Ex-UFC champ Anderson Silva posts training photo, says 'I'm coming back'

A little more than a week after posting a video of himself gingerly walking down stairs, former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva apparently has taken another big step in his recovery.

On Sunday the Brazilian fighter tweeted a presumably new photo of him grappling.

The message was simple: “Estou voltando” (“I’m coming back”).

Silva (33-6 MMA, 16-2 UFC) snapped his leg during a UFC 168 headliner and rematch with reigning titleholder Chris Weidman (11-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC). Silva hoped to reclaim his belt from Weidman, who knocked out the Brazilian five months earlier, in the Dec. 28 rematch. But in the second round, the champ checked a kick, and Silva crashed to the mat with a broken left leg.

While the painful injury prompted speculation about Silva’s potential retirement, both he and UFC President Dana White have assured he’ll return to the cage.

“He’s going to heal great,” White said earlier this month. “He’s going to come back. The bone will be stronger. If you blow your ACL, you’re out for a year and three months. Rehab is gruesome on the thing, and you don’t know if you’re going to perform the same way. He broke a bone. He’s going to be good.”

For complete coverage of UFC 168, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.