How did Conor McGregor break his ankle?

Conor McGregor appeared to have broken his ankle in the main event of UFC 264 at first glance, but it was actually his lower tibia (shinbone) that had snapped. The former two-division UFC champion fractured his leg when he stepped back to dodge a punch and planted his left foot awkwardly in the closing seconds of the first round.

It was a shocking ending to the highly-anticipated rubber match between the Irishman and his rival Dustin Poirier. The fight was called off at the end of the opening round after officials examined McGregor's leg and determined that the Dublin native would not be able to continue fighting.

"This is not over!"Conor McGregor isn't ready to close the chapter...#UFC264 pic.twitter.com/XCUbJrztki

— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) July 11, 2021

Before the freak accident took place, however, Poirier looked like he was on his way to delivering a dominant performance. 'The Diamond' controlled McGregor on the ground for long stretches and peppered him with stinging punches and elbows. Poirier was up 10-8 on two of the judges' scorecards before the fight came to an unceremonious end.

Ahead of UFC 264, McGregor predicted that his rival would leave the octagon on a stretcher. But in a cruel twist of fate, it turned out that it was him who was carried out of the cage.

Doctor weighs in on Conor McGregor's injury

On YouTube, Dr. Brian Sutterer recently posted a video of his official analysis of Conor McGregor's injury. The resident physician of the Mayo Clinic stated that the leg break resulted from accumulative damage rather than a specific moment in the fight:

"I still feel like this was a result of more so cumulative damage rather than one specific check or one specific block. Combined with that ultimate twisting torsion right there that's put through Conor's leg as he goes to plant and step off. Of course, ultimately leading into that inversion position and the completion of that fracture," Sutterer said.

Onwards and upwards we go ☘️ pic.twitter.com/qKgochlT3t

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) July 12, 2021

Conor McGregor underwent a successful three-hour surgery on his broken leg on Sunday morning. After the procedure, the Irishman assured his fans that he's doing fine and posted a statement on social media with a timeline for his recovery.