Khalil Rountree Jr. proved his mettle in the barn burner of a title fight against Alex Pereira. However, going toe to toe against the man with ‘hands of stone’ proved to be pretty detrimental to his body as he racked up some serious injuries. Just a day after that fight, Rountree Jr. ended up in the operating theater and had to undergo one of the most painful surgeries on his nose.

The 34-year-old light heavyweight contender had already busted his nose in training before squaring off against ‘Poatan’. Despite that, he headed into UFC 307, knowing that things would certainly get even worse. Maybe the chance to win the title made Rountree Jr. go for the fight, but that decision led to a painful experience for ‘The War Horse’, as he had to get his deviated septum straightened.

“Septoplasty is the worst surgery on the planet! Pure pain,” Khalil Rountree Jr. stated on his Instagram stories. While he knew that his nose would get even more damaged, the 34-year-old didn’t expect to be on the receiving end of the gruesome cut on his eyebrows. Meanwhile, his efforts and grit inside the cage last weekend didn’t fail to garner the respect of not only the fans but also Dana White. Maybe bigger and better things are waiting for Rountree Jr. because if there’s one thing the UFC CEO loves, it’s exciting fighters.

‘The War Horse’ did not win the fight, but he won the hearts of the MMA community. As graceful as he was in defeat, the 205’er would later reveal an important thing he gained even though he lost the chance to immortalize himself in UFC’s history books.

Despite injury setbacks, Khalil Rountree claims UFC 307 was a learning curve

The Los Angeles-born UFC star was in great spirits after his UFC 307 outing. Despite his failed attempt at a title win, he claimed via an Instagram video that the fight against Alex Pereira would play a key role in his evolution as an MMA fighter. “I didn’t win the title, but I grew last night,” Rountree Jr. stated while thanking ‘Poatan’ for bringing out the fighter him because he “needed to experience” it. “You’re the champ for a reason, much respect. But I now know what I am capable of.”

Dana White and Co. surely enjoyed the kind of fight that the main event turned out to be. The PPV needed this kind of clash since there was already this talk about the bantamweight fight debacle between Jose Aldo and Mario Bautista. But in the aftermath, Rountree Jr. raised his stock in the promotion and showed the fans what they can expect when he fights again.

‘The War Hose’ believes that when he’s done healing up, he will be returning as a newer and more advanced version of himself. We’ll have to wait and see how things pan out for Khalil Rountree Jr.