MMA Fighter Ian McCall Loses After Ring Rope Cuts Head Open At Rizin FF 8

What a strange week for the Rizin Fighting Federation.

Much of the buzz leading up to Rizin FF 8 in Saitama, Japan, surrounded the failed weigh-in from Gabi Garcia and her subsequent tearful apology after her fight was canceled. But one of the fights that actually took place yielded some rather bizarre moments as well.

American fighter Ian McCall lost to Manel Kape via TKO after his face was cut open by the ring rope. The rope, which is made from hard LED piping, cut McCall’s forehead, forcing the referee to stop the match.

Check this out:

Here are some other (bloody) images from the fight:

Tough break for McCall.

This hardly is the first time the 33-year-old has suffered from bad luck in his fighting career, however. Take a look at his recent history:

In the aftermath, McCall called for Japan to allow fighters to apply Vaseline before fights. He also took to Instagram to promise he’ll return to Rizin.

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That’s a lot of tags.

Let’s hope McCall’s luck turns around sooner rather than later.