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Jose Augusto recounts fending off Anthony Johnson one-handed: 'Holy sh*t, I can't believe this'

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UNCASVILLE, Conn. – At first, Jose Augustowas “pissed off” that his Bellator 258 fight against Anthony Johnson went down as it did.

While the loss stung as much as his potentially broken hand, the morning after his fight, Augusto (7-3 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) eventually identified some silver linings from his second promotional appearance. The way he sees it, his stock went up despite the defeat.

“People were writing me off like I had no chance, but I was able to almost win the fight with one hand,” Augusto told MMA Junkie on Saturday through a translator. “People saw my skills and that I can, at the very least, piss off the top guys in the weight class. If I have a full camp and no crazy injuries, they know I will be a problem for everyone.”

The fight was frenetically paced with numerous momentum shifts. After he injured his hand in the opening round, Augusto survived a classic “Rumble” onslaught to rock and drop the former UFC light heavyweight title challenger in a wild turn of events.

“At first it was very painful, and I thought, ‘Holy shit, I can’t believe this is happening,” and cursed inside my mind many times,” Augusto said. “Then my hand went numb. I kept pressuring it to see if I could get the feeling back so I could use it. Anthony Johnson isn’t someone you want to fight one-handed.

“When I turned around, it was a reflex from the pain, but it never crossed my mind to give up on the fight. I felt his punches were hard, but nothing I hadn’t been used to. So I tried to keep composed and explore the openings that I could. Of course, this completely changed everything – my reactions to his attack (and) my defense. I was much more exposed and less effective than I could be.”

In Round 2, Augusto was knocked out by a vintage Johnson (23-6 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) right hand. While the loss will be on his record forever, the lessons learned will carry with him throughout his career, too.

“There’s a lot to take in from this,” Augusto said. “The main things are what I need to improve as a fighter and the knowledge that, although there are things to improve, which I already knew. I am on the right track. My team gives me all the support that I need. I just need to focus on being active all the time, give my best into practices and look to be better each day. … Once I’m able to come back, I’ll work my way up to the title. That dream has only been delayed.”

Knowledge was gained in his first high-profile fight, but so was respect.  During his interview with MMA Junkie the morning after the fight, Augusto was approached by Johnson in the hotel lobby. The two fighters expressed their respect for one another in an impromptu meeting.

“I have a lot of respect for Anthony Johnson. I was a fan of his and said so in previous interviews,” Augusto said. “I didn’t say a bad thing about him before and don’t have any bad thing to say now. I hope he gets the title, and we can rematch for it in the near future.”

As for his hand, Augusto hasn’t yet received a diagnosis, though the Mohegan Sun combat sports physicians have their suspicions on what caused the pain.

“It may be broken,” Augusto said. “My hand is a bit swollen. The doctor said there may be a fracture or nerve damage, but I’ll do an X-ray when I get to Brazil and we’ll see from there. Hopefully it won’t be anything that keeps me away for long. I would like to return as soon as possible.”

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