Wanderlei Silva suffered a broken nose after getting into a brawl following his boxing bout Saturday in Brazil.
Silva, a former Pride FC champion and UFC Hall of Famer, took on former boxing champion Acelino Freitas in an exhibition match that headlined Spaten Fight Night 2 in São Paulo. Despite being under exhibition rules, the bout ended up pretty heated and Silva was disqualified due to numerous headbutts.
Immediately after the DQ, a brawl sparked out in the ring between the two teams. Silva was seen getting sucker punched in the back of the head before taking a massive right hook that knocked him out cold. Silva was taken to the hospital after the brawl, where he had stitches and X-rays that revealed a broken nose. Former UFC champion Fabricio Werdum, who cornered Silva, gave a medical update on Silva on his Instagram account Sunday
Silva, 49, had not competed since 2018, when he was knocked out by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson under the Bellator banner. In 2019, Silva opened up about the concussion and brain trauma symptoms he had been experiencing after years of fighting. He cited difficulties with mood swings, memory lapses and sleeping.
Silva fought 51 times professionally in MMA, going 35-14-1 with one no contest. He was knocked out seven times in those 14 defeats. "The Axe Murderer" was one of the most well-known and successful fighters of his era. He defeated many notable names, including Dan Henderson, "Rampage" Jackson, Michael Bisping and Kazushi Sakuraba.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Wanderlei Silva has broken nose and a not-so-great viral KO moment from post-DQ brawl
Reporting by Danny Segura, MMA Junkie / MMA Junkie
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect