The world of mixed martial arts got to witness a gruesome battle in the third bout of the early prelims section of UFC 315. Marc-Andre Barriault gave Bruno Silva his first-ever knockout defeat as his elbows dropped ‘Blindado’ in just under 1.5 minutes. However, the concerns were real. The Canadian’s barbaric elbows smashed Silva right on his temple. The Brazilian fell down head-first and had to be taken to the hospital on a stretcher. And now, the MMA journalists have come forth with updates that further raise the concerns regarding the fighter who once took Alex Pereira to a decision.
Ben Davis took to X and shared the footage where the Canadian’s elbow connected and appeared to create a dent in the Brazilian’s head. Needless to say, getting smashed in the temple was as dangerous as it could get. One could get a hemorrhage due to snapped blood vessels, which might lead to the loss of life if not treated in time. We have already seen such an example when John Cooney lost his life after suffering an intracranial hemorrhage.
But Davis put the spotlight on his skull. He wrote, “His skull was DENTED?!?” Doesn’t this remind you of Bellator 158 when Michael ‘Venom’ Page broke Cyborg Santos’ cranium with a scary flying knee? Veteran MMA journalist Luke Thomas reacted to it and wrote, “That seems concerning.”
A fan reacted to the tweet and wrote, “This looked closest to the first death in the UFC. The UFC needs to be sanctioned.” In a separate tweet, Thomas provided a medical update about Silva. He wrote, “UFC broadcast gives medical update: Bruno Silva is alert and had movement in his extremities, but is complaining about neck pain. He’ll be given a scan of his face, neck, and other areas.”
UFC broadcast gives medical update:
Bruno Silva is alert and had movement in his extremities, but is complaining about neck pain. He’ll be given a scan of his face, neck and other areas.
— Luke Thomas (@lthomasnews) May 11, 2025
Soon after the updates dropped on the social media platform, fight fans took over the comments section to express their thoughts. For the uninitiated, the Octagon has seen brutal injuries over the years. From Mirko Cro Cop’s scary head kick knockout to Anderson Silva’s leg break, we have seen it all! However, Dana White’s promotion has never seen a death inside the cage. And by the looks of the strike, it seemed that it was pretty close. Let’s take a look at what fight fans had to say!
The MMA world raises concern about a broken skull as Bruno Silva’s medical update after UFC 315 outing lands on social media
One fan seemed to have noted Barriault’s elbow pushing in Silva’s skull. He claimed that the Brazilian middleweight definitely had a “Fractured skull.” Another fan claimed that he had to watch the replay to find it. But the dent was evident. However, what worried the fan the most was the fact that Silva was poked in the eye by Chris Weidman back in March 2024. The comment read, “I thought I was seeing things until I saw the replay. To get eye poked by Weidman and now head dented in is hard to see.”
The fighting community hoped for some good news and kept anticipating an X-ray image to show that Silva was going to be okay. Of course, the medical authorities will do an X-ray to see if there are any broken bones. Moreover, they will make a 3D render of an MRI scan to pinpoint the damage and get some better visuals. One fan weighed in and wrote, “It did holy s–t. Def expect to see X-rays for it soon.” Another fan simply branded the smash as brutal reality. “That was a skull buster.”
Some of the fans pointed out that having a fighter almost lose his life in the Octagon was pretty crazy. The comment read, “That’s gonna leave a mark..UFC 315.” Meanwhile, some fans had some complaints regarding the incident. One fan wrote, “Despite this, the broadcast didn’t mention that when they just gave an update. Said he was complaining of neck pain, though.”
Another fan pointed out the dangers of 12-6 elbows. The fan commented, “Was it a mistake to legalise 12-6 elbows? They can do way more damage than this.” For the unversed, Silva has not lost 5 fights in a row and is 1-7 in his last 8 outings. And a brutal injury like this may very well be the end of the road for the Brazilian.
What are your thoughts on the damage that Bruno Silva sustained at UFC 315? Do you think Dana White and Co. will take some drastic measures to prevent any further incidents like this? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.
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