Ludovit Klein overcame a broken ankle to beat Mateusz Rebecki on Saturday, earning an unlikely win at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi.
Fighting Rebecki in a lightweight preliminary fight, Klein looked sharper than his opponent in the striking exchanges and was defending the Pole’s takedown attempts well.
• Follow UFC 321 live: Britain’s Tom Aspinall defends title against Ciryl Gane
With that, Klein appeared to build a two-round lead heading into the third and final frame, but in that round, Rebecki took down the Slovak.
And a replay showed that Klein’s foot was almost turned the wrong way as it was trapped underneath him.
Klein, 30, turtled up and was forced to try to survive Rebecki’s ground and pound for the majority of the round, with the Pole also bleeding onto him from above – thanks to the earlier damage that Klein had dealt the 33-year-old.
Klein, to his credit, actually threw his own offence from below, but he was largely absorbing punches and elbows as he somehow made it to the final buzzer.
However, he could not stand upon the conclusion of the fight. And when the scorecards confirmed a majority-decision win for Klein (29-28, 28-27, 28-28), he was forced to celebrate while sat on a stool.
He emotionally told UFC legend, “I broke my ankle in the third round,” while apologising for not producing a better performance.
Klein was then taken out of the Etihad Arena’s main room on a stretcher.
Saturday’s main event sees Britain’s Tom Aspinall defend the UFC heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane.
