Skilled Fighters League veteran Artem Lobov has withdrawn from his scheduled catchweight bout in opposition to Zubaira Tukhugov at PFL Champions Collection: Highway to Dubai on October 3, after struggling what he described as a extreme eyebrow laceration throughout coaching.
Artem Lobov’s Eyebrow Cut
The 38-year-old Russian-Irish fighter sustained the injury throughout a grappling session at his coaching camp on September 29. Lobov detailed the incident in an Instagram video, explaining that an unintentional head conflict whereas wrestling from the bottom place opened a deep lower close to his proper eyebrow that instantly started bleeding profusely.
“We just had an accidental head clash. Soon as that happened I could see blood everywhere,” Lobov stated in his social media explanation. The injury was deemed too severe for competition after medical evaluation, with the attending physician ruling him unfit to fight upon examining the laceration.
The Nature of the Injury
The cut proved particularly problematic due to Lobov’s extensive history with facial injuries from his bare-knuckle fighting career. The veteran fighter blamed his previous participation in Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship for exacerbating the current injury.
“This was most likely due to the fact that I have a lot of scars on my face from Bare Knuckle, and really, from all my fights. There are so many that my face tears very easily,” Lobov explained during a Russian media appearance.
Medical experts note that scar tissue from previous lacerations considerably weakens the structural integrity of facial pores and skin. In accordance with fight sports activities physicians, healed scar tissue reaches solely 80% of its unique tensile power, with every subsequent harm additional lowering that share. This makes fighters who’ve sustained a number of cuts in the identical space notably weak to reopening wounds.
The Triangle-Shaped Laceration
Lobov described the injury as more than a simple cut, revealing it had a “triangle-shaped tear” that made medical clearance impossible. This type of laceration typically involves damage to multiple tissue layers, including the muscles responsible for eyebrow movement and facial expression.
Such injuries commonly affect the frontalis muscle, which controls eyebrow elevation, and the orbicularis oculi, which surrounds the eye socket. When these muscle fibers are severed, they require extensive internal suturing and significantly longer healing times.
Background to the Cancelled PFL Fight
The Lobov-Tukhugov matchup had been building for nearly seven years, stemming from the infamous McGregor-Nurmagomedov rivalry. The bout was originally scheduled for UFC Fight Night 138 in October 2018 but was cancelled after Tukhugov’s involvement in the post-fight brawl at UFC 229.
The rivalry traces back to April 2018, when Khabib Nurmagomedov confronted Lobov at UFC 223 struggle week over feedback made in a Russian interview. This confrontation prompted Conor McGregor to fly to New York and assault a bus carrying Nurmagomedov and different fighters, resulting in a number of struggle cancellations.
PFL had positioned this as one of the most anticipated grudge matches on their Dubai card, with both fighters carrying personal animosity spanning multiple years. The promotion has not announced whether they will attempt to reschedule the bout for a future event.
Impact on PFL Dubai Card
The withdrawal removes a significant attraction from PFL’s return to Dubai, which options two championship fights headlined by Usman Nurmagomedov defending his light-weight title in opposition to Paul Hughes in a rematch. The cardboard will proceed with 11 remaining fights, together with the co-main occasion between Corey Anderson and Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov for the sunshine heavyweight championship.
This marks another setback in Lobov’s turbulent career, which has been marked by cancelled fights and legal disputes, including his ongoing lawsuit against former teammate Conor McGregor over whiskey model earnings. The veteran had been making his return to combined martial arts after a four-year hiatus, together with his final MMA bout occurring in 2018.
For Tukhugov, the cancellation means missing another opportunity to settle the long-standing feud. The Dagestani fighter remains without an opponent for the October 3 event, with PFL officials yet to announce whether they will seek a replacement fighter or remove him from the card entirely.
