Paige VanZant has revealed she broke her arm during the first round of her unanimous-decision defeat to Jessica-Rose Clark on Sunday but continued for another two rounds.
The 23-year-old American was making her flyweight debut at UFC Fight Night 124 and posted on Twitter afterward a photo of her X-ray, vowing to come back “better and stronger”:
UFC provided the moment she suffered the break to her right arm after a spinning backfist:
It was a second successive defeat for the Oregon-born VanZant, taking her professional MMA record to 7-4.
Australian Clark took her record to 9-4 (1) after the victory in St. Louis, Missouri.
After her recovery VanZant will have crucial work to do in confirming her next opponent and ensuring she gets back to winning ways.
Her reputation is unlikely to be marred after her defeat to Clark given that she fought on despite her broken arm, but she has now lost three of her last four fights and is in need of a victory in her next bout.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com