Brandao: Maybe a piece of the ear fell off
Diego Brandao: “Hettes didn’t want to stop it, but I think the judges called it right to stop it because his ear was in half – maybe it fell, off a piece of it there.”
Diego Brandao and Jimy Hettes put on a tremendous first round on the UFC Fight Pass undercard of UFC on FOX 15. Brandao landed an elbow to the ear in the first that opened up a nasty cut, and the doctor stopped it in between rounds.
Initially UFC president Dana White, who often tweets as a fan rather than as a company executive, thought the stoppage was unfair.
You have to be kidding me New Jersey!!!!!,” he tweeted.
Moments later he saw tape of the ear and felt the better of the comments.
Ok nevermind New Jersey,” he wrote. “His ear was broke in half, good call!
At the post-fight press conference, White expanded on what happened.
At first, I was like, ‘Are you kidding me? They just stopped that fight?’, said White as transcribed by MMAjunkie. That was starting to look like a really, really good fight. And then I really saw the ear. You start taking shots where a finger gets in that ear, that’s no good.
I tweeted too fast. (I’ve) got to slow down on the tweets. I tweeted too fast and then I saw the ear and I was like, ‘Doh! You were right. You were right, New Jersey.’ Listen, we don’t need an ear falling off on FOX. That was bad.”
Hettes and Brandao were scheduled to fight late last year at UFC 183, but the fight was canceled in the locker room when a doctor saw Hettes on the verge of blacking out, and thought a CAT scan was appropriate. Nothing was found, and so the rematch was made for Saturday. Brandao had been on a two fight loss streak, and was not satisfied with the win, but understood that it was the correct call.
It was really bad, he said post fight, as transcribed by MMAjunkie. Hettes didn’t want to stop it, but I think the judges called it right to stop it because his ear was in half – maybe it fell, off a piece of it there. So the stop is very good.
I’m kind of confused. The last time the fight didn’t happen, and now it’s happening but this isn’t the way I wanted it. So basically, I’m still not happy. I wanted a KO.
Hettes was disappointed and resigned.
Right now, this sucks and this is the worst thing in the world, said Hettes. I know the doctor wouldn’t have stopped it if there wasn’t a reason. It just seems like I’ve run into a lot of bad luck lately, and this is one of those times where I hope everything happens for a reason.
His was not the first or the last fight ended due to ear injuries.
Wolff’s law states that bones adapt to pressure by getting stronger. If you undergo the rigors of training to fight, much of the rest of your body does as well. Skin callouses, muscles increase in size, etc.
Not so the ear.
When the ear is sufficiently irritated, the overlaying skin can become separated from the cartilage, which is supplied with nutrients not by an internal vein, but from the outside through the skin. The cartilage then dies and fibrous tissue grows over it. The result resembles a cauliflower, and is subject to greater injury, from less impact than does a regular ear.
At UFC 180Jessica Eye hit Leslie Smith in the ear, cutting it. A cut above the eye is serious, as once cut, skin tears easier, and can deepen, destroying nerves and leaving permanent issues. A cut to the ear is not generally an issue, but once cut, human skin is more subject to deeper cuts. Further, if the ear is full of fluid, there is further pressure.
“When I connected and saw her ear blow up, that became my main target,” said Eye. “I was going to keep hitting it until they stopped the fight or it fell off.”
When Eye hit ear again, it exploded.
Ed Mulholland @muls96
When a right hand explodes an ear #UFC180 @UFC @espn @espnmag #MMA4ESPN Photo: @muls96 /ESPN #MexicoCity #JessicaEye
Then Smith turned around.
The fight was stopped with Eye declared the victor.
Later, like any normal person, as the doctors were checking on her backstage, Smith took an ear selfie.
I took a picture of my ear.
Smith summed things up, via SQOR.
“I was pretty mad in the cage,” wrote Smith. “I saw some pictures afterward and I appreciate the doctors looking out for me. I guess. I should’ve adjusted to protect my ear before the doctors had to stop it. Thank you for all the support, thank you to my sponsors Kleinburg Private Wealth, Venum, Major’s Pharmacy, Vitality Bowls, and WODBOX. Thank you to my team and my coaches at El Niño Training Center for getting me ready. Thank you to all the fight fans. I’ll do better next time.”
Smith’s ear injury is not the worst in the history of mixed martial arts.
In 2012 Kenneth Crowder hit Shane Tyner with an elbow at Fight Lab 20, and part of the ear came off.
In 2010, Grabaka fighter Shigeyuki Uchiyama was comfortably ahead of Masaya “J-Taro” Takita when a double leg takedown drove both fighters through the ropes. Afterwards, there was blood on the top and bottom ropes, and a piece of ear on the canvas.
Late in 2010 one of the greatest fighters in the sport’s history, Kazushi Sakuraba, fought Marius Zaromskis for the Dream welterweight championship.
Perhaps it is best to let Saku tell the story.
With his head bandaged, Saku grabbed the microphone, and spoke in rapid-fire Japanese.
“Sorry, but my ear kind of came off, dammit,” he explained. “Zaromskis is a great fighter. Thanks for coming out to support me, and I’ll continue to do my best. I think I’m still improving so I want to continue fighting.”
This is not a new phenomenon.
Damaged ears and fighting go back for as long as human beings have been fighting, which is forever.
The Hellenistic Greek bronze sculpture Boxer of Quirinal, also known as the Terme Boxer or Boxer at Rest, dates to around 330 B.C.
In 2013 Manhattan physician Dr. Jeffrrey Levine saw the statue at the Metropolitan Museum of Art when it was on loan from Rome’s Museo Nazionale, and revealed that it showed an ear being drained.
So damaged ears in combat sports have been going on for thousands of years. The only way that changes is no one fights, and that would only happen if our DNA was stolen.