Credit:Getty/UFC
Credit: Getty/UFC
Credit: Getty/UFC
Ramiz
Brahimaj’s recovery from a grievous spinal injury is truly
inspirational.
Advertisement
Brahimaj hasn’t competed since a first-round submission win over
Michael Gilmore in February 2022. Brahimaj was scheduled to fight
Carlston
Harris in February 2023 but was forced out due to a neck
injury. The 31-year-old is now finally slated to return to action
against Themba
Gorimbo at
UFC Fight Night 241 on Saturday. Brahimaj recently detailed his
injury in an interview with MMAMania.com.
“I had a brachial plexus injury and an injury to my C-5 from spinal
stenosis and disc injuries. It set me back a lot, man. I dealt with
a lot of different things, and it’s pretty messy when that stuff
happens. So, for about two to three months, I really had limited
function and ability in my arm, and it kept happening. So, it
sucked, but I’m here, I’m happy.”
Brahimaj suffered the injury during wrestling drills. While most of
the doctors he initially saw suggested surgery, Brahimaj was
skeptical about going under the knife.
“Man, I was wrestling … and it just happened,” Brahimaj said. “I
went through, I think four different doctors. Three of them
actually wanted surgery. They wanted to do a fusion and use an
artificial disc. I heard a lot of different things. And there was
nothing that I wanted to hear… I remember I told them, I was like,
‘Listen, I’m 30 years old. I’m not going to do this — there’s no
way I’m going to put myself through surgery and set myself back so
much. I’m going to find a way to recover and do it without
surgery.’”
Brahimaj instead chose to seek in-depth knowledge about his injury
and also eventually met a doctor, who prescribed intense
physiotherapy and kept surgery as the last resort.
“So, I started to really deep dive into the world of the spine, C-5
and all about the neck and everything,” he added. “The doctor that
I actually met up with here in Dallas, an amazing doctor, assured
me that his last plan was going to be for me to go under the knife.
He said, ‘We’re gonna do a lot of rigorous physical therapy. It’s
going take you awhile, but I just need you to trust me.’ He was
helping me as I was doing my own research on this stuff on the
brachial plexus and everything. It took a while, but I think it was
the right choice that I made. And the function of my arm and the
function of my body … everything is back. To me, it’s miraculous,
you know, it’s extremely miraculous.”
The Fortis
MMA product also revealed that the draining process had him
contemplating retirement from the sport.
“I had a whole letter written,” he said. “I looked at that letter
two weeks ago in disgust because looking back now, you know, it was
gloomy. It was dark last year like — I did not know what was going
to happen. I would make progress, and then there would be days
where I’d wake up, and I’m like, ‘F—k, I don’t feel better. I just
felt like I was constantly just trying to find something to be
buoyant. Because during that time, I did feel like I was drowning,
but I really think it had happened. It made me so much mentally
stronger. That it just opened my eyes to a lot of things.”
As hard as the last year has been for Brahimaj, it was his
attachment to the sport and his teammates that kept him going.
“I need you to understand that through physical therapy, through
spinal injections, trigger point injections, it was a slow process,
man. It tried my patience a lot,” he said. “It just gave me a
newfound love and respect for my job. And, you know, I think I took
fighting for granted, man, and it humbled me and woke me up.
“It just made me really appreciative of the things that I have, and
most important — outside of fighting — the body and the physical
attributes that I’ve been fortunate to have been blessed with.
“I was not able to pull a five-pound band for like two months. I
went from getting ready to fight Carlston
Harris, and I was very strong that camp physically. I think I
was the strongest I had ever been proud of at that point. “And
within a week, I’ll never forget, everything just deteriorated. I
was legitimately brought to my knees. It was one of the most
sobering moments. But, I think just being around the team — coach
Sayif Saud, being around fights and fighters — is what saved me, in
essence. As cliche as it sounds, it saved my life.”