10 Most Horrifying MMA Injuries Of All Time

Squeamish? Look away now...

Anderson Silva
David Becker/AP/Press Association Images

It has now been more than five years since UFC President Dana White's famous proclamation that mixed martial arts is the safest sport in the world.

This was, of course, an over-exaggeration. While MMA isn't as barbaric as its detractors would have you believe, the sport largely revolves around men and women bludgeoning each other in the head with the goal of knocking them out, or twisting limbs and cutting off oxygen supplies until they're forced to give up.

Mandatory medical suspensions and strict rulesets are effective safeguards, but they only go so far. Injuries are inevitable, and while MMA's worst damage often goes unseen, in some instances, fighters leave the Octagon looking like casualties in a war film.

Nobody wants to see a fighter get hurt inside the cage, but it's often hard to look away. It's ghoulish, but the publicity that these grisly moments get speaks for itself, with a nasty war wound now just as likely to go viral as a highlight reel knockout.

The graphic content warning should go without saying, but regardless, here are the MMA lesions most likely to make you lose your lunch.

10. Mir Snaps Nogueira

It's easy to forget just how much of a nasty bastard Frank Mir was in his heyday. A confident, charismatic heavyweight, his boastful pre-fight proclamations divided UFC fans, but while from the most complete fighter in the game, he tormented many a foe with his sick Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills.

Sadly, beloved MMA icon Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira fell victim to his formidable ground game at UFC 140, having previously eaten his first ever TKO loss against Mir three years prior.

Frank trapped 'Minotauro' on the mat and locked his arm into a Kimura. A gifted submissionist himself, Nogueira had never tapped out at any point in his career, and wasn't going to give up. He suffered for his foolhardiness, as Mir wrenched, and wrenched, and wrenched... until the limb finally went pop.

It was a stomach-churning sight, made worse by the fact that it happened to the universally-popular Nogueira, whose name still inspires incredible devotion from those there for his Pride FC peak. The sight of him on the mat, staring helplessly at his broken, twisted arm was depressing, but unfortunately, it's one of his UFC runs defining images.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.