Ben Rothwell aiming for July return to the octagon, knows he needs to be patient at this stage of his career

UFC heavyweight slugger, Ben Rothwell has revealed that he’s targeting a July return to the octagon after rehabbing a torn ACL suffered in June of last year, an injury he knows needs to be right if he’s to cut it against some of the best fighters in the world.
Speaking via Sherdog.com, Rothwell said:

“Life’s really simple right now. I just wake up, go rehab, teach and train, but that’s a good thing because it’s made me even more of a martial artist than what I already was. I teach [at Rothwell MMA and Gracie-Barra Wisconsin in Kenosha, Wis.) in the mornings, doing stretching and things with my classes, and, at night, there’s a group that trains MMA four or five times a week. I didn’t train like this before. I wanted to do more, and I like the fact I’m doing more now.”

“In my head, I know I’m not going to be fighting until July, but there’s a part of me that would like to fight sooner. But I want a full recovery. When I was younger, things might be different, but now, I’m 29 years old and I feel like I’m an elder. I’m one of the most experienced guys in the UFC, and I want to take the time to be at full strength when I get ready to fight. When I do fight, I want to be able to get out there and show my best, which I don’t think I’ve done yet.”

“Because I’m experienced, I’ve been able to remain calm [about not fighting]. I’ve been realistic with myself about things. Before, I might have freaked out, come back early and hurt myself. Now, when I come back, I want to be quality. I want to be different than what people saw against [Yvel and Velasquez]. I want to show people what I’m capable of and fight about three times a year. If I’m fighting three times a year, that means I’m winning and looking good doing it.”

Rothwell rebounded from the disappointment at losing to now UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez on his octagon debut when he mauled Gilbert Yvel for three rounds in June, eventually winning via unanimous decision. Stay tuned to MMABay for more on his road to recovery as we get it.