Less than 3 weeks after being knocked out cold in his last UFC appearance, Frankie Edgar already has a new fight booked. Is this a bad idea? History says so.
Frankie Edgar just lost via knockout against Brian Ortega at UFC 222 on March 3. March 20, it was revealed that talks were underway for Frankie to fight Cub Swanson in a rematch at UFC Atlantic City. Which takes place April 21, a card that is headlined by Kevin Lee vs. Edson Barboza. So, 49 days after being knocked out cold by Ortega, Edgar will be fighting again. Against someone who hits really hard and is an incredibly good striker in Cub Swanson.
History and common sense would absolutely say this is a horrid idea. For one, it takes your brain time to heal after getting its lights shut out. In fact, it can be deadly if you don’t properly take time off. Fighters have died in the past from Second Impact Syndrome after they did not take proper time off after taking damage in a fight. I mean, there’s a reason why you get medically suspended after getting knocked out. Your brain needs time to heal.
But Frankie Edgar is sadly not the only fighter to do something like this, and take a fight on short notice after getting stopped. So let’s take a look at three other fighters who took a fight on short notice after getting finished.
Michael Bisping: 21 Days
The most recent and byfar most known example on this list belongs to former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping. Michael Bisping was in a back and forth competitive fight at UFC 217 against Georges-St-Pierre. Ultimately on November 4, 2017, after getting knocked down and almost finished with brutal elbows, he found himself in a rear-naked choke and went unconscious. So naturally, he would return three weeks later against the hard-hitting Kelvin Gastelum.
After Anderson Silva found his way out of their contest due to USADA issues, Bisping found his way in against Gastelum at UFC Shanghai. The result was exactly what you would think it would be. Only a couple of minutes into the first round, Bisping was hit with a one-two and went out cold.
Travis Browne: 62 Days
Ah, Travis Browne. Before he started going downhill he was one of the heavyweight division’s greatest fighters. However, once he started going downhill, he went fast. Included in his fast freefall was his fight against Cain Velasquez at UFC 200. On July 9, 2016, Browne was dominated and finished in the first round by the former champion. So the only logical next step in his career path would be to step in for the injured Ben Rothwell at UFC 203, only 63 days later.
So that he did. On September 10, Browne stepped in to fight Fabricio Werdum at UFC 203 in its co-main event. The two had previously fought before where Browne was dominated. Despite almost being finished in the first round, Browne actually did better in the second bout than the first, with Browne having some success mostly in the third round. However, Browne still came up short losing a decision to the former champ. Sending him further down his spiral in the heavyweight division.
Uriah Hall: 63 Days
Uriah Hall shocked the MMA world with his knockout of Gegard Mousasi in September of 2015. However, the momentum didn’t last for Hall, as he lost his next two fights. After the second defeat, a TKO loss to Derek Brunson on September 17, it was announced he would fight Mousasi again in the main event of UFC Belfast on November 19, after the previous main event fell out.
The result was predictable and not shocking. Gegard Mousasi dominated Hall in the first round as Hall didn’t throw much offense. He was then taken down and trapped as Gegard started landing ground and pound. Hall didn’t move and the fight was stopped near the end of the first round.
Let it be known that medical suspensions are in place to protect fighters from themselves and their insistence to erase bad losses of their records.
