Frankie Edgar has a back injury that hasn’t been going away for some time and apparently won’t be going away any time soon.
Edgar spoke to MMAFighting.com’s Mike Chiappetta and talked about the back issue that forced him to withdraw from his UFC Lightweight Championship defense against Gray Maynard at UFC 130.
Earlier Monday, (Edgar) had an epidural injection to address the pain. It will take up to four days to determine whether it worked. According to Edgar, the ultimate solution is something more invasive, but his doctors are trying to stem the pain and delay what might be inevitable.
“I think eventually I’m going to need surgery,” said Edgar, who also suffered a rib injury in training. “Hopefully these shots will slow down the process and give me a couple more years without having to do the surgery.”
The shots may prove an effective temporary solution, but if they don’t work, he could have another round of shots that will go directly into his nerves.
Edgar said his back issues go back to his past, and that he had surgery 11 years ago. Since then, he occasionally suffered small flare-ups that would knock him out of the gym for a day or two, but about 3-4 weeks ago, he was hit with another flare-up that he quickly realized was far more severe.
Back injuries aren’t something to mess around with and if Edgar has to take shots regularly, the problem is probably more severe than he would like to really admit.
I understand Edgar’s desire to fight through the injury, as he is a champion for the biggest organization and probably trying to build a future for his family, but one wrong move in training or in the octagon could end his career forever.
Hopefully Edgar can heal up soon, but if he needs to take a lengthy amount of time off to have surgery that could improve his quality of life, I hope he does it.
