IN THE LIFE of a fighter, the threat of injury is a constant one.
It amounts to just one of the many accepted risks that come with earning a living in such a hazardous way. Oddly, the vast majority of these occur when training.
In this regard, 2014 has been particularly cruel to the UFC. The casualty list has been extensive and led to a number of key events being altered, at times beyond recognition. In October, during the final week of preparation for his bout against Richie Vaculik at UFC FN 55, in Sydney, disaster struck for Neil Seery.
Sparring at the Celtic Warriors boxing gym, Seery absorbed what felt like an innocuous body-shot. When the pain did not subside after the application of ice, the Dubliner saw a specialist at Beaumont Hospital, and was told he had fractured his eighth rib.
Although not the most debilitating of injuries, Seery was quickly informed he would not be able to fight in Sydney, because air-travel could lead to a punctured lung. He was understandably crushed.
“I was disappointed because I put in a lot of training and was really looking forward to going. I had gotten a serious amount of messages from Irish supporters living in Australia, who couldn’t wait to see me fight, and I couldn’t get over there and show my skills.”
The UFC president, Dana White, has vocalised his concerns about the dangers of engaging in vigorous training, particularly in the immediate build-up to fights. Yet, Seery remains refreshingly philosophical regarding his poor luck.
“It’s just one of them things. It wasn’t the way the sparring was going; I’ve been up there (Celtic Warriors) plenty of times before and it’s always against guys in your weight class. Anyway, up in your own gym, you’re getting dumped on your head, kicked and elbowed. It could have happened anywhere. It was two weeks out from the fight; my body-fat and weight were down, so I had no protection on me. It just wasn’t meant to be.”
Unlike many top-level fighters, Seery also works a full-time job, as a warehouse operative. The injury also kept him from doing that until this past Monday. Between work commitments, training and being a father to his three children, the 35-year-old rarely has a spare moment, which is a state of being he enjoys. Having his schedule curtailed proved difficult.
“Honestly, it was terrible. Just sitting around, you don’t know what to doing; sitting up until four in the morning and watching crap on the telly. It’s really frustrating. The doctor was going to give me another two weeks off. I was nearly going to beg her to let me go back to work.”
He also made a tentative return to training this week. For now, he’s restricting himself to cardio, bag work and some light grappling sessions. However, he’s eager to get back in the octagon as quickly as possible and plans to be fighting-fit in the near future.
He knows as well as anyone how quickly an opportunity can materialise, and would snap Dana White’s hand off, if offered a chance to fight in Boston or Stockholm next January.
“I don’t think Boston or Sweden would be too soon. I was talking to Andy Ryan ( head coach of Team Ryano) last night, and I was saying that in this month coming up to Christmas, I’m going to push myself and get my weight down and fitness up, so if somebody gets injured, like I did, I’m going to be put my name out there and jump all over it.”