There are a lot of injuries one can sustain as a mixed martial artist, but one of the most common (and at times grotesque looking) is cauliflower ear. It can also leave a permanent mark and is one of the telltale signs of a former wrestler or MMA fighter — aka, the guy you do not want to get into a fight with at a bar.
At UFC Vegas 43 on Saturday, bantamweight Adrian Yanez picked up a win in a thrilling, action-packed bout with Davey Grant to move to 15-3 in his career.
We've got a barn burner on our hands 🔥
[ #UFCVegas43 is LIVE on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/7appEzcj9c
— UFC (@ufc) November 20, 2021
He also picked up a nasty case of cauliflower ear that he didn’t really notice until after the fight when he was awaiting the decision from the judges scorecards. As he accepted a congrats from a coach, Yanez started feeling at his ear and noticed how bad his left ear had swollen up, offering up some commentary that got picked up by ESPN’s cameras.
“God damn, my ear. Holy s—.“@yanezmma when he noticed his cauliflower ear 👂 #UFCVegas43 pic.twitter.com/5JMsoCIdzW
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 20, 2021
That’s the exact reaction I would also have if I just noticed that my ear was approximately three times its normal size. Happily, Yanez got it drained before his presser and looked much better as he spoke to the press — and had a little clamp there to keep the swelling from returning.
Adrian Yanez’s message for MMA Twitter.
He gives a shoutout to @MacMallyMMA & @Boogerbeard1 #UFCVegas43 pic.twitter.com/d7USz7swwz— Alex Behunin (@AlexBehunin) November 21, 2021