Let’s hope Devin Clark isn’t afraid of the dentist.
Clark, who showed some incredible heart in a loss to Ion Cutelaba in the UFC Vegas 37 co-main event on Saturday, took some equally incredible, and downright gruesome, damage. Mainly to his teeth, which appeared to be rearranged partway through the fight.
His dental issues were so bad, in fact, that Clark nearly quit the fight between rounds, before ultimately choosing to continue.
Down badly on the scorecards, there’s an argument to be made that a corner, or cageside physician, should have stopped the fight. Regardless, this is what Clark’s smile looked like during the fight.
Devin Clark’s mouth was in rough shape after his fight with Ion Cutelaba at #UFCVegas37 😬 pic.twitter.com/g1V9RIlp2f
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) September 19, 2021
As cliche as it sounds, here’s a great time to break out the old “so you wanna be a f*cking fighter???” quote.
Following surgery to repair his mangled chompers, Clark gave an update on the situation. In a video shared by Dr. David Abbasi, Clark explains that “They were able to pull the teeth back kinda into place, temporarily now. Got temporary braces. Little better.”
Devin Clark gives update after HORRIFIC TEETH Injury
Ever think about? As fans we want to see great fight & display of skills, but at same time absolutely hate to witness & feel for fighters experiencing pain or suffering. It changes on a dime!
Best Wishes Devin🙏#devinclark pic.twitter.com/VQIN9ol3hf
— David Abbasi, MD (@DrDavidAbbasi) September 19, 2021
It’s a safe bet that Clark, who fell to 12-6 following the loss, won’t be fighting for a while. Meanwhile, his opponent, Cutelaba, expressed his displeasure at the fight being allowed to continue with Clark so clearly injured.
“I looked and I’m not happy,” Cutelaba said during Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I’m not happy.” The light heavyweight believes it was a combination of a knee and some punches that did the damage. “My knee and hand. Very strong punch, but Clark is a very, very good fighter and I am strong and my punch is very tough, but he’s very strong, my opponent.”
Too strong, too tough for his own good, perhaps.
