Iuri Alcantara had to go under the knife after a thrilling bantamweight fight with Cory Sandhagen at UFC Lincoln.

“Marajo” came close to finishing the fight early in the opening round, locking in an armbar and almost breaking his opponent’s arm, but Sandhagen somehow escaped and went on to punish the Brazilian veteran with vicious punches and elbows.

Referee Brandon Pfannenstiel was criticized for not stopping the fight in the first round, and allowed Alcantara to take more unnecessary damage in the first minute of the second round, ending the contest at the 1:01 mark to declare Sandhagen the winner by TKO.

Alcantara pocketed an extra $50,000 check for the “Fight of the Night” bonus, and revealed on his social media that he needed surgery for a broken nose on Sunday morning.

Alcantara's manager Wallid Ismail told MMA Fighting the surgery was a success.

The 47-fight veteran, who dropped to 10-7 with one no-contest under the UFC banner, called the UFC Lincoln clash “one of the most incredible fights of my career,” and said doctors will likely clear him to return to training in one month.

Sandhagen now holds a 9-1 record with a pair of second-round TKO victories inside the Octagon.