Iowa mixed martial artist Zach Kirk was badly injured during a fight last Saturday night, suffering a broken neck and paralysis after landing head-first on the mat during a takedown attempt.
"I knew I couldn't feel nothing," Kirk told KETV from his hospital bed. "I was just scared -- scared from right there."
According to local news reports, the 20-year-old Kirk has some use of his arms after doctors replaced his fifth vertebrae with bone from his hip during a recent surgery. Doctors are unsure if he'll ever be able to walk again.
Kirk was 2-0 heading into a matchup at the Mayhem Martial Arts show in Shenandoah, Iowa, but the injury happened in the opening seconds of the bout as Kirk went for a takedown. His opponent tied up Kirk's arm in an attempt to stop it, but instead they crashed to the canvas with Kirk's head taking the brunt of the blow. His body immediately went limp, and the fight was stopped seconds later.
As we've seen in the past in the MMA world, the fight community is making an effort to come together and support him. A benefit show is being planned, with information here, while donations for his care can also be sent to the Kirk family directly via Paypal at rkirk77@hotmail.com.
Kirk and his family hold no ill will to the sport, telling KETV, "It's a real safe sport. You've just got to watch what you're doing."
Comments (Page 1 of 10)
Safe sport? I have seen fighters slammed to the mat, their heads pinned against the floor while their opponent rains full-out elbows upon it! As a 13 year veteran martial artist myself, my observation is that the "sport" is little more than a spectacle for bloodthirsty thrillseekers who lack the intestinal fortitude to put their own butts on the line. More safety precautions are needed before more promising martial artists are maimed or killed.
They hold knitting classes down at the YMCA every wed knight you ought to check it out it sounds like your kind of sport..
you make an EXCELLENT point mate.its a bloodsport.its human dog=cock fights.we have digressed to this point in civilisation and much much worse.if they were literally killing each other some would love it.
Yeah, because this has never happened in football before.................
Lets be real man. Anytime you enter a physical sport, there is always a chance of serious injury or death.Just look at baseball and how many guys get hit with pitches.
It is an unfortunate accident, but it comes with the territory.
put a dress on !
If you look at the comparison of injuries between boxing and mixed martial arts you will see that MMA is much safer. You sound like one of those old farts who call MMA human cockfighting. In boxing if your knocked down you can get back up and continue to fight if your able to hold your gloves waist level and nod your head. In MMA you can end a fight in so many different ways that are much safer then just punching somebody a million times in the head and body that causes long term damage, for ex. Ali, Frazier. Its obvious you dont know anything and probably cant defend yourself with your 13 useless years of Martial Arts training.
Maybe find another line of work, eh?
if you're willing to step in, you're taking the chance. my opinion is that true sport involves a willingness to risk injury. "bloodthirsty" spectator sports are as old as sport itself.
Maimed or killed? More? I am not aware of any MMA fighter dying. There may be one or two out there, because they are done in unregulated events or freak accidents, but nobody says we should shutdown football when players die of dehydration during training camp or are paralyzed from hitting a player wrong.
It's pretty sad that someone that considers himself a martial artist would make such an ignorant statement. Heck, maybe we should outlaw driving in a car too because people die from doing that everyday!
@john1dubya
LOL, are you insane? More KIDS are paralized each year playing high school football than adults that participate in MMA bouts. This happened during a take down, it could just as easily have happened during a judo tournament or on a wrestling mat. Get real man and stop being so over-reactive.
Digressed? I dare say we've evolved. While this is nothing more than the old Gladiator days of Rome, this is a much less dangerous activity. Just a couple of weeks ago a boxer died after a fight, it happens. Comparing to willing, paid, contestants to dog fighting or cockfightin is also a bit over the top. Talk about blood sports, what about NASCAR, it's what the fans want, good wrecks and lots of em. Or the soccer fans who like to see the occaisonal take down. All sports are prone to life threatening accidents. Even the occaisonal basketball player dies.
You should see how far the sport has come in recent years. MMA used to be very crude, people like Dana White have tried very hard to regulate this sport into a safe one. There are much more dangerous fighting sports out there like Muay Thai that are hardly regulated at all. Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts saved the sport from being doomed. Do some reading on the sport. And as a fighter yourself you should know that every time you step into a fight the risk of serious injury or death is there. More people have died in boxing than have been seriously injured by this sport.
'13 year martial artist' This sport is the mecca of martial arts.
How can you have a sport that involves different martial arts if you ban several techniques. It puts certain styles at a huge disadvantage. What would Muy Thai be if you made elbows illegal? What would a BJJ artist do if you made armbars illegal due to a few dislocated elbows?
There has not been a single death in a sanctioned MMA match, however, there has been several deaths in boxing. The 4oz gloves are actually safer than the repeated blows of a 10oz gloves and a standing 8 count.
Being a martial arts expert do you consider MMA martial arts?
Please. Injuries and deaths happen just like this happen in "safer" sports like wresting and football. You're spouting biased nonsense.
Your opinions are uneducated and baseless.
First, it is a safe sport. While there are injuries in all sports most in MMA are not significant! You sure dont sound like an MMA vet. You sound like a member of PETA or on of these bleeding heart whining lib groups!
martial artist??? you are so ignorant. grow up and support the sport like the rest of the fighting world.
largehuman...uh...
you seem to fit the profile of the typical yank beer swilling bully psycopath tank abbott type watching it.
ive followed it since day ONE.i suppose??? theres a place for this bloodsport.it is a compass of the moral decline of our planet.its NOT going away $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ so i think they need to have better and more strict rules geared for the fighters safety.
really
im suprised more fighters are not injured or killed.btw... ive been in the martial arts for self defence for 37 years.
dude self defense is not mma. so stop that point right there. what other rules are there to make. its because of the current rules that there isn't serious injuries. you said it yourself that you are surprised that there aren't more injuries or death. so i think the rules are working just fine. so shut your mouth. and your point on the cock fighting=dog fighting. last time i checked you can choose your opponent and choose if you want to fight. dogs and the cocks don't choose. so your analogy is stupid and irrelevant so next time you comment save us some brain cells and don't.
this was a freak accident and he went in for the take down and it just so happens that the opponent and him fell on his head.