Photo: Cyborg Santos suffers fractured skull in vicious knockout loss at Bellator 158

Evangelista Santos suffered a devastating knockout loss to Michael Page at Bellator 158in London on Saturday afternoon, but the injury suffered was even more brutal.

Cyborg suffered a fractured skull — arguably the most gruesome injury suffered in a mixed martial arts bout in recent memory — and was hospitalized afterwards.

“Fight fans, please say a prayer for my ex-husband Cyborg Santos,” Santos’ ex-wife, Cristiane Justino wrote in an Instagram post. “Many of you watched him fight on Spike TV this weekend when he suffered this injury while fighting in London. Cyborg is still in the hospital in the UK, and they are not sure when he will be able to fly again. He has not had surgery yet and their is worry the brain can continue to swell causing more damage.

“Bellator MMA is supposed to be responsible for all medical procedures needed to fix this injury from the fight, however Cyborg is going to be unable to work for sometime and we will be putting together a GoFundMe for fight fans wishing to sponsor him and his family at this difficult time. Thank you God for your protection, The doctor said this very easily could have been life threatening.”

Cyborg (21-18) returned to action after a two-year layoff this past January and picked up a unanimous decision win at Legacy Fighting Championship 50. He made his Bellator debut at Bellator 153 and surprisingly submitted Brennan Ward. Since then, however, he has been knocked out twice, to Saad Awad and now Venom.

Cyborg is targeted to undergo surgery in the United States, but, at this time, it is unknown when he will be able to travel by plane.

BloodyElbow.com will keep you updated on Cyborg’s heath as the story develops.