Jack Swagger Suffers Most Gruesome Injury in Power Slap History

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A former WWE world champion was left bloodied after suffering a gruesome eye injury during his latest Power Slap appearance, with the shocking incident leaving fans wincing and looking away.

The brutal moment unfolded during a Power Slap event in Texas on Thursday evening, where the fighter was competing in one of the earlier bouts on the card.

His opponent, Johnny Magna, traded punishing strikes with him as the pair took turns absorbing powerful open-handed blows to the face, but midway through the contest, things took a horrifying turn.

The punishment appeared to catch up with the former wrestling star as blood began leaking from his left eye, turning the encounter into a disturbing spectacle.

The man at the centre of the scene was none other than Jake Hager, previously known as Jack Swagger. In recent months, the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion has made the transition from professional wrestling to the increasingly controversial world of Power Slap.

Hager spent over a decade in the WWE, portraying an overconfident All-American athlete. The 'All American American's' greatest success came when he won the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 26 in 2010, before defeating Chris Jericho for the World Heavyweight Championship.

His title reign was ultimately over within 80 days and was largely forgettable. Hager would leave WWE in 2017, before enjoying a successful stint in Bellator MMA. A return to pro wrestling followed in 2019 with All Elite Wrestling.

However, after his departure from the Jacksonville-based promotion, Hager's career took a unique turn as he signed a six-fight deal with Power Slap, which is owned and operated by UFC CEO Dana White.

His bout with Magna was the third of this deal, following a knockout victory over Devin Jenkins in his first outing and a knockout defeat to Amanpreet Singh in July.

When Magna’s strike connected in the second round, Hager immediately recoiled, wincing in pain before clutching his eye and signaling that something was seriously wrong.

Visibly struggling in pain, Hager said: “He hit me right in the eye.”

The cameras soon captured the full extent of the problem. Blood had begun seeping from around the former WWE champion’s eye, turning what initially appeared to be a painful blow into a much more concerning injury.

With Hager unable to continue, officials brought the contest to an abrupt end, with Magna awarded the victory.

The injury was so severe that White refused to allow replays of it to be aired. During an appearance on Nina Drama's stream, Dana declared:

"That eyeball injury. Not good. Probably the worst injury in Power Slap or UFC ever. We're gonna have our doctors take care of this guy. I think he tore his tear duct.

"I wouldn't even let our guys replay it. And I'm a f***ing replay lunatic!"

Hager’s knockout loss to Singh in July came with a mandatory 45-day medical suspension, giving him a month and a half to recover from the punishment he absorbed in the bout.

It is likely he will need even longer to recover from this latest bout, and if the video evidence is anything to go off, he may choose never to return.

Power Slap has come under a ton of scrutiny from neurologists surrounding the likelihood of head trauma for competitors, and Hager's injury has raised questions beyond concussion, including the potential for dangerous facial and eye injuries when competitors are repeatedly struck in the head.