When diagnosed with an enlarged heart and a leaking aortic valve in August, UFC heavyweight Stefan Struve’s future as a mixed martial artist seemed bleak, but the 7-foot tall Dutchman never wavered in his belief that he’d someday return to fighting.
On Monday, Struve tweeted that he sparred for the first time since February, taking the first step in the direction of a comeback.
First time sparring since februari of this year, finally
— Stefan Struve (@StefanStruve) October 14, 2013
While his timing was off due to an 8-month layoff from training, Struve said he felt good.
Timing was a bit off but it felt amazing to do what I love doing again. Not feeling anything different then before. On my to that comeback!
— Stefan Struve (@StefanStruve) October 14, 2013
Struve’s cardiologists opted to treat his heart condition with medication rather than surgery, and the 13-fight UFC veteran has seen marked improvement. He recently tweeted an update on his progress.
So the news is that my heart has decreased in size and because of that the aortic valve leakage has gone from medium severe to minimal!
— Stefan Struve (@StefanStruve) October 9, 2013
Struve will continue to train while on medication and monitor any improvements or setbacks. It’s still unclear if he’ll return to fighting, but if you ask him, it’s a matter of when, not if.