UFC star suffers gruesome eye injury in brutal defeat as Dana White pays tribute

UFC light-heavyweight title contender Khalil Rountree Jr was defeated and left bloodied by champion Alex Pereira at UFC 307.

Rountree, boasting a five-win streak, initially had success by dropping Pereira in the second round, but the tide turned as Pereira made a comeback and finished Rountree with an uppercut in the fourth round.

Rountree suffered significant facial injuries resulting from the fight, as showcased by UFC president Dana White on Instagram, where he shared a photo of Rountree with a large gash on his nose and another cut above his swollen-shut left eye. White hailed Rountree as an "Absolute f------ STUD Khalil Rountree".

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Reflecting on the match, Rountree shared: "My thought coming into this fight was just to be grateful. I was really excited to come in here and I just embraced the moments.

"I don't think I was surprised at all. I thought I was going to be able to hit him a lot more. He did a really good job of evading the punches."

Pereira's victory marked a new milestone achieving the shortest span for three consecutive UFC title defenses, a record previously held by Ronda Rousey. Pereira reached this landmark in only 175 days, having defeated notables like former champions Jamahal Hill and Jiri Prochazka.

After his victory, Pereira honored his opponent: "I can say that this was one of the toughest fight. I expected that. He showed tonight why he's got so much quality in here."

Pereira has previously flirted with the idea of returning to middleweight, where he clinched the title back in 2022, or even bulking up to join the heavyweight fray, but it appears he's settled on reigning over the light-heavyweight sector for now.

"We saw that Dricus [du Plessis] is going to be fighting Sean Strickland," Pereira remarked. "He's a training partner of mine, I don't want to get in his way. I can move up to heavyweight but this division is great. I feel great with this weight cut and this is where I'm at."