UFC ace Gabriel Benitez suffers horrific ‘bullet hole’ gash on his leg leaving shin bone exposed through slashed skin

UFC veteran Gabriel Benitez suffered a gruesome "bullet hole" gash on his leg with shin bone left exposed through slashed skin after a kicking war in the octagon.

Benitez, 31, filled in at late notice to face unbeaten kickboxing expert Omar Morales in Florida as the UFC staged their second event behind closed doors in just five days.

And he faced adversity from the second round onwards after suffering a deep cut on his shin as a result of relentless kicking.

To make matters worse, Morales fired back with his own leg attacks only adding to the damage Benitez was taking.

Commentator Daniel Cormier - who also trains with Benitez - compared his gash to a bullet hole.

Before the bout Cormier also revealed American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez rates the Mexican as the hardest kicker in his gym, which also homes Khabib Nurmagomedov and Luke Rockhold.

Going into the third round it was all to play for but Morales' work rate and accuracy led him to a points victory.

After moving to 10-0, Morales said: “He is a tough Mexican fighter, he did what I expected but I had a great camp.

“I took the fight and delivered.

“I did my homework, studied hard and I knew I had to pick the right moments to counter.”

The high level of striking on display was hailed by UFC fighters watching the event from home.

Scott Holtzman said: "Excellent striking in Morales v Benitez. That is the worst shin cut I’ve ever seen. Benitez is so tough."

Tatiana Suarez tweeted: "Damn that was a technical battle. Congrats Morales!"