Aleksandar Rakic reveals he suffered the same injury in training camp, confident he was winning the fight against Jan Blachowicz

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Jan Blachowicz (left) and Aleksandar Rakic [Image Courtesy: @ufceurope on Instagram]

Last night's UFC Vegas 54 headliner, Jan Blachowicz vs. Aleksandar Rakic, ended in a grueling fashion as Rakic suffered a horrific knee injury. According to the ‘Rocket’, it was a recurring thing that he originally suffered during the fight camp three weeks ago.

In his most recent Instagram post, Rakic uploaded an image of himself laying inside the octagon while holding his injured leg and screaming in pain. In the attached caption, he stated that he felt like he had won both the opening and the second round. He added that he was going to start picking Blachowicz apart in the third round, but his knee buckled.

In the closing statement, the Serbian fighter called for a rematch with the former light heavyweight titleholder.

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"A great battle took place in the octogan tonight but unfortunately it ended not the way Jan and I or the fans wanted. The same damn injury from 3 weeks ago in camp showed up again tonight. I felt I won both rounds, round one being close but round two was just mine then I opened up really good even in the third before my knee buckled. Knowing the fact that my cardio was off the chart ( with a heart beat at 36 in sleep ) I would start to picking him apart from third round on but it is what it is. Congratulation to Jan and I wish him the best. I will take care of this injury and come back like you never seen me before. This is a unfinished fight between Jan and I and I really hope @ufc gives me a REMATCH ."

In round one, Jan Blachowicz and Aleksandar Rakic engaged in an exciting striking contest. The Polish fighter was focused on kicking his opponent's leg. In the second round, Rakic took Błachowicz down and controlled him on the ground.

A little over a minute into the third round, Rakic sustained the injury and the bout was stopped.

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Injuries were a recurring theme in the lead-up to the Jan Blachowicz vs. Alexandar Rakic fight

Rakic was not the only one to suffer an injury during his preparations for his most recent fight. He was originally set to face former light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz on March 26, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 33. However, two months earlier, in late January, Blachowicz withdrew due to a neck injury.

During his interview with Sportskeeda MMA, the Polish fighter spoke about his injury and the paralysis that came with it.

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"I wake up with the pain in my neck. I think that maybe it was a bad sleep or something like that. But the pain don’t want to let go… I remember we do some light drills and my friend kicked me on my head… And then I feel, I cannot feel my all left side."

Watch Jan Blachowicz's interview with Sportskeeda MMA below:

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