He died multiple times, shattered pelvis, broken ribs, punctured lung; inside death defying motorbike crash

Lying in a pool of his own blood and missing a leg, Buck Cooper pleaded with police to shoot him. Inside his death defying motorbike crash that changed his life forever.

Lying in a pool of his own blood and missing a leg, Buck Cooper pleaded with police to shoot him.

They didn’t need to because he died multiple times in the immediate aftermath of a horrific motorbike crash in the NSW countryside of Ulladulla 11 years ago.

He was pitted into an unwanted fight for his life. Now the thought of stepping into a cage to compete in one of the most brutal sport’s in the world seems fairly straight forward.

The 36-year-old from Little Forrest will be in the first amputee fight held in Cairns against Glenn Dickson on June 1 in a mixed martial arts match.

If was a flooded engine that led to Cooper’s life changing event.

Buck Cooper was involved in a life-changing dirt bike crash leaving him with a shattered pelvis, broken ribs, puncture lung, a completely torn off his left leg and left him paralysed in the left arm. Picture: Supplied

A simple delay while dirt bike riding at the age of 25 meant Cooper’s friend took off while he struggled to get started.

“I got it started, but my mate must of realised I wasn’t behind him,” Cooper said.

“So he has turned around and came flying back towards me and I went flying towards him.

“We hit this little ramp part at the same time and crashed into each other.”

Cooper flew off his bike, laying in the dirt, trying to figure out what had just happened.

“I remember I froze for a bit then looked down and my leg was completely torn off,” Cooper said.

“I started screaming. I had my guts hanging out, pelvis was shattered, parts of me that were meant to be inside of me weren’t.

“My testicles were hanging out, luckily I still have them though.”

Bleeding out as he lay in the dirt, Cooper’s screams attracted the neighbour who, lucky for him, was a triage nurse.

“Where the accident happened, it was out the front of this house and a nurse lived there,” Cooper said.

“They have come out and tourniquet my leg to stop the bleeding. That saved my life.

“But I remember laying there when the cops came and I begged them to shoot me.

“I was in so much pain, I just kept asking the cop ‘please just shoot me’.

“Then the paramedics arrived and chucked me in the ambulance and drugged me up.”

Sitting in the ambulance, things went from bad to worse for Cooper as he died on his was to the hospital.

Buck Cooper was involved in a life-changing dirt bike crash leaving him with a shattered pelvis, broken ribs, puncture lung, a completely torn off his left leg and left him paralysed in the left arm. Picture: Supplied

“In the end I died a few times but was brought back,” Cooper said.

“I remember waking up from surgery once and feeling like my leg was still there.

“They put me on all types of medication and I just started hallucinating.

“The nurses were on fire, what I could see was them trying to stab me.

“My mind played so many weird tricks on me during this time because of all the drugs they had given me.”

Cooper found out he had a shattered pelvis, broken ribs, a punctured lung and torn nerves from his spine.

After several surgeries, Cooper came out of the accident being unable to use his left arm.

In what was meant to be a long stint in hospital, Cooper checked himself out after just eight weeks.

“Think it was about two weeks in they put me in the crane lift to get me out of bed,” Cooper said.

Buck Cooper was involved in a life-changing dirt bike crash leaving him with a shattered pelvis, broken ribs, puncture lung, a completely torn off his left leg and left him paralysed in the left arm. Picture: Supplied

“Because I had so many broken bones and everything and I couldn’t walk.

“They had to get me out of bed.

“But with the crane, I was in so much pain, that was some of horrible shit if I am honest.

“I know they knew what they were doing but I just didn’t want to keep doing that.

“So after a few more weeks of torture, I just checked myself out, I no longer wanted to be in there.

“They did say to me that they recommended I stay which is the process they have to go through.

“But they can’t legally keep me there, so I checked myself out.”

Cooper’s long road to recovery was met with plenty of hurdles as he had to learn to walk with a prosthetic leg.

“I started training again, that actually helped me a lot,” Cooper said.

“I love my family but they told me to give it up and I am not about giving up stuff that you love.

“As a kid I did karate and trained a bit of MMA and all that sort of stuff.

“I found that helped me just get my strength and helped me get through the process.”

Cooper said he was ready to go to war in the cage against Dickson.

“I have a lot of respect for Glenn, I am glad he reached out to me because I understand how hard it is to get a fight when you are disabled,” Cooper said.

“You are in a lose-lose situation really.

“No one wants to beat up a disabled person but also no one wants to lose to a disabled person.

“I have said to him that I have no issues with him and so much respect for him but we are going to war in that cage.”

Originally published as He died multiple times, shattered pelvis, broken ribs, punctured lung; inside death defying motorbike crash