Aleksandar Rakic is hoping for a speedy recovery and a chance to run it back with Jan Blachowicz.
In the main event of UFC Vegas 54, Rakic faced Blachowicz in a light heavyweight fight with title implications, and things were going well. He won the second round with his wrestling skills and was determined to continue that winning momentum. He then fell to the ground, tearing his knee and taking a step backwards. The bout was stopped, and Blachowicz was awarded a TKO victory while Rakic was left with nothing more than a torn ACL.
Rakic issued a statement after the fight, stating that he had injured his knee during camp, and would be back stronger than ever. Now back at home in Austria, the No. 6-ranked light heavyweight in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings spoke with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour about what happened in his training camp.
” I was in incredible shape,” Rakic stated. “I’ve been working so hard for this, and I felt so good. The camp was pretty good, but three weeks before the fight, in one sparring session I exchanged with my sparring partner some calf kicks — because we knew Jan is good at that, so we got prepared — he hit me, I hit him, he hit me, I hit him, I hit him a little bit harder and I overextended my leg, and then I felt some weird things in my knee, but I didn’t pay attention.
“I sparred with the second one for three rounds and felt my knee slightly, but didn’t pay much attention. Then in the fourth round, a heavyweight, 265-pound wrestler came to spar with me. I noticed that the movements were not as smooth. My knee was not stable. I tried some hand-tossing and kicks but I wasn’t feeling well. He shot me, then I defended and my knee cracked, though not as much as in the fight. So I told the coaches, ‘Let’s stop and see what happened.’
” We made an appointment immediately with a physical therapist. He did some tests and everything went well. I had no pain. He treated the knee very good, and I stopped sparring for a couple of days, and I need to be honest, I felt much better. I felt that the knee was great, and on fight day I was thinking, ‘100 percent my knee is healthy.’ But today the doctor told me, if the ACL didn’t tear a little bit in camp, you cannot tear the ACL like that in the fight. There has to be some pre-injuries before.”
Rakic will have surgery to his knee next week. After that, a timeline can be determined for his eventual return. But the Austrian fighter did said his doctor, who previously repaired the ACL in his left knee several years ago, suggested he could be back in the gym in as early as four months.
It’s a long-term goal, but Rakic is determined to get it done so that Blachowicz and he can return the project without any injuries.
“Today I had an appointment with the doc and in two days I’m going to go under [the] knife, have the surgery, and then going right back to rehab and to kick some asses out there and get my belt, because after Saturday I realized that I’m going to be the champion,” Rakic said. “Jan told me that after the fight and with all due respect, on that night he could only beat me like this. There was nothing else.
“We have unfinished business. I want the rematch, because I don’t think Jan is happy about the win. I would not be happy if I win like that. He won’t be happy if I win like that.
Blachowicz does not appear to feel the same, though. After the bout, the former light heavyweight champion said that his body “was tougher” than Rakic’s and called for another shot at the 205-pound title next. Rakic, for his part is not opposed to it. If Blachowicz can reclaim the belt and he gets to return to a title shot, that would be the best-case scenario.
“That was my dream because I felt him. He did a great job and is a great fighter.” Rakic stated. “He caught me with some good calf kicks, I caught him too, I cut his eye with one jab, it was a great fight…
This website uses cookies.