Kickboxer Danil Sharov attempted to continue fighting despite suffering a fractured skull from being hit with a knee to the head.
The Russian kickboxer made his professional debut against Danil Kirikov last weekend, but ended up suffering the horror injury towards the end of the second round. He was clinched up with his opponent as the pair grappled for position when Kirikov landed a devastating knee, which left a clear dent in his forehead.
The Russian attempted to keep the fight going, and even threw a big head kick of his own, but the referee had the injury pointed out to him and the fight was stopped. Initially, Sharov seemed upset or at least surprised by the stoppage, but footage shows just how gruesome the injury was.
Video of the incident has been viewed over 400,000 times on social media after a clip posted by a fan with the account name Fedor's nephew went viral. It can be seen in the video that Kirikov pointed out the injury to the referee right before the bout was waved off.
A similar injury was inflicted by Brit Michael 'Venom' Page in a bout with Cyborg Santos at Bellator 158 in 2016 at The O2 arena in London. 'MVP' landed a phenomenal flying knee that saw a similar injury landed on Santos' skull, and the Brazilian veteran never fought again.
What did you make of the gruesome kickboxing injury? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
And fans commenting under the video noted how tough the Russian was, saying: "Jesus, what a great referee. That was hard to notice and that kid is too damn tough for his own good. Would have needed up very bad if it continued." Another added: "Yes, kudos to the ref, but even more to the fighter."
One viewer on Twitter joked that Sharov "continuing to fight and being disappointed that they called the match is probably the most Russian thing I’ve ever seen." Russian fighters are known for their toughness, and another fan added: "Dude probably walked it off then went drinking."
Another commenter noted that the knee had to have been thrown with incredible power, sharing a study that indicated the average human skull can take pressure from up to 520lb before crushing. No update has been made as yet on the status of Sharov's injury.
