Amir Albazi takes hope from Cristiano Ronaldo sharing the same heart condition as him and details brutal injury streak ahead of Brandon Moreno fightÂ
Amir Albazi will be facing Brandon Moreno at UFC Edmonton after nearly 18 months on the sidelines due to serious health complications. One of which was a heart condition that Cristiano Ronaldo also suffered from, which required surgery to be fixed.
Albazi's previous fight came against Kai Kara-France in the main event of UFC Vegas 74, which 'The Prince' won via split-decision despite already noticing an issue with his heart.
He also suffered from damage to his spinal cord which affected his ability to lift his left arm. The injury to his neck also required surgery, and Albazi admitted that the doctor he spoke to advised him to look at careers outside of fighting.
The No.3 ranked flyweight contender was recently interviewed by Shakiel Mahjouri, where he discussed his health issues, saying:
"I couldn't finish our two minute round.. just some cage-wrestling, normal stuff. I felt like I was gonna die. Like, there is no way I get this tired from a two-minute grappling [round]."
He continued:
"After a few tests they found out I have this issue which is supraventricular tachycardia. I just know that Cristiano Ronaldo as had the same thing. It kind of gave me some hope that even if Cristiano Ronaldo is playing at the highest level and he also had this. We did a heart surgery after that, came back, started training."
Albazi further detailed his spinal cord issues, saying:
"When I started training my left arm started giving up, loss of strength, no power to even lift [my arm]... Some doctor said, 'You should call it quits, your spinal cord is damaged that's why you can't move your arm.'"
Check out Amir Albazi discuss his health issues below (3:50):
Amir Albazi excited by rule changes ahead of his bout with Brandon Moreno
Amir Albazi and Brandon Moreno are set to headline UFC Edmonton on Nov. 2. Their bout will be an historic one as it will be the first UFC card to feature an altered ruleset.
The controversial '12-6 elbow' rule has been abandoned by the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports (ABC). The definition of a grounded opponent has also changed, with fighters now being deemed grounded if any body part, other than their hands and feet, is in contact with the canvas.
With more opportunity to land damage, Albazi was asked for his thoughts on being the first UFC event to have updated rules during his media day appearance. He siad:
"More violence for me, so I'm happy."
Catch Amir Albazi's comments below (6:20):