Pic: Rafael dos Anjos shows off broken foot, issues statement on UFC 196 withdrawal

Reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos broke his foot in training last Friday and after visiting a promotion-appointed doctor, was forced to withdraw from his Conor McGregor fight at the upcoming UFC 196 pay-per-view (PPV) event, which takes place on March 5, 2016 inside MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The proof is in the pudding:

Sorry to all my real fans and @ufc, I never cancel any fight due to injury but accidents happen #Jesus #truechampion pic.twitter.com/wrV58w9KaS

— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) February 24, 2016

No, he didn’t break it while running away from the McGregor fight.

Instead, it was fractured while kicking a sparring partner during camp. As former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo can attest, thanks to a broken rib that booted him from UFC 189 last July, the gym can be just as dangerous as the Octagon.

Kings MMA head coach Rafael Cordeiro elaborates to MMAFighting.com:

“We were sparring, and Rafael threw a kick at the knee of the kid that was training with him. He immediately stopped kicking, put his foot on the ground, and felt a little pain. He put some ice, and couldn’t walk normally. He put more ice during the weekend to see if he would be able to train on Monday. On Monday, he contacted the UFC and said what happened. He asked to visit the UFC’s doctor, and they showed the fracture. Unfortunately, it’s a full contact sport and (injuries) happen. It will take at least three weeks until he’s able to train again, and then we will know when he will be able to fight again, so we can reschedule the fight without any problem. We are upset. Everybody waited for this fight. The entire team is backing Rafael in this decision. Rafael’s health is what matters the most for us now. But that’s a fight we wanted, for sure.”

Assuming his recovery goes off without a hitch, Dos Anjos could be back in time for UFC 200.

Here is RDA’s wife statement in English: pic.twitter.com/Pl5OH4Uaon

— Evy Rodrigues (@vevyrodrigues) February 24, 2016

In the interim, McGregor will move on to fight Nate Diaz in a welterweight showdown next month in “Sin City” (more on that fight here). Depending on how well “Notorious” performs against the Stockton slugger could go a long way in determining the future of this.

For much more on UFC 196, including early betting lines on the new main event, click here.

Reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos broke his foot in training last Friday and after visiting a promotion-appointed doctor, was forced to withdraw from his Conor McGregor fight at the upcoming UFC 196 pay-per-view (PPV) event, which takes place on March 5, 2016 inside MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The proof is in the pudding:

No, he didn’t break it while running away from the McGregor fight.

Instead, it was fractured while kicking a sparring partner during camp. As former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo can attest, thanks to a broken rib that booted him from UFC 189 last July, the gym can be just as dangerous as the Octagon.

Kings MMA head coach Rafael Cordeiro elaborates to MMAFighting.com:

“We were sparring, and Rafael threw a kick at the knee of the kid that was training with him. He immediately stopped kicking, put his foot on the ground, and felt a little pain. He put some ice, and couldn’t walk normally. He put more ice during the weekend to see if he would be able to train on Monday. On Monday, he contacted the UFC and said what happened. He asked to visit the UFC’s doctor, and they showed the fracture. Unfortunately, it’s a full contact sport and (injuries) happen. It will take at least three weeks until he’s able to train again, and then we will know when he will be able to fight again, so we can reschedule the fight without any problem. We are upset. Everybody waited for this fight. The entire team is backing Rafael in this decision. Rafael’s health is what matters the most for us now. But that’s a fight we wanted, for sure.”

Assuming his recovery goes off without a hitch, Dos Anjos could be back in time for UFC 200.

In the interim, McGregor will move on to fight Nate Diaz in a welterweight showdown next month in “Sin City” (more on that fight here). Depending on how well “Notorious” performs against the Stockton slugger could go a long way in determining the future of this.

For much more on UFC 196, including early betting lines on the new main event, click here.