Forrest Griffin Set To Return In the Summer

Rumors were circulating earlier this week that former UFC light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin was going to be sidelined for the rest of 2009 due to his hand injury.

An article from the UK Sun stated that Griffin's hand injury was "worse than first feared" and that he would be sidelined until "Autumn" at the earliest.

MMA Weekly (link below) cleared up the confusion regarding Griffin's injury by speaking with sources close to Griffin. This source claims that Griffin had surgery on his hand, but that is he expected to make a full recovery in two to three months.

Forrest broke his hand during his loss to Rashad Evans at UFC 92 last month.

Griffin is hoping to make his return this summer.

This is obviously good news for both Griffin and the UFC. Forrest Griffin is one of the promotion's most popular fighters, and it would certainly sting to have him out of action for any significant period of time.

I would imagine that Dana White and the UFC will be anxious to have Forrest fighting on their UFC 100 card, which is scheduled to take place sometime this summer. Forrest Griffin and the first season of the "Ultimate Fighter" are big reasons why the UFC has ballooned in popularity over the past number of years - I am sure that the UFC will want to acknowledge Griffin and his contributions to the promotion by featuring him on the UFC 100 card.

Source: MMA Weekly - Griffin Recovering, Expecting Summertime Return

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