Former UFC middleweight Tim Kennedy explained why he refused anesthesia for sutures following his fight against Yoel Romero at UFC 178.

Kennedy and Romero got into one of the wildest brawls of 2014, with Romero eventually earning the third-round stoppage via TKO in controversial fashion at UFC 178’s “Fight of the Night.” Kennedy suffered brutal facial damage during the knockout and was forced to get his face stitched up by the doctors after the fight. However, it looks like the pain didn’t end for Kenney with the knockout.

Writing on his social media, Kennedy said that when he was stitched up by the UFC doctors he declined to use anesthesia because he wanted to feel the pain that went along with it. Check out what Kennedy wrote on his Twitter.

I would never take a painkiller after a fight for any reason. No local anesthetic and no general anesthesia of any kind. If I lost I wanted to feel all the pain that went along with it. I never wanted to dull anything. I deserved every bruise. I deserved every cut. pic.twitter.com/3kAOl5If0M

— Tim Kennedy (@TimKennedyMMA) April 19, 2020

I would never take a painkiller after a fight for any reason. No local anesthetic and no general anesthesia of any kind. If I lost I wanted to feel all the pain that went along with it. I never wanted to dull anything. I deserved every bruise. I deserved every cut.

It’s always interesting to hear a fighter discuss his innermost thoughts and this is no different. It’s a very eye-opening observation from Kennedy, who is a long-time member of the United States Army. He has always been one of the more articulate fighters in the sport and these recent remarks about the Romero fight are no different.

Kennedy retired from MMA after suffering a vicious TKO loss to Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 206 but continues to maintain a strong social media presence. Kennedy went 3-2 overall in the Octagon and is best known for his victory over future UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping in 2014. But after getting finished by both Romero and Gastelum he decided that he had enough of fighting in the Octagon.

What is your fondest memory of Tim Kennedy in the UFC?