‘One of the most brutal I’ve ever seen’: Viral UFC ‘punchface’ image shows savage damage from face-kick KO (PHOTOS/VIDEO)

A viral image of UFC veteran Frankie Edgar has been described as "one of the most brutal punchfaces" of all time, with fans and pundits reacting as photos soon spread of the incident from UFC 268 in New York.

Edgar and Marlon Vera faced off in a bantamweight bout on the undercard at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.

Improving his record to 18-7, the Ecuadorian finished Edgar by KO in the third round after having remarkably given his foe the middle finger at the end of the second.

Since the statement win from 'Chito', stills of the front kick finish have gone viral across the internet.

One respected MMA pundit said that the snaps of Edgar's altered mug "might honestly be one of the most brutal punchfaces I've ever seen".

"Bruh aged 50 years after that kick," remarked a fan. 

Others concluded that Edgar had been left to look like the human version of Moe's Tavern barkeep Moe Szyslak from The Simpsons, or the clown mask Heath Ledger's Oscar-winning Joker used in the Dark Knight to pull off a bank heist.

"Man turned into an NFT," was another popular remark, as was the conclusion that evolution had been "reversed". 

"LeBron would be out for 36 months after this," was a dig at the NBA icon LeBron James, and a nod to previous gossip that he could face welterweight title challenger Colby Covington in the octagon one day.

"The knees and upfront kicks were there the entire time," began another onlooker on Edgar perhaps calling it time on his career.

"I was surprised the fight even lasted to the final round. These legends refusing to hang up the gloves when it's time make me sick!"