first-round submission. Meanwhile, Zhu defeated Shin Haraguchi via third-round submission at the UFC - Road to UFC Season 2: Las Vegas Finals in February.

Zhu came out strong from the opening bell, landing heavy kicks and punches on his opponent. Padilla tried to get back in the game by striking, but the Chinese fighter was able to counter his attacks rather easily.

Padilla asserted his superiority early in the second round, but Zhu wasn't about to back down. After both fighters delivered powerful blows, Padilla brutally elbowed Zhu, causing his left eye to swell instantly.

This prompted the ringside doctor to step in and call off the bout, awarding Padilla the TKO win despite Zhu protesting the stoppage.

Check out Chris Padilla's KO win below:

Fans soon rushed to the comments section to share their reactions, with one of them writing:

''That was gnarly! Hope it’s just swelling and nothing too crazy''

Another fan stated:

''Rong got elbowed so hard he thought he was @NateDiaz209 for a few seconds.''

Other fans wrote:

''This Elbow was TEXTBOOK''

''Absolutely brutal elbow, I hope he recovers ok''

Check out more fan reactions below:

Screenshot of fan reactions to UFC 's post on X