T.J. Grant is almost ready to return.
The UFC lightweight contender whose title hopes were dashed after suffering a concussion during a training session last year said that he could return to the Octagon next month.
Grant revealed his recovery timetable during a press conference today to promote UFC Fight Night 54 in Nova Scotia. While Grant (8-3) won’t be on the October 4 card, his return should happen just after.
“It’s definitely been a challenging year for me,” he said today. “I’m near the end of it, and I’m looking forward to resuming my career soon. I hope to be ready to fight this fall.”
After a 3-3 run as a UFC welterweight, Grant dropped to the lightweight division in 2011 and posted five consecutive victories, earning a pair of fight-night bonuses in the process.
The wins earned Grant a shot at then-champion Benson Henderson at UFC 164, but Grant was forced to withdraw because of the concussion. Grant was given a second title shot in December 2013 against new champion Anthony Pettis, but again had to decline because of his ailment.
“At first, (it was) just people questioning me like that, and originally I was pretty upset,” Grant told MMAjunkie.com in September 2013. “Just like, ‘Oh yeah, suck it up.’ I actually had a couple people say things like, ‘I played football with a concussion,’ and I was just like, well, you’re an idiot.”
