Malcolm Gordon knew Denys Bondar’s arm was broken before gruesome injury ended fight

Malcolm Gordon knows that he did what he had to do, even if he isn’t boasting about it.

The Canadian flyweight won his second straight fight Saturday at UFC Vegas 47, earning a first-round victory over highly touted newcomer Denys Bondar when Bondar suffered an arm injury in Round 1. Referee Mark Smith called for the stoppage less than 90 seconds into the fight, resulting in a TKO win for Gordon.

At the evening’s post-fight press conference, Gordon told reporters that he actually broke Bondar’s arm with a submission attempt before the fateful scramble against the cage that revealed the injury.

“Obviously, we’re all martial artists and we want to get in and perform, so I’m not going in there trying to hurt the guy or anything like that,” Gordon said (h/t MMA Junkie). “I did feel when I had that armbar that it was tight and you know we have to do what we have to do to get that finish or get the tap. He was tough though. That arm broke in the armbar and I felt it break and then it was in the transition of him standing up when it broke and once he stood up, I was like, OK, it’s gonna be a matter of time before he realizes that this thing is broken. And then I just decided that we would just kind of lean him against the fence and let him touch the hand on the ground.

“It was a smart move on my part and once that happened, he realized that it was done. I feel terrible because obviously I don’t go in there wanting to kill people, but yeah, it’s unfortunate. I hope he has a speedy recovery. I know he’s coming off of a couple of injuries and this was his first fight in two years and I really do hope and wish him the best and for him to come back stronger from this too.”

Asked to go over the sequence of events in his mind again, Gordon was clear in saying that he definitely knew Bondar’s arm was broken when it happened.

“Absolutely, I felt it,” Gordon said. “I heard it, everything. Everything. It’s not the first time this has happened to me, I’ve done it a couple of times now. The first time it ever happened to me I felt terrible and then every time whichever, you get used to it. But you also understand that you’ve got to play the game too.”

Prior to Saturday’s win, Gordon had five career submission wins by armbar or kimura on his record. He improved to 2-2 in the UFC after losing his first two fights for the promotion in 2020.

Gordon couldn’t say exactly what was next for him now that he’s on the winning track, but he expressed enthusiasm at his prospects.

“I have no idea,” Gordon said in response to a question about who he might fight next. “This whole division is starting to get very exciting. There’s guys coming down from 135 that were, like, legends, so I’m excited to fight anybody in this division.

“Obviously, there’s a couple of losses that are in the octagon that I would love to get back and prove myself, but at the same time I’ve got to move forward and maybe there’s somebody else out there. The flyweight divisione excites me and there’s a lot of exciting fighters and anybody, anybody, anybody can get it.”