Mike Pierce has revealed that he suffered a “severe MCL sprain” to his left knee due to the controversial heel hook submission that Rousimar Palhares finished him with at UFC Fight Night 29 on October 9th.
Pierce had previously noted that he had felt his knee “pop” several times during the several seconds after he tapped to the submission before Palhares finally let go of the hold.
The good news is that at the moment doctor’s don’t believe that he will require surgery for the injury, though at the moment it’s not clear how long he’s likely to be out of action as a result of the injury.
Doctor’s have also still to establish the extent of the damage to his left ankle which was also injured at the same time.
Meanwhile, Palhares and his camp have been protesting their innocence and shock at the UFC’s decision to release him following the incident, but Dana White firmly stands behind his decision.
“Anybody who’s involved in jiu-jitsu knows that’s the nastiest submission you can put somebody in,” White said in an interview on FOX Sports Live. “It’s the dirtiest, nastiest submission in jiu-jitsu, or in the sport of mixed martial arts, and when you get it and you know the guy tapped, you let it go. And if you don’t, I will cut you.”
White also confirmed that Palhares is banned for life from the UFC.
“He has a history of doing this. He did it in Abu Dhabi, and he knew what he was doing that night. Apparently there was some talk where Mike Pierce had set some bad things, and everything else, [but] there’s no place for that in this sport.
“You don’t hold a leg lock that long while a guy is tapping and you know he’s tapping. And especially – that’s what Palhares is known for – he’s the best. He’s the best in the world at leg locks, and what he did was wrong and really despicable.
“He won’t be back. He can go fight in another organization. We don’t put up with that stuff here.”
