3 fighters who had their arm broken during a UFC fight (2023)

UFC fighters often suffer from broken bones during fights inside the octagon. For the second straight UFC pay-per-view event, a fighter suffered a broken bone. At UFC 261, former middleweight champion Chris Weidman broke his leg after kicking Uriah Hall. In a preliminary card contest at UFC 262, Jacare Souza got his arm broken by a nasty armbar from Andre Muniz.

Towards the end of the first round, as both fighters decided to take the fight to the ground, Muniz caught hold of Jacare Souza's right arm and maneuvered into an armbar. Once Muniz locked in the armbar and extended his hips to pull the arm, there was a loud pop that indicated Souza's arm had snapped.

While both Weidman and Souza's injuries were horrible and difficult to watch, bone breaks are common in the fight game. In this article, we look at three other instances when UFC fighters broke their arms during fights.

1) When Ronda Rousey brokeMiesha Tate's arm with a vicious armbar

In 2012, former rivals Miesha Tate and Ronda Rousey squared off in a highly anticipated clash for the women’s bantamweight championship. During the fight, Rousey placed her opponent in her signature submission move, the armbar. Tate was initially resistant, trying to force her way through the excruciating pain until she could no more.

Tate was forced to submit, but her resilience caused severe damage to her arm. After she was scanned for injuries, it was revealed that Tate had indeed broken her arm. She remained out of action for several months.

(Note: The fight took place at a Strikeforce event in 2012, but the promotion was already bought by UFC's parent company Zuffa LLC. in 2011. All fighters, including Rousey and Tate, have since competed in the UFC following the takeover.)

2) When Frank Mir broke Tim Sylvia's arm at UFC 48

Tim Sylvia and Frank Mir locked horns at UFC 48 back in 2004. In the fight, Sylvia suffered one of the most gruesome and severely damaging injuries in UFC history when Frank Mir broke his arm with a nasty armbar within a minute of the opening round.

Although Sylvia's arm was broken, he refused to tap until the referee stepped in to stop the fight to avoid further damage. Even in 2020, after over 15 years since the fight, Sylvia complained about having serious problems due to the horrific injury. Sylvia said that screws put in his arm 16 years ago are now leaking out and have become infected.

3) When Jared Cannonier broke his arm during clash against Robert Whittaker

Surging middleweight Jared Cannonier broke his arm during his fight with former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 254. According to Cannonier, the first kick Whittaker threw in the fight broke Cannonier's left ulna, which is the thinner and longer of the two bones in the human forearm, on the side opposite to the thumb.

“That didn’t go exactly how I wanted but my spirits remain high and I’m happy with how I fought all things considered,” he wrote. “The very first kick he threw broke or fractured my left ulna I couldn’t find my grove and adjust quickly to get the W so I’ll take my L with pride. @robwhittakermma certainly lived up to my expectations before and after the fight. Congrats mate. Enjoy Xmas and the new [baby]. It was a hell of an experience to be here. Can’t wait to go again.”, said Cannonier on Instagram.

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