Rafael Fiziev accuses Justin Gaethje of running away in their fight, Gaethje snaps back

Rafael Fiziev thinks Justin Gaethje fought him afraid at UFC 286.

[autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] fought him afraid at UFC 286.

Gaethje (25-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) rallied to edge out Fiziev (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) by majority decision this past March in London. Fiziev claims that a Gaethje eye poke is what caused the tide to turn.

“He ran away from me for two rounds,” Fiziev told The AllStar. “He started to win me only after eye poke, because my eye doesn’t see anything. There was a big white circle on my right eye all fight. I didn’t see anything with my right eye.

“He fought only good after the eye poke and Round 3 when I started to tire. But he ran away two rounds. He run, run, run. Yeah, maybe my game plan was sh*t and I did a lot of sh*t in this fight; didn’t listen to my corner, didn’t follow my game plan. But still, he ran away for two rounds.”

Gaethje fired back upon hearing Fiziev’s comments.

“Not a good look here. I hit him so hard he forgot which eye got poked. Your right eye got torched by my right hand kid.”

“No switch up. He’s very talented. I think he is making a mistake in not looking forward to the future which can be very promising for him. I’m surprised he is saying this as it was clearly the other eye 🤷‍♂️.”

Since then, Fiziev tore his ACL in a injury TKO loss to Mateusz Gamrot this past September in the UFC Fight Night 228 headliner. Gaethje went on to knock out Dustin Poirier to capture the BMF title at UFC 291. He is scheduled to defend his BMF title against Max Holloway April 13 at UFC 300.

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MMA Junkie’s 2023 Fight of the Year: Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski

Check out which epic battle earned MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Year award for 2023.

With another action-packed year of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie takes a look at the best fights from January to December 2023.

As voted on by our entire staff, here are the top five and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Year.

Honorable mentions

Rafael Fiziev says he suffered torn ACL in UFC Fight Night 228 loss to Mateusz Gamrot

It’ll be a while before UFC lightweight standout Rafael Fiziev is back in the octagon.

It’ll be a while before UFC lightweight standout [autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag] is back in the octagon.

In a video posted to Instagram on Monday, Fiziev told his followers that he tore his ACL during his second-round injury TKO loss to Mateusz Gamrot in the UFC Fight Night 228 headliner. Fiziev didn’t provide a timetable for his return; a typical recovery from a torn ACL is at least eight months.

“I will be back,” Fiziev said. “I’m just sad because I had a very great camp, and I was ready to show my best skills. And I’m sad because it happened only in the second round. … We have plans, but God has different plans. His plan is always the best.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CxodtLJP6Wx/?img_index=1

Fiziev (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) suffered the injury on his plant (left) leg as he threw a body kick with his right that was blocked by Gamrot. Fiziev immediately fell to the canvas in pain, allowing Gamrot to rush him with punches that forced referee Herb Dean to stop the fight at the 2:03 mark of Round 2.

It was an unfortunate way for Fiziev to pick up his second consecutive defeat following a March loss to Justin Gaethje by majority decision at UFC 286. Prior to his two losses this year, Fiziev was on a six-fight winning streak that dated back to October 2019.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 228.

Unfortunate circumstances: 14 unforeseen injuries that ended UFC main events

Nobody saw the endings to these UFC main events coming.

While the term “freak injury” might not be appropriate to use when discussing a sport that is inherently dangerous, 14 UFC main events have ended in unforeseen injuries – broken legs, separated shoulders, eye pokes, etc. – that don’t typically come in the sequence of MMA combat.

Scroll below to see a chronology of UFC main events that ended in that nature.

Note: Injuries sustained on a TKO due to strikes or tapout due to a submission are not included, nor are retirements on the stool due to extended fight damage or exhaustion. Laceration-based stoppages also are not included since they come as an intentional result of the opposition’s attack.

Sean Shelby’s Shoes: What’s next for Rafael Fiziev after UFC Fight Night 228 injury TKO loss?

Suddenly, Rafael Fiziev finds himself on a two-fight losing skid and with a big injury to overcome after the UFC Fight Night 228 main event.

(ALSO SEE: Sean Shelby’s Shoes: What’s next for Mateusz Gamrot after UFC Fight Night 228 win?)

[autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag]’s night ended early at UFC Fight Night 228 when a knee injury brought an end to his main event with Mateusz Gamrot.

It was an unfortunate end for Fiziev (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC), who saw his leg buckle in the second round of the lightweight contest at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, giving Gamrot (23-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) the TKO win.

After putting together a six-fight winning streak at 155 pounds, Fiziev has now lost back-to-back fights after he fell short against Justin Gaethje at UFC 286 in March. To make matters worse, he likely has a tough road to recover ahead, which means sitting on this tough run for the foreseeable future.

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It’s an example of how quickly things can shift in a fighter’s career, and Fiziev seemingly has some challenging times ahead.

Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on what’s next for him after UFC Fight Night 228.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 228.

UFC Fight Night 228 post-event facts: Michelle Waterson-Gomez TKO’d after 14 years

Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 228, including the end of Michelle Waterson-Gomez’s more than 14-year run without a TKO loss.

The UFC put a bow on its September schedule and a run of 17 straight weeks of events on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 228, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

After a card with a handful of highlights, the lightweight main event ended in disappointing fashion when Rafael Fiziev (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) suffered a knee injury that ended the fight prematurely, giving Mateusz Gamrot (23-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) the TKO victory.

For more on the numbers from the card, check out MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 228.

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UFC Fight Night 228 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Tim Means’ $21,000 leads card

UFC Fight Night 228 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 228 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $164,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC Fight Night 228 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 228 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

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[autotag]Mateusz Gamrot[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Bryce Mitchell[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Marina Rodriguez[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Michelle Waterson-Gomez[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Bryan Battle[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]A.J. Fletcher[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Charles Jourdain[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Ricardo Ramos[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Miles Johns[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Dan Argueta[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Tim Means[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Andre Fialho[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Cody Brundage[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jacob Malkoun[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jake Collier[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Mizuki Inoue[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Hannah Goldy[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Montserrat Rendon[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Tamires Vidal[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2281 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $6,294,500
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $20,883,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 228.

UFC Fight Night 228 results: Mateusz Gamrot gets TKO win from Rafael Fiziev injury

Mateusz Gamrot was looking good to begin with, so that the biggest win of his career will have an asterisk next to it seems a little unfair.

[autotag]Mateusz Gamrot[/autotag] was looking good to begin with, so the fact arguably the biggest win of his career will have an asterisk next to it seems a little unfair.

Gamrot (23-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) got the victory over [autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) in a crucial lightweight fight when Fiziev threw a right kick that landed on Gamrot’s elbow. But right after the kick hit, Fiziev winced and dropped to the canvas. The broadcast speculation watching doctors work on Gamrot’s left leg – not the right foot – was he injured his knee while planting to throw the kick.

The TKO finish came at the 2:03 mark of the second round and gave Gamrot, a slight underdog coming into the fight, his second straight win. Then Gamrot said he’s ready for a top-five opponent before he’s ready for a title shot – and called out former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, who is fighting champ Islam Makhachev in a month at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi.

The fight was competitive up to that point, though it seemed clear Gamrot was getting the better of things. He landed a takedown and had a minute of control time. But because of the injury, Fiziev never got a chance to get started – and now has dropped back-to-back fights after a six-fight winning streak. He was helped out of the cage before the official result was read.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 228 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 228.

Social media reacts to Mateusz Gamrot’s injury TKO win over Rafael Fiziev at UFC Fight Night 228

The MMA community reacted to Mateusz Gamrot’s unfortunate injury win over Rafael Fiziev in the UFC Fight Night 228 main event.

[autotag]Mateusz Gamrot[/autotag] picked up another notable win in the lightweight division Saturday when he defeated [autotag]Rafael Fiziev[/autotag] in the UFC Fight Night 228 headliner – but it didn’t come the way he’d hoped.

Gamrot (23-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) picked up his sixth victory in his past seven octagon appearances when he beat Fiziev (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) by injury TKO stoppage in the second round of the 155-pound main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Check below for the top X (formerly Twitter) reactions to Gamrot’s victory over Fiziev at UFC Fight Night 228.

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UFC Fight Night 228 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC Fight Night 228 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 228 took place Saturday with 11 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex.

You can hear from all the UFC Fight Night 228 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 228.