Former Bellator fighter Ryan Curtis has suffered a devastating training injury.
Featherweight contender Leah McCourt, a close friend of Curtis’, announced on social media that Curtis injured his back, neck, and spine during a training session Thursday. McCourt also shared a GoFundMe page seeking donations to provide support to Curtis and his family.
See McCourt’s post below.
“As an athlete and human the unimaginable has happened to our beloved Ryan,” McCourt wrote. “He was involved in a life-altering incident during a training session on Thursday 11th January.
“Ryan has suffered a broken back, broken neck, and dislocated spine. During this injury, trauma was also caused to Ryan’s spinal cord. The damage is classified as the most severe that can happen to a spinal cord. He was rushed to the Royal in Belfast and underwent emergency surgery.
“Currently Ryan has no movement in his legs or his left arm. The road ahead is unknown and will involve at least five months of him in hospital, followed by a further period of time with a specialist spine team. There is no exact end date to when this treatment will be complete.”
Curtis, a professional MMA fighter since 2015 who holds a 6-4 record, most recently fought this past April at a Cage Warriors event in Dublin, Ireland, where he lost to Nicolas Leblond via first-round submission. He also previously competed for Brave CF and was victorious in his lone Bellator appearance in February 2019.
“Ryan will never be able to do what he loves, and fight or train in MMA again,” McCourt wrote. “A sport he has dedicated his life to from the age of 11.
“Ryan will be out of work for the foreseeable future and we are trying to take any additional load or stress off Ryan’s family and daughter by creating a page to raise some funds to help towards rehabilitation, vital treatment, recovery, and supporting his family.”
UFC superstar Conor McGregor also sent out a message of support for Curtis after learning about his injuries.
“Sending my support and well wishes to Dublin MMA fighter Ryan Curtis after suffering life changing injury in practice,” McGregor wrote on Twitter. “Here is a link to his go fund me , he has a young daughter and the family needs our support.”