Under normal circumstances, most observers would agree that Derek Brunson performed quite well in the UFC Fight Night 191 main event. It turns out that he dealt with some adversity leading up to his latest victory.
The North Carolina native relied on his wrestling against Darren Till on Saturday, grounding his opponent three times before winning via rear-naked choke at the 2:13 mark of the third round in their middleweight bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. After his fifth consecutive Octagon triumph, Brunson revealed that his training camp for Till was severely limited.“I had a rib injury,” Brunson at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I thought I broke my ribs. I got kicked in the ribs really hard by someone’s toe. This guy was about 240 [pounds]. It was kind of like a bad thing sparring with someone so heavy when I’m getting my body down to my fight weight and I’m getting ready to compete.
“But yeah, I thought I broke my ribs. The last thr…