Vietnamese MMA fighter suffered a liver injury after a spinning kick at LION Championship 24

The incident occurred in the 60kg MMA Pro match within the framework of LION Championship 24 which took place on the evening of July 12. Fighter Dinh Trung Hieu of the Ha Dong Fighters Unions Club was defeated by technical knockout after only 23 seconds in the match with Danh Quoc.

Immediately after the opponent's first spinning kick hit him straight in the liver, Trung Hieu fell to the floor, grimaced in pain and waved his hands to stop the match.

The medical team immediately arrived to provide first aid before Trung Hieu was taken to Viet Duc Hospital for emergency treatment. There, doctors diagnosed Trung Hieu with bleeding and liver damage and required emergency surgery.

The surgery was performed on July 13. Trung Hieu is currently in the recovery room, but his health is still weak and needs to be closely monitored.

Dinh Trung Hieu is known as one of the promising young fighters in the Vietnamese MMA scene. He started his career in 2024, and had an impressive debut at the LION Championship 13 event when he won against Pham Van Quyen by unanimous decision. Three months later, he suffered his first defeat against Tran Kiet at the Than Vo Vietnam (GMA) tournament, after a triangle choke in the first round.

In an announcement, the LION Championship Organizing Committee shared: "We are standing side by side with the family, medical team and Ha Dong Fighters Unions Club to provide maximum support to Trung Hieu during this difficult period. We hope that the community will join us to help a brave fighter who is fighting not only in the ring, but also with his own life."