Report: Daniel Cormier suffered torn cornea from UFC 252 eye poke, but surgery not necessary

Daniel Cormier didn’t leave UFC 252 unscathed.

The former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion suffered a torn cornea in his defeat to Stipe Miocic in the main event of UFC 252 on Saturday in Las Vegas, according to a report from ESPN on Sunday.

Cormier’s (22-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) eye injury came from an accidental eye poke in the third round. After the incident, it was clear Cormier’s eye was affected by the poke. In his post-fight interview, Cormier said he was unable to see from his left eye through the rest of the fight. He was transported to a local hospital following the bout and didn’t attend the post-fight news conference.

Cormier was discharged from the hospital Saturday night, the report said, and won’t require surgery. But his recovery will need to be monitored to know if that will have to change.

Cormier lost to champion Miocic in a trilogy title bout. The 41-year-old came up short in a unanimous decision, which marked what he said will be the last fight of his MMA career. The two previously fought at UFC 241 in 2019, a Cormier win, and UFC 226 in 2018, which was won by Miocic.