Nine fighters, including Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa, received potentially lengthy medical suspensions following UFC 298 due to potential injuries, with the suspensions lasting 180 days or until they are cleared by a physician.
Well, here’s the scoop. Nine fighters are looking at potentially long medical suspensions after UFC 298. This includes middleweight co-headliners Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa. The California State Athletic Commission spilled the beans to MMA Fighting on Monday.
Whittaker took down Costa in a unanimous decision. It was a real slugfest on Saturday’s co-main event. Both Whittaker and Costa came out with possible injuries. Whittaker’s got a hand issue, Costa’s got a right foot and left leg problem. They’re both benched for 180 days, or until a doc gives them the green light.
But wait, there’s more. Seven other fighters are also on the bench for 180 days due to potential injuries from the event. We’re talking about Henry Cejudo (left forearm), Mackenzie Dern (left leg), Marcos Rogerio de Lima (right foot), Carlos Vera (shoulder), Zhang Mingyang (right hand), Danny Barlow (left forearm), and Josh Quinlan (CT scan). If a physician clears them, they can get back in the ring sooner.
UFC 298? It went down on Feb. 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. Ilia Topuria snagged the UFC featherweight title, knocking out Alexander Volkanovski in the second round. The main event was live on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
And just so you know, there’s a complete list of UFC 298’s medical suspensions. You can check it out below.
Robert Whittaker: 180 days no contest, no contact unless cleared by a doc for a possible hand fracture. Plus, a 60-day suspension for a right eye, foot laceration. And a 45-day mandatory suspension, 30-day no contact for a hard bout.
Paulo Costa: Same deal, 180 days no contest, no contact unless cleared by a physician for possible fractures to the right foot, left leg. He’s also got a 60-day suspension for a laceration and a 45-day mandatory suspension, 30-day no contact for a hard bout.
Henry Cejudo, Mackenzie Dern, Marcos Rogerio de Lima, Carlos Vera, Zhang Mingyang, Danny Barlow, and Josh Quinlan: All suspended 180 days no contest, no contact unless cleared by a physician for possible fractures.
Alexander Volkanovski, Amanda Lemos, Junior Tafa, Brendson Ribeiro, Oban Elliott, Val Woodburn: All suspended 45 days no contest, 30 days no contact with no exceptions.
Ilia Topuria, Ian Machado Garry, Geoff Neal, Merab Dvalishvili, Anthony Hernandez, Roman Kopylov, Rinya Nakamura, Miranda Maverick, Andrea Lee: All got a 7-day mandatory rest.