10 Most Horrifying MMA Injuries Of All Time
1. Cyborg's Shattered Skull
In July 2016, at Bellator 158, Brazilian slugger Evangelista 'Cyborg' Santos suffered a skull injury so repulsive, anyone who hadn't seen the footage could be forgiven for thinking it fake.
Santos was matched against Michael "Venom" Page. In typical Bellator fashion, it was a booking designed to make Page look good, as Santos was 37 years old and coming off a knockout loss, while the Englishman was emerging as one of the sport's hottest prospects. The fight went to script. 'Cyborg' made it through the first round, but was eventually put away with a spectacular flying knee in the second. The strike itself was stunning, with MMA Junkie voting it their Knockout Of The Year, but for Santos, the consequences ran deeper than merely losing the fight.
Page's knee left a literal dent in the Brazilian's forehead, and the x-ray only made it look even more gruesome. His skull was cracked into dozens of pieces, like an easter egg bashed through its foil wrapping, and Santos, unsurprisingly, never fought again.
It seems miraculous that his life wasn't endangered by the injury, but let's just never hope we see its like again.