Matt Hughes has spent the most of his life surviving violence, both inside and outside of the Octagon. So it should come as no surprise that after losing a part of his finger, the UFC Hall of Famer somehow managed to turn the situation into a joke.

The former welterweight champion recently shocked fans by uploading a graphic hospital photo that revealed the top portion of his middle finger was gone. Hughes didn’t explain how the accident happened, but the sight alone was enough to leave fans stunned.

Still, rather than sounding shaken or frustrated, the UFC legend approached it exactly the way many would expect him to.

“Luckily, God’s been real good to me,” he captioned his social media post as he smiled at the camera. “He left me nine more to work with. 😆”

And, to be honest, if anyone was going to shrug off something like this, it was probably Matt Hughes. Long before social media existed, the 52-year-old established himself as one of the sport’s toughest fighters.

The two-time UFC welterweight champion compiled a legendary 45-9 professional record and became one of the defining personalities of the early MMA scene with brutal wrestling, constant pressure, and raw toughness.

He defeated icons like Georges St-Pierre, B.J. Penn, and Royce Gracie while defending his UFC title across multiple reigns. Pain was nearly a part of his identity during his fighting career, which explains why a missing fingertip is now more of an inconvenience than a tragedy to him.

And if you aren’t impressed enough, it is worth noting that Matt Hughes has already survived situations far more terrifying than this.

The train incident that almost killed Matt Hughes

Back in 2017, however, the situation surrounding Matt Hughes was no laughing matter at all. Long before a hospital photo of a severed fingertip went viral, the UFC Hall of Famer was struggling for his life following one of the most terrifying accidents imaginable. And, unlike the controlled violence he built his career around, no amount of toughness or wrestling pedigree could have prepared him for this one.

The UFC Hall of Famer nearly died when a train collided with the passenger side of his truck at a railroad crossing near his home in Illinois. The 52-year-old sustained significant brain trauma and internal bleeding as a result of the incident, requiring a 19-day medically induced coma.

He later described it as the “worst brain injury possible,” namely a Grade 3 diffuse axonal brain injury. At one point, there were serious concerns that the former welterweight champion would never fully recover.

However, Matt Hughes slowly fought his way back.

After weeks in the hospital, he had to relearn basic skills like walking and brushing his teeth. In 2020, he even shared footage of himself running for the first time since the injury.

That is why his reaction to losing part of a finger is so fitting. After surviving a near-fatal train collision, a fingertip probably feels minor in comparison to everything else the 52-year-old has previously endured.