LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 19: A detail view of the injured thumb of Alonzo Menifield after his light heavyweight fight against Iwo Baraniewski during the UFC 331 event at Crypto.com Arena on September 19, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC) Better to be safe than sorry … Following UFC 331 last night (Sat., Sept. 19, 2026) inside Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif., promotion officials confirmed to MMAmania.com that two fighters were transported to a local hospital for precautionary evaluations after sustaining damage in their respective bouts. Those fighters were former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja and Light Heavyweight veteran Alonzo Menifield. Pantoja (30-7) was transported for precautionary CT scans of his head and face following his five-round title rematch loss to Joshua Van. “The Cannibal” absorbed significant damage throughout the ultra-competitive fight, particularly during the championship rounds. The silver lining is that Pantoja earned “Fight of the Night” honors and an additional $100,000 bonus, which should help ease at least some of the pain. Pantoja has now lost consecutive fights for the first time in his legendary 36-fight career. Before his current two-fight skid, the Brazilian rattled off eight straight victories, capturing the Flyweight championship and successfully defending it four times. Menifield (19-6-1), meanwhile, was transported for precautionary X-rays after suffering what appeared to be a gruesome broken thumb during his split-decision victory over previously undefeated prospect Iwo Baraniewski. The injury occurred during the first round, with Menifield’s thumb visibly mangled and bone appearing to protrude through the skin. A cageside physician examined the injury before the third round but allowed Menifield to continue. Somehow, the 38-year-old battled through the pain and handed Baraniewski the first loss of his professional career. Menifield has quietly put together an excellent run during the twilight of his career, taking out promising Light Heavyweight prospects one after another. In addition to Baraniewski, he handed Oumar Sy and Julius Walker their first professional losses and knocked out Zhang Mingyang earlier this year. He is now 4-1 across his last five appearances. At the time of publication, the results of Pantoja’s scans and Menifield’s X-rays had not been publicly disclosed. It is normal for UFC to transport fighters to the hospital for precautionary reasons, especially if the fighters are involved in three-round battles that are full of damage or after suffering nasty knockouts. Stick with MMAmania.com for the fighters’ health-related updates. For complete UFC 331 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.