UFC lightweight contender Renato Moicano suffered a brutal should injury during arguably the biggest win of his career against Benoit Saint-Denis.
Moicano defeated Saint-Denis by TKO (doctor’s stoppage) in the UFC Paris main event on Saturday. It was one of the most dominant performances of Moicano’s, as he battered Saint-Denis and left his face a bloody mess.
Moicano used his grappling and brutal ground-and-pound to deal heavy damage to Saint-Denis for as long as the fight lasted. But, during one of his biggest career moments, he suffered what appears to be an extensive shoulder injury.
As Moicano shared after the event, his right shoulder was severely damaged during the fight. Luckily, he was able to fight through the pain in the second round without the cage-side doctor ruling the fight in Saint-Denis’s favor.
Renato Moicano suffers shoulder damage at UFC Paris
MMA journalist Kevin Iole shared images of Moicano’s brutal shoulder damage.
“I hurt my shoulder 3 weeks ago… but I couldn’t pull out of a main event… thank you my team for helping me training like that e get me ready for the fight,” Moicano posted on X.
As of this writing, it’s uncertain how long Moicano will need to recover from the shoulder injury. But, he’ll likely need at least a few months of rehabilitation before getting his next fight booked.
Despite the injury, Moicano still had an eventful post-fight Octagon interview with Michael Bisping, calling out Paddy Pimblett. Pimblett remains unbeaten in the UFC after a win against King Green at UFC 304.
Moicano entered UFC Paris as a modest betting underdog against the always-dangerous Saint-Denis. After his fourth consecutive victory, Moicano is knocking on the door of the lightweight title picture.
Before the win over Saint-Denis, Moicano defeated Jalin Turner, Drew Dober, and Brad Riddell during his ongoing streak.
