Roger Gracie’s third MMA match was scheduled for this past September on Sengoku’s 5th event which occurred on September 28th. A rib injury caused him to pull out of the match, and a slew of negative press generated by Sengoku followed. The Gracie camp has been largely silent about the matter, choosing to take the high road rather than engaging in a campaign of mudslinging. We caught up with Roger’s management to see what the latest is on Gracie and the injury.
Word is that Roger has started training after spending 5 weeks resting his injured ribs. One insider stated ‘Roger is back in the gym training to fight. He has not started his complete regimen, he is still holding off on some aspects of his training, but he is back in the gym and will be fighting again in the coming months’. Obviously Sengoku’s 6th event scheduled for November 1st is still too soon, but the New Year’s events (strongly rumored for January 4th, 2009) are ‘a good possibility’ according to those close to Gracie.
In Japan, the poor handling of Gracie’s injury by Sengoku has apparently led to a change in management and in matchmaking within the company. The old team had asked Gracie to travel injured for a medical exam in Japan, which the fighter was advised to not do. Our insider in the Gracie camp continued ‘they were saying that they would send a doctor to examine Roger, and we were all for that. Sengoku never sent anyone to London, and Roger was left waiting. It is all academic now, as time has passed and his recuperation is on schedule’.
Our spokesperson continued ‘Roger is calm and he is a gentleman, so there is no real harm done. We are looking at doing an interview for the print media in Japan, to clear the air and to have Roger’s voice heard, but the contract is still in effect and Roger is preparing to fight again for Sengoku and the fans in Japan’.
The spokesperson did add ‘Roger was examined in the UK by one of the top physicians in the field. What Sengoku did by claiming a fake injury at some point was potentially slanderous to the reputation of the doctor. It was to him that the most damage was potentially done, and an apology should be issued to him. Other than that, which is serious, Sengoku really only harmed themselves’.
Back in the gym, Gracie awaits notification of his next fight and opponent, which at this point appears to be early next year. Gracie for one, is looking forward to his Sengoku return, as are his legions of fans around the world.
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