UFC Light Heavyweight Contender Alexander Gustafsson Reveals Surgery, Rehab via Instagram

Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson hasn’t fought since May, but it’s safe to say he’ll be on the shelf just a little bit longer.

On Monday, Gustafsson revealed via Instagram that he’d undergone successful surgery on his left shoulder and collarbone and would begin the rehab process shortly.

“Op done,” Gustafsson wrote. “Got my shoulder fixed, feel great, been 3 month with a plate keeping my collarbone in place! Now rehab and slowly getting back in 100% training!”

UPDATE! Op done Got my shoulder fixed, feel great, been 3 month with a plate keeping my collarbone in place! Now rehab and slowly getting back in 100% training! Can’t wait to get back to the octagon

A post shared by Alex The Mauler Gustafsson (@alexthemauler) on Nov 27, 2017 at 3:05am PST

The 30-year-old last appeared in the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 109 in his native Sweden, knocking out perennial divisional standout Glover Teixeira in the fifth round. It was his second consecutive win, alongside a September 2016 decision over Jan Blachowicz, since Gustafsson lost a split decision in a UFC light heavyweight title challenge against Daniel Cormier at UFC 192 in October 2015.

“The Mauler” is currently the No. 1 ranked light heavyweight in the UFC’s 205-pound rankings, but the promotion is seeking a title fight between the champion Cormier and rising Swiss challenger Volkan Oezdemir for UFC 220 on Jan. 20 in Boston. The potential booking is complicated by Oezdemir’s Nov. 18 arrest for aggravated assault, stemming from an Aug. 12 incident at a Fort Lauderdale, Fla. bar in which he allegedly punched two men and knocked them unconscious. “No Time” and his team have claimed self-defense.