Kingsbury Suffers Broken Orbital in ‘TUF 13’ Finale Triumph
Sherdog.com Staff Jun 5, 2011
Victory came with a price for Kyle
Kingsbury, and it was significant.
Kingsbury (Pictured; file photo) suffered a broken orbital in his grueling unanimous decision win over Fabio Maldonado in a featured light heavyweight bout at “The Ultimate Fighter 13” Finale Finale on Saturday at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. He told Sherdog.com he does not believe he will need corrective surgery but figures to miss considerable time while he recovers.
A brutal two-punch combination from Maldonado in the third round
left Kingsbury with visible damage to his left eye, which had
swollen shut by fight’s end. Kingsbury utilized solid clinch work
and superior wrestling in outdueling Maldonado, a feared Brazilian
striker who entered the cage on an 11-fight winning streak.
Spawned by Season 8 of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series, Kingsbury has rattled off four consecutive victories inside the Octagon. The 29-year-old Sunnyvale, Calif., native sports seven first-round finishes on his resume. Based at the American Kickboxing Academy, Kingsbury played college football at Arizona State University before pursuing a career in MMA. Maldonado had finished 10 of his previous 11 foes.
“I’m very happy I came away with the win,” Kingsbury said afterward. “I’ve never been in a harder fight in my life.”
Mike Sloan contributed to this report.
Kingsbury (Pictured; file photo) suffered a broken orbital in his grueling unanimous decision win over Fabio Maldonado in a featured light heavyweight bout at “The Ultimate Fighter 13” Finale Finale on Saturday at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. He told Sherdog.com he does not believe he will need corrective surgery but figures to miss considerable time while he recovers.
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Spawned by Season 8 of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series, Kingsbury has rattled off four consecutive victories inside the Octagon. The 29-year-old Sunnyvale, Calif., native sports seven first-round finishes on his resume. Based at the American Kickboxing Academy, Kingsbury played college football at Arizona State University before pursuing a career in MMA. Maldonado had finished 10 of his previous 11 foes.
“I’m very happy I came away with the win,” Kingsbury said afterward. “I’ve never been in a harder fight in my life.”
Mike Sloan contributed to this report.
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