As Joe Proctor's head grew, his corner developed a strategy: Lie

ATLANTIC CITY – Joe Proctor knew something wasn’t right, but he had no idea there was a fleshy softball growing on the side of his head. His cornermen knew there was only one way to handle it: Lie like hell.

“I felt something was on my head,” Proctor told MMAjunkie. “I asked, ‘Is it bad?’ They said, ‘No, no. It’s not bad at all.’”

That wasn’t exactly true. Sure, a hematoma isn’t necessarily a serious issue. The condition, in which blood collects outside of the blood vessels, generally self repairs with time. Occasionally, the blood may need to be surgically removed, but it’s generally not considered a particularly threatening ailment.

Unless you’re involved in a prizefight at the time.

Proctor (10-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) was, facing fellow UFC lightweight Justin Salas (12-6 MMA, 3-3 UFC) on the FOX Sports-1 broadcast main card of Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 45 event at Atlantic City’s Revel Casino Hotel. A powerful Salas right hand connected to Proctor’s temple in the opening round, and the hematoma rapidly developed. As the first round came to a close, Proctor’s cornermen, including veteran UFC lightweight Joe Lauzon, decided it was best if he just didn’t know.

The gamble paid off, and Proctor bounced back in the second round, scoring a couple of stiff left hands that dazed his opponent before finishing the fight with rapid-fire punches on the floor.

At the evening’s post-event press conference, Proctor said he appreciated his corner’s discretion.

“It worked out for me,” Proctor said. “I just kept fighting.”

The swelling had already started to subside at the media session, but Proctor admitted he was a little bit shocked when he first saw the wound following the fight.

“It was pretty big,” Proctor admitted.

A former cast member on “The Ultimate Fighter 15,” Proctor now boasts a two-fight UFC winning streak and will look to return later this year to build on that momentum. First, he’s got to get rid of his sizable new addition.

“They just said put some ice on it and wrap it up nice and tight,” Proctor said. “Hopefully it goes down in a day or so.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 45, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.