Saturday night’s UFC event in Las Vegas broke some new ground, as well as the cage canvas

One might be forgiven for thinking that fight fans have seen it all during the UFC’s 25-year-plus history – but Saturday’s event in Las Vegas saw one of the more unique sights in the organization’s history, when a fighter left a visible dent in the canvas after being spiked onto his head by an opponent.

Middleweights Anthony Hernandez and Marc-Andre Barriault went to war for three-and-a-bit rounds inside the UFC’s Apex facility in Sin City to open a fight card headlined by a hugely-anticipated clash between bantamweights Cory Sandhagen and Song Yadong, but their fight will likely be best remembered not for Hernandez’ arm triangle choke finish in the third round but for a takedown which occurred beforehand.

Hernandez, a former LFA champion who was making his sixth appearance for the UFC after graduating to the main roster after appearing on ‘Dana White’s Contender Series,’ attempted to take Barriault down after managing to lock his hands around his foe’s waist.

Dude just got dumped on his head so hard in the UFC he actually damaged the cage flooring! I have literally NEVER seen that EVER!!! #UFCVegas60 #UFC #Fluffy pic.twitter.com/DJfbwwNONd

— Jason Bermas (@JasonBermas) September 17, 2022

But instead of delivering his opponent to his back, momentum took over and sent Barriault crashing head-first to the mat – with his head and neck appearing to take the full brunt of his body weight.

So impactful was the takedown that subsequent replays showed a visible and bloody dent on the canvas from the point of impact.

The situation could have been a far more severe one, though, and thankfully Barriault appeared to avoid any serious injury as a result of the thunderous takedown.

However, commentator and former UFC champ Daniel Cormier did concede that he expects the impact will “hurt tomorrow.”

I thought spinal cord injury instantly. It was close! Glad he was ok!

— DJR (@djrubes76) September 18, 2022

I thought spinal cord injury instantly. It was close! Glad he was ok!

— DJR (@djrubes76) September 18, 2022

Overall, it won’t be a fight that Barriault looks back on fondly, after also breaking his rib during the contest and finally being choked unconscious as he suffered the sixth loss of his 21-fight career.

“Dude just got dumped on his head so hard in the UFC he actually damaged the cage flooring! I have literally NEVER seen that, EVER!!!” wrote one fan online, in response to the shocking footage.

“I thought spinal cord injury instantly. It was close! Glad he was ok!” added another.

One added that even the most seasoned of UFC fans couldn’t have expected what they saw: “Been watching since ‘06, and have never seen this either.”