Kamaru Usman's distraught eight-year-old daughter had to be carried out of the arena after seeing her dad knocked out cold by Leon Edwards.
Usman was cruising towards a sixth successive defence of his welterweight title at UFC 278 on Saturday night when Edwards landed a perfect head kick in the final round. The champion hit the canvas unconscious as the fight was waved off in dramatic fashion.
Footage was later shared of the crowd's reaction with fans spotting Samirah being consoled in the front rows. It was reported that she was immediately taken from the venue as her dad was treated.
Former UFC champion Conor McGregor later responded to the footage, tweeting: "I feel this deep. I do not suggest bringing family whatsoever, especially the children. This is different fighting. I’ve done both sides of this and feel going to the mission solo is best. You can see family again post battle. Will definitely be continuing this way going forward."
Usman was favoured to defeat Edwards and continue his long-running reign as champion but will now face a spell on the sidelines. He is, however, expected to be handed an immediate opportunity to win back his belt with the return fight set to be held in England.
Will Leon Edwards beat Kamaru Usman again in their trilogy bout? Let us know in the comments section below
Usman had already defeated Edwards in 2015 when the pair were prospects in the promotion and UFC president Dana White teased the rubber match could be held at Wembley before backtracking over potential issues with the weather.
"We can go to England whenever the hell we want to now," he said. "We were selling out England before, now you just start looking at bigger arenas... you know, I'm scared to go outside, I'm definitely scared to go outside in England."I'm serious but joking about Wembley, but I mean, anything is possible in England now. It would be fun [Wembley], but scary at the same time. The weather isn't the greatest over there in England."
