Thiago Tavares will appeal bizarre TKO loss at PFL 2

The longtime UFC veteran made his debut under the Professional Fighters League banner against the lightweight prospect Thursday night in Chicago, but the fight abruptly ended seconds into the second round after Watley landed a vicious — and unintentional — low blow.

Tavares was given five minutes to recover, but couldn’t stand back up after the time ran out. Surprisingly, though, referee Keith Peterson did not rule it a no-contest. Instead, Watley was declared the winner via TKO.

A few hours after the end of the fight, Tavares informed MMA Fighting he was in hospital for exams and was still in pain in the groin and abdomen area. Tavares said via text message that he wasn’t given a reason why…