Chiesa suffered nose fracture before UFC Raleigh fight

Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

Just about six weeks before his fight with Rafael Dos Anjos, Michael Chiesa suffered a nose fracture in sparring.

Michael Chiesa’s win over Rafael Dos Anjos at UFC Raleigh was even more impressive given the “Maverick” suffered a fractured nose in sparring about six weeks before his fight.

Chiesa dominated the former lightweight champ Dos Anjos in the co-main event of UFC Raleigh to win a unanimous decision. Before his win over ‘RDA’, Chiesa won a decision against Diego Sanchez in 2019 and submitted Carlos Condit in his welterweight debut in 2018.

The 32-year-old released a video on Instagram showing the clash of heads with his sparring partner that caused his nose fracture.

“I didn’t want to lose the opportunity’s head of me, so I had to take a chance,” Chiesa wrote. “Deciding not to pull out of the fight made it the most stressful camp of my career. With only a small fraction of the sparring and live grappling I normally do in an eight-week camp, we still got the job done.”

After the win over ‘RDA’, Chiesa (17-4) is now on a three-fight winning streak at 170-pounds. In his post-fight interview Chiesa called out former interim welterweight title holder Colby Covington for his next fight.