White Praises UFC Medical Team After Barcelos Collapse

Dana White defended his promotion's handling of the Raoni Barcelos medical emergency at UFC Vegas 121 last month, saying the bantamweight was rushed to a trauma center with full support after collapsing in the fifth round of his main event against Raul Rosas Jr.

Barcelos went unresponsive during what had been a competitive bout and was waved off by the referee before medical staff intervened. He spent two nights under hospital observation before his release. White told reporters at a UFC 332 media availability that the situation was serious but that Barcelos pulled through, per MMA Mania.

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White Details UFC's Medical Response Protocol

"The only thing I care about when we produce these shows, from this to Slap to boxing and jiu jitsu is that all the proper medical testing is done before, we have the proper precautions," White said. "We had six doctors and three ambulances at that fight. And we didn't send them to Valley Hospital, we sent them to the trauma center. Immediately."

White declined to share specifics about Barcelos' diagnosis, citing medical privacy concerns, but said the promotion knows what happened. Barcelos himself has told fans he fainted and is recovering well. The 39-year-old was ahead on the cards when the stoppage occurred.

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White praised COO Hunter Campbell for following the ambulance to the hospital and said his team handled the crisis properly. He did not rule out a return for Barcelos but said more medical evaluations are needed before any decision on his roster status.

Reported via:

• MMA Mania — Dana White praises UFC for how it handled Raoni Barcelos incident: ‘That’s the way’