Last week, Washington, D.C., witnessed a violent night unfold on the South Lawn of the White House, with all seven bouts at UFC Freedom 250 ending in brutal knockouts—a first for a UFC event ever. As a result, fighters who participated in the event also faced consequences in the form of medical suspensions. Though many fighters received considerable time off after engaging in grueling showdowns, Alex Pereira obtained a massive 180-day suspension after Ciryl Gane knocked him out in the second round of their interim heavyweight title fight.

The Association of Boxing and Combative Sports Commissions (ABC) suspended all 14 fighters across seven bouts after competing at the UFC White House event. However, nine fighters in particular reportedly received longer-than-mandatory suspensions after they suffered devastating knockouts. MMA Junkie obtained the reports of suspension on Wednesday through the California State Athletic Commission’s (CSAC) executive director, Andy Foster, who served as one of the regulators for the event in Washington, DC. According to it, Alex Pereira has been handed an 180-day suspension, after which he can return once his oral and maxillofacial reports show negative. ‘Poatan’ also received a mandatory TKO suspension of 60 days.

On the other hand, Ciryl Gane only received an eight-day suspension after emerging virtually unscathed from his UFC Freedom 250 bout against the Brazilian. During the showdown, Alex Pereira suffered visible damage to his face, with his eyes swollen from Gane’s strikes. Hence, the CT scan and maxillofacial surgeon will assess the extent of the damage Pereira sustained to his face, jaw, teeth, and sinuses.

In comparison, when Israel Adesanya knocked out Alex Pereira at UFC 287, and the former two-division champion struggled to get up from the canvas for quite some time, he still only received a 60-day suspension. However, it appears Pereira absorbed more significant damage against Ciryl Gane, considering he was fighting a natural heavyweight. If that wasn’t enough, the Frenchman also allegedly landed illegal rabbit punches during the finishing sequence at UFC Freedom 250.

For this, the 38-year-old has called out Gane as well as referee Herb Dean for allowing the illegal punches. As such, Pereira now plans to appeal the decision to the commission. But it’s not only Alex Pereira who received a lengthy suspension.

The newly crowned lightweight champion, Justin Gaethje, also received an 180-day suspension, along with a mandatory 45-day rest period. He too can return only after his right wrist and left knee MRIs show no signs of damage. Ilia Topuria received the same suspension length with 60 days of mandatory rest. He will also require medical clearance from an oral and maxillofacial surgeon after suffering a broken orbital bone and other facial injuries in his four-round war with Gaethje.

Now, alongside the main and co-main event, the rest of the UFC Freedom 250 fighters also received healthy suspension time.

Suspension time for Sean O’Malley, Josh Hokit, and other fighters after UFC Freedom 250

One of the most exhilarating bouts unfolded at UFC Freedom 250 when former bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley knocked out surging contender Aiemann Zahabi with a swift finish in the second round. For that performance, ‘Suga’ received only eight days of mandatory rest, while the commission handed the Canadian fighter an 180-day suspension pending medical clearance with a maxillofacial CT scan.

Following this came the heavyweight bout between Josh Hokit and Derrick Lewis. Despite the 34-pound weight difference, Hokit defied the odds and used his agility to score a dominant performance against the UFC’s most decorated knockout artist. The Californian landed a total of 86 significant strikes and also secured two takedowns on Lewis before earning a second-round TKO finish.

Based on that outcome, the ABC handed Derrick Lewis a suspension of 45 days, while Hokit received only a short eight-day mandatory rest period. Also, the following list represents the other fighter suspensions handed out after UFC Freedom 250.

• Mauricio Ruffy – 4 days mandatory rest 
• Michael Chandler – 45 days suspension for TKO loss 
• Bo Nickal – 4 days mandatory rest 
• Kyle Daukaus – 45-day suspension for TKO loss
• Diego Lopes – suspended for 30 days until the physician clears the report of left eye damage. 
• Steve Garcia – suspended for 180 days until the physician clears the X-ray report of his left hand. He also received a 60-day resting time for the TKO loss.

For now, the suspensions don’t look too awful. But considering the damage that fighters like Ilia Topuria and Alex Pereira took, the road back to active competition might not be so easy as taking a rest.