In one of the most gruesome finishes in recent memory, Robert Whittaker had his jaw completely crushed during his middleweight title eliminator against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 308 last night.
Images of the jaw injury shared to social media show the grizzly extent of Khamzat Chimaev’s squeeze, with Sports Medicine expert Dr. Brian Sutterer now explaining exactly what happened and what the potential treatment options are for ‘The Reaper’.
Sports Medicine Doctor explains Robert Whittaker’s injury vs Khamzat Chimaev
In the co-main event of UFC 308 last night, Khamzat Chimaev dashed in to secure a takedown, and quickly transitioned to a dominant position along the cage, before crushing Robert Whittaker’s jaw to secure himself the first-round submission win.
Almost immediately after the finish, fans and fighters alike began to speculate on the severity of the injury, with the commentary team proposing the theory that Chimaev had dislocated Whittaker’s lower jaw.
Dr Brian Sutterer, a popular physician who frequently breaks down combat sports-related injuries on his YouTube channel, has now released a quick video that explains exactly what happened out in Abu Dhabi.
“The finish was so strong and powerful that it broke Whittaker’s lower jaw… Initially, it looked kind of like a choke but actually Khamzat’s left arm is located on a part of Whittaker’s jaw called the Mandible; that’s the lower part of your jaw that moves up and down… Your teeth on the lower portion of your mouth are fixed into that Mandible.
“This wasn’t a jaw dislocation, there was some speculation about that, but based on a picture that was shared, this was just so powerful that Khamzat broke his jaw” – that image shows three of Whittaker’s teeth being displaced into his mouth, reader discretion is advised.
According to Dr. Sutterer, it wasn’t that Whittaker’s lower teeth fell out, it’s that the teeth are actually still attached and anchored to the lower portion of the jaw; and it’s the jaw itself that has fractured, causing his teeth to be “completely displace backwards.
“In Whittaker’s case, basically these three front teeth that are anchored into the lower portion of the jaw got crushed from that forearm that Khamzat Chimaev applied: causing a fracture, causing that bit of the jaw and the teeth to displace backwards up into his mouth.”
Whilst Dr Sutterer didn’t have the benefit of a physical examination on hand, he did suggest what type of treatment options could be available for this “serious, serious injury.
“Treatment of this is going to be some type of surgery to put those teeth and bone back in place, plate and potentially braces across the teeth – there’s a real possibility here that Robert Whittaker might have his jaw wired shut for some time… This is a serious, serious injury.”
Bloody Elbow joins fans in wishing Robert Whittaker a safe and speedy recovery.