Kayla Harrison Details Neck Surgery, Retirement Doubts Ahead of UFC 334

UFC women's bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison is scheduled to defend her title against Amanda Nunes in the co-main event of UFC 334 next month. The matchup was originally targeted for earlier this year, but it had to be postponed after Harrison was forced to undergo neck surgery. Now fully healthy, the two-time Olympic gold medalist opened up about her injury and the difficult recovery process in an interview with Uncrowned.

Harrison explained that she had been managing severe spinal issues for much of her career, relying on extensive conservative treatments to avoid going under the knife. "I've had five herniated discs for quite a while, and throughout my career, it’s flared up, and it’s been bad," Harrison told Uncrowned. She noted that she regularly used stem cells, anti-inflammatories, arthritis medication, nerve pain pills, muscle relaxers, and physical therapy until her condition deteriorated drastically.

"I lost strength in my right arm, and I was in a really bad spot. Finally I went and got an MRI and they were like, 'Oh yeah, it looks like the last two of the five herniated discs are completely blocking the nerve at this point.'"

The resulting surgery led to a grueling rehabilitation period that made Harrison question whether she would ever compete again. She spent eight weeks in a neck brace and was restricted from lifting anything heavier than 20 pounds, creating a sharp mental contrast to her usual high-intensity training regimen.

"There were a lot of moments where I kind of questioned if this was going to be possible, and if I needed to come to terms with the fact that I might be all done," Harrison admitted. However, after what she described as a long process to rebuild her physical conditioning and confidence, the champion confirmed she has fully recovered and is ready for her upcoming title defense.