Rafael Fiziev repairs ACL again, vows to return 'even stronger' after UFC Vegas 79 injury
08/10/2023 22:00
UFC lightweight standout Rafael Fiziev successfully underwent surgery for his second ACL injury.
Fiziev on Saturday announced his surgery after suffering a brutal knee injury in his UFC Vegas 79 headliner against Mateusz Gamrot.
Just done surgery on my left acl. Same injury I had 3 years ago. I will come back even stronger. Recovery starts now. Thanks for the support.
Just done surgery on my left acl. Same injury I had 3 years ago. I will come back even stronger. Recovery starts now. Thanks for the support
— Rafael "Ataman" Fiziev (@RafaelFiziev) October 7, 2023
Fiziev earned unanimous 10-9 scores in the first round of his bout with Gamrot, which took place Sept. 23 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. But in the second, he suffered an obvious injury when throwing a kick and collapsed to the mat, forcing the injury TKO stoppage at the 2:03 mark of the round.
Gamrot secured a spot as the backup fighter for a lightweight title rematch between champ Islam Makhachev and ex-champ Charles Oliveira at UFC 294. Fiziev's loss was his second straight after a decision setback against former interim champ Justin Gaethje at UFC 286.
