Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin (12-2) is reporting that he will undergo back surgery once again and is hoping to be back early next summer.
Carwin posted the notice on his homepage at Shane-Carwin.com on Saturday, saying his “body locked up during training” and that his doctor gave him the option of retiring, or having surgery if he wished to continue with his mixed martial arts career.
As I ramped up my training for UFC 141 my body locked up during training. It wasn’t like the Lesnar fight but my back just tightened up and I froze. I scheduled an MRI and the results showed that my disc in my lower back is into the nerves . My doctor gave me two options; retire and I could probably go on for a few years without surgery or I could undergo surgery and continue my career.
The decision was easy. I have unfinished business. The UFC had me lined up to face one of the best in the world and I am confident I have everything I need to be a Champion. I am scheduling surgery and I hope to return to the Octagon by spring or summer 2012.
Carwin was last in the Octagon in June, having lost a No. 1 contender bout against Junior dos Santos in the headliner for UFC 131.
The heavyweight went under the knife last November to relieve pain in his back and neck.