Anthony Pettis Requires Surgery For Torn PCL; Could Be Out Up To Six Months
It looks like the bad news surrounding UFC Lightweight champion Anthony “Showtime” Pettis keeps getting worse. Last week it was revealed that Pettis was out of his scheduled UFC on Fox 9 headliner against Josh “Punk” Thomson.
This week, the announcement is substantially direr, as “Showtime” will apparently require surgery for a torn PCL, leaving him on the shelf for up to six months. Ariel Helwani described the situation on last night’s “UFC Tonight:”
He partially tore his PCL when he fought Ben Henderson. He’s completely tore his PCL in training recently. He’s gone to see three different doctors and he’s still going to see one more to determine if he needs surgery. If he doesn’t, he’ll be out for eight weeks, but if he does, he’ll be out for four to six months. He could be out for a long time.”
Bad news for Pettis fans. The embattled fighter has seen a rollercoaster of events unfold over the past year, starting with his scheduled UFC 163 Featherweight title bout with champion Jose Aldo being cancelled for a similar although less serious knee issue.
He healed up quickly to replace T.J. Grant in the main event of UFC 164 against then-champion Benson Henderson, shocking the world by submitting “Smooth” with a slick first round armbar. It was common knowledge that he sprained his knee in the bout, but he was still booked soon after when the injury was thought to be another minor one.
Unfortunately quite the opposite is true. Pettis got back to training and checked a kick during his first session, completely tearing his PCL and leading him to seek the opinion of several reputed physicians. He’s going to get one more opinion this week. If that doctor tells him he’s going to need surgery, “Showtime” will have to bite the bullet and go under the knife.
It appears that the only things that can stop Pettis’ momentum are injuries. He’s had a lot of them. Knee problems could haunt him for the foreseeable future, thanks in part to his role as the most agile and flashy striker in all of MMA.
I’m sure Dana White and the UFC are anxious to avoid another Dominick Cruz-like scenario where the title is put on hold for a long period of time. While Pettis’ injury isn’t as serious as Cruz’s, it will be interesting to see how the stacked UFC 155-pound division moves on with their champ on the shelf. Will an interim title come into play?
