Mixed martial arts has taken a pretty heavy dive in regards to viewership, but the faithful followers and participants of the art form are keeping the sport alive.
Friday evening, Legacy Fighting Alliance 39 went down at the Dodson Arena in Vail, Colorado and a new Middleweight Champion was determined after Ian Heinisch [10-1] knocked out Gabriel Checco [10-3] in the first round after delivering a heavy right hand, pouncing on his opponent, and dropping a flurry of punches forcing the referee to step in and end the fight on the event's main card.
Unfortunately, the main event is not what LFA 39 will be remembered for after what went down in the fight between Brandon Royval [7-3] and Jerome Rivera [7-2]. After only 40 seconds into the first round of the battle, Royval was named the winner by TKO due to Royval attempting to take things to the ground. Rivera tried to gain leverage and keep things on their feet by reaching out to the octagon cage for support which resulted in the fighter snapping his arm and dislocating his elbow.
Rivera realizing his arm is immobile and flailing in the wind attempted to retreat but caught a flying head kick before the referee stepped in and ended the fight. Rivera was transported to a local medical facility for treatment but probably won't be stepping into the cage for some time after such a gruesome injury.
If you can stomach it, check out the video for yourself and drop your thoughts on Rivera's dangling broken arm in the comments.
Source: mmajunkie.com
