Despite suffering a knee injury which restricted his ability to, well, even carry his own weight, Thiago Santos came as close as anyone has ever come in seizing the UFC light heavyweight title from Jon Jones when they met in the UFC 239 headliner earlier this month.

While Jones was ultimately declared the winner after five rounds of action, one of the three cageside judges opted to score the fight three rounds to two in favour of the challenger — the very first time a judge scored a fight against Jones in his entire UFC career. However, it came at a cost. Santos injured both of his knees in the fight, which required surgery after the event which will sideline the light heavyweight for around a year.

‘Marreta’ updated fight fans with a video post on social, saying that the surgery has taken a physical toll on him and is restricting his ability to sleep and even eat.

It’s been 7 days since the surgeries on my knees. I must admit, these days are tough, filled with a lot of pain. I can’t sleep or eat properly due to the medications. I even fear using the bathroom because the walk there is a battle. Thank God the pain is subsiding. pic.twitter.com/2oD39DEsvN

— Thiago Marreta (@TMarretaMMA) July 25, 2019

“It’s been 7 days since the surgeries on my knees,” Santos wrote in a message accompanying a video of him moving around on a wheelchair before using a walker to get to his feet. “I must admit, these days are tough, filled with a lot of pain. I can’t sleep or eat properly due to the medications. I even fear using the bathroom because the walk there is a battle. Thank God the pain is subsiding.”

Santos has been in impressive form since moving to the light heavyweight division after 24 successive fights at 185-pounds, earning finishes of Eryk Anders, Jimi Manuwa and Jan Blachowicz in his first three bouts in his new home to secure a title bout against Jones.

He isn’t expected to compete again until the summer of 2020.