Borralho Says UFC Did Not Know of His Broken Rib at UFC 326

Caio Borralho beat Reinier de Ridder at UFC 326 with a badly broken rib, and he says the UFC did not know how bad it was. Surgery came only after the win, and it kept him out of a fight in August.

Two weeks on a broken rib

Borralho told Stake that he broke the rib two weeks before the De Ridder fight. He fought with it totally broken. In his words, it was "a mental war", and it was down to him whether the fight would happen.

He says four coaches, his wider team and his wife knew. His mother and father did not. He kept it from them because fighting already worries them enough, and he did not want to add to that.

Asked whether the UFC knew the severity before the fight, he answered no.

Surgery the day after the scan

After the fight, Borralho went to his doctor. The advice was to wait for the rib to heal. He waited 10 weeks and still had pain, so he went back. An MRI showed the rib had separated even more over those weeks. Emergency surgery was done the next day.

Recovery forced him out of UFC 330 in August. He was due to face Joe Pyfer there.

A middleweight back on a big card

Borralho won his first seven UFC fights and beat former title challenger Jared Cannonier. Then he lost to Nassourdine Imavov in Paris 14 months ago. The De Ridder win came in Las Vegas.

Now he fights at UFC 334 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. He is third on the main card, against Yousri Belgaroui. Belgaroui is a former three-time Glory Kickboxing title challenger and is 3-0 inside the Octagon.

The card is headed by Ciryl Gane defending the heavyweight title against Josh Hokit, with Kayla Harrison welcoming Amanda Nunes back. Borralho expects to look far better this time and make it two wins in a row.

The interview does not say how the UFC views the hidden injury. It also does not say how the rib is doing now.

Source: Bloody Elbow