The main event of UFC London was a bout between Tom Aspinall and Curtis Blaydes. Sadly, it had a lackluster conclusion. An odd injury suffered by Aspinall 15 seconds into the match caused him to fall to the ground, ending the bout in Blaydes’ favor.
Aspinall seemed to fall after delivering a low kick to his opponent’s leg. It is challenging to determine the precise type or degree of harm under such enigmatic conditions. Incidents like this often sparks discussion in the medical community.
David Abbasi is a sports medicine-certified orthopedic surgeon dealing with several elite players. He was there to provide his expertise. Abbasi began his examination by expressing doubt since the UFC’s viewpoints are not sufficient to make a conclusion.
Abbasi briefly discussed the situation from many perspectives and offered his opinion on Aspinall’s wound:
“Thigh kick to Curtis Blaydes, goes down, lot of pain, nothing obvious here. Obviously no obvious fractures, no compound fractures, no open fractures.”
“The side view here, looks like it may have grazed off Curtis Blaydes’ knee but that was really the shin. So this back view, look at his kneecap, look at how that kneecap jiggles.”
Tom Aspinall Knee Injury was NOT CLEARCUT.
Here’s my Best attempt of Medical Breakdown of video replays. @bisping @felderpaul
Wishing Tom Aspinall a speedy recovery!
🔄RT & Share!
👇Subscribe- Full YT videoshttps://t.co/U0I6R1mBwu#tomaspinall #UFCLondon #CurtisBlaydes pic.twitter.com/tUo8Ye6LMg— David Abbasi, MD | Orthopedic Surgeon (@DrDavidAbbasi) July 23, 2022
Abbasi’s first investigation led him to the following finding:
“So I think this view in the slow-mo gives the clue potentially. Look at the jiggle of the kneecap, that would be possible if he had a patellar tendon or a quad tendon rupture and eversion of the foot here and then the valgus force on the knee could be consistent with [an] MCL.”
David Abbasi further emphasized on Twitter that the quad tendon or patellar tendon may definitely be torn:
“People messaging me if could be torn patella or quad tendon- Yes could be. That could explain “jiggle” of kneecap, and his Inability to straighten his knee after injury. (if one of these has full tendon tear- you can’t straighten your knee)”
On the other hand, Tom Aspinall is looking forward to making up for the main event at the O2 Arena. Aspinall himself has not provided any further information surrounding his injuries, although in an Instagram post he called it a “freak accident.”
“What a guy, big Curtis and his team popped up to say hello. Freak accidents happen unfortunately, tonight wasn’t my night. Love u all ”
After an awful match, the two had a cordial encounter. They enjoyed a drink and put any grudges from the altercation and its buildup to rest.