Barcelos conscious and walking after losing consciousness at UFC Vegas 121, White confirms

Raoni Barcelos is conscious and walking in hospital after a deeply alarming finish to his UFC Vegas 121 main event against Raul Rosas Jr. at Meta APEX in Las Vegas on September 26, UFC president Dana White confirmed at the Contender Series Season 10 Week 8 post-fight press conference.

Barcelос appeared to lose consciousness during a wrestling exchange against the Octagon wall in the fifth round, prompting the referee to stop the fight. The Brazilian had been ahead on all three judges’ scorecards heading into that final frame. He was removed from the Octagon on a stretcher and transported directly to a Level I trauma center.

White said Barcelos subsequently regained consciousness and is now lucid and mobile, though doctors are still awaiting test results to establish what caused the episode.

“All the pre-fight medicals were triple-checked; everything was good,” White said. “There were six doctors here that night, three ambulances. He was taken straight to the trauma center, not to Valley. Everything was done the right way and the outcome was good.”

White added that pre-fight medicals had been reviewed three times before the event, and that six doctors and three ambulances were on site at Meta APEX when Barcelos collapsed. The decision to bypass Valley Hospital in favour of a Level I trauma center was presented as a deliberate precaution.

When asked whether Barcelos would fight again, White said his sole focus at this stage is the 39-year-old’s health, declining to speculate on a return to competition until medical results are available.