For the these three fighters, injuries and sicknesses have taken a toll on their bodies and thrown their careers into neutral. But big comebacks in 2012 are not out of the question for these warriors. Here’s hoping they get back in the cage sooner rather than later and ply their trade once again.
Shane Carwin
The bad news is that Carwin revealed on his website that he was injured again during training and surgery is required for him to resume his career. The good news is that he hopes to be back in the Octagon next spring or summer. And once he is back it shouldn’t take him long to get right back into title contention. He’s only fought twice since July of 2010, dropping fights to former champ Brock Lesnar and current champ Junior dos Santos. Time is definitely of the essence for Carwin, but I believe he will be back.
Mike Swick
According to his blog, Swick battled an illness with his esophagus that caused him to lose 30 pounds. He was scheduled to fight at UFC 134, but he injured his ACL, MCL and meniscus. Swick was obviously forced to withdraw from the card but had surgery and is currently rehabbing in hopes of being back in the Octagon sometime in 2012. Whether Swick will return at middleweight or welterweight is unknown, but he did promise “to win and to win in a really exciting and violent fashion.” For now Swick is building a gym in Thailand with Roger Huerta.
Brock Lesnar
His comeback will actually start two days before the calendar turns to 2012, when Lesnar fights Alistair Overeem at UFC 141. While many seem to think that Overeem will dispatch the former UFC champ with ease, the UFC’s new heavyweight champ thinks his next bout will be against Lesnar. At the UFC on FOX post-fight presser, Dos Santos said, “I don’t know [who will win], but I think I’ll go with Brock.”
That would be quite a comeback for Lesnar. He’d go from fighting only once in 2011 on the second to last day of the year to fighting for the UFC heavyweight championship early in 2012. People want to look past him, but things change quickly in MMA. Whose to say he won’t rip Overeem to the ground and finish him in a quick minute?
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