Junior Dos Santos 'almost 100 percent,' aiming for December return

BRASILIA, Brazil – Former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos (16-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) is nearing one year on the sidelines, and he’s not happy about it. But with a hand that’s nearly healed, the Brazilian is hoping for a December booking.

“It’s almost 100 percent,” Dos Santos said of his injured hand. “I’m not going to say 100 percent because it’s going to be too much, but it’s almost there. I’m feeling OK from the injuries, and actually I’m ready to go. I’m just training hard, and I think I can prepare for a fight already.”

“Cigano” hasn’t fought since an October 2013 loss to Cain Velasquez. He was expected to compete in May at The Ultimate Fighter Brazil 3 Finale, but a hand injury forced Dos Santos to withdraw from bout a little more than three weeks out.

Dos Santos said the recovery process did not require surgery, and he thinks it will be fully healed in time for a December contest.

In the meantime, Dos Santos has started working with Brazilian powerhouse camp Nova Uniao, where Andre Pederneiras heads a stable of elite fighters that includes UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao and Bellator bantamweight champ Eduardo Dantas among countless others.

Dos Santos has received some criticism for the move because the team is known as a haven for lighter-weight fighters, but the heavyweight said working with Pederneiras is worth the sacrifice of limited training partners, especially when quality heavyweights are exactly at abundance in any training camp.

“I think it’s going to be good for me over there,” Dos Santos said. “They’re a good team. They don’t have too many heavyweights there, and it’s a problem, but I think that’s a problem everywhere. Everywhere you go, people feel like that: They don’t have too many heavyweights. So it’s a problem that we have to deal with.

“I think everything is going very good there, and I just want to improve my game. I want to be a more complete fighter. I think that ‘Dede’ Pederneiras is an excellent coach, and I think he’s going to teach me a lot of things.”

While a pair of losses to current champ Velasquez means Dos Santos isn’t exactly at the top of the contenders’ list right now, he is currently ranked No. 2 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA heavyweight rankings, so he’s still in line for a marquee fight. Unranked fighter Ben Rothwell, who scored a TKO win over Alistair Overeem has asked for Dos Santos, but the Brazilian said he has yet to receive an official offer from the promotion.

“Whatever UFC wants me to do, I will do,” Dos Santos said. “I love what I do. Of course, he did very well against Alistair Overeem, and I think it could be a good fight.”

But more than anything, Dos Santos just wants to get in one fight before the calendar shows 2015. The UFC has already announced a few cards for December, and Dos Santos hopes they can find room for him somewhere on the docket.

“Right now, it doesn’t really matter to me (who I fight),” Dos Santos said. “I just want to fight. I want to fight before the end of the year because it’s very important. In October, it’s going to be one year that I haven’t had a fight. It’s making me very frustrated, and I’m feeling very nervous about that. That’s what I do. That’s what I love to do, and that’s what I do to live, and I can’t wait to be back.”

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.