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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Martin Kampmann reemerged as a contender in the welterweight division last Friday night, knocking out Jake Ellenberger at "The Ultimate Fighter: Live" Finale on FX. Following the win, the Danish fighter says he is going to go under the knife to take care of a nagging injury.
In an interview with MMAJunkie.com, Kampmann revealed that he's been dealing with a torn meniscus in his knee, and now is the time for him to get it fixed.
"I wanted to get it done a couple of fights ago, but I kept getting good fight offers," Kampmann said. "I kept fighting."
"I only feel it when I bend it. When I bend my knee sometimes, it will click. It's just a minor bug. It's nothing. I could still fight with it, but it's something that, more than anything, it bugs me in training. It doesn't bug me when I'm fighting."
When he's ready to return, he believes he'll be ready to fight for the UFC Welterweight Championship. He hopes that would mean he can get a fight with either Carlos Condit or Georges St-Pierre, whomever is Champion at that point, but he is willing to take on Johny Hendricks in the interim if neither of those fights is available.
"I want to fight for the title," he said. "That's what I want. I want to fight Carlos Condit, or I want to fight GSP. That's who I want to fight. And I think I earned the spot. But if I have to fight Johny to get there, then I guess that's what I'll have to do. The title is what I want to fight for."
Penick's Analysis: If it's just a minor surgery, he'll probably still be available for the November card in Montreal, where the Condit-GSP fight is expected to take place. That means a bout with Hendricks is probably likely for that card, with the winner facing off against the Condit-GSP winner. Of course, if Condit suffers an injury, or if GSP's recovery keeps him out longer than November, there could be an opening for a title fight, and the UFC will have a decision to make between Kampmann and Hendricks at that point.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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