UFC Fighter Josiah Harrell Needs $80K for Surgery to Treat Rare Brain Condition

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Josiah Harrell needs at least $80,000 to help cover the surgery needed to treat the brain condition that forced him out of his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.

The 25-year-old mixed martial artist recently launched a GoFundMe account to pay for the expenses associated with the procedure required to treat moyamoya, which is a “rare vascular disease of the brain in which the main arteries that supply blood to your brain become narrowed and blocked,” according to pennmedicine.org.

Harrell was supposed to make his first Octagon foray against Jack Della Maddalena on short notice at UFC 290, but a pre-fight brain scan caught the condition and forced him out of the fight. The Ohioan was supposed to undergo surgery shortly thereafter the July diagnosis, but financial issues have apparently complicated that situation.

“As of right now I cannot go any further with anything that has to do with surgery until I have [$80,000] up front,” Harrell wrote on his GoFundMe page. “The UFC insurance cannot cover me. So I will be on hold until further notice. Just got updated today. Got withheld information for about six months.”

Harrell’s manager informed MMAjunkie.com that the surgery was scheduled for Tuesday at the Moyamoya Center at Stanford Health Care in Palo Alto, Calif. Harrell is expected to require at least a three-to-four month recovery period before he can resume training. There is a positive past precedent for the disease: “The Ultimate Fighter” veteran Vince Murdock returned to competition after having surgery to have the condition corrected.

Harrell currently owns a 7-0 professional record, with appearances in Legacy Fighting Alliance and Cage Fury Fighting Championships to his credit. His last bout was a third-round stoppage of Michael Roberts at LFA 160 in June 2023.