Clements Recovers From Surgery: Looking For May Return

The 2013 mixed martial arts schedule is underway and Chatham-Kent has one man on the UFC roster as we start the calendar year. Dresden native and recent father Chris “The Menace” Clements made his long awaited UFC début in 2012 with a decision win over Keith Wisniewski in Atlanta in April. He followed that win with a loss to Matt Riddle in Calgary in July but the loss was later overturned to a No Contest due to a failed drug test by Riddle. Clements fought both his UFC fights at less than 100 percent, fighting both fights with two torn rotator cuffs, one right off the bone and a torn labrum.

“I fought both my UFC fights that way,” he said via phone.

Astonished, I asked him how he could possibly do that? Clements was solid in both his fights, and narrowly missed out on Fight of the Night on both cards.

“You can’t feel it in the fight much, I just really suffer in my training, I basically trained for both my UFC fights by jogging. I was just in pain and I couldn’t grapple. I haven’t grappled all year. I haven’t been able to grapple or wrestle for almost a year. But I can’t say no, what am I gonna say? I’m 36-years old and I have trained ten years to get to the UFC, they give me a call, you think I’m going to wait until I have surgery.” he chuckled in true Menace fashion.”

Clements entertained inside and outside the cage in his two appearances with his shades and suspenders look at the weigh ins to his solid action in both scraps. He also smiled through it all and looked like he was having the time of his life.

He is currently recovering from corrective surgery he had after his fight with Riddle.

“Yeah I’m recovering and getting my mobility back, I just got full range of motion this week so I was able to starting training again. I still can’t do any resistance or hitting so.”

There is still a ways to go in his recovery and Clements is targeting the summer to get back into action.

“I’m really looking for May. I’m really hoping I can get in there in May. I don’t want to wait until the summer time when the year is half gone, but at the same time, the UFC roster is going to get pretty tight with the Strikeforce boys coming in so, I don’t want to go back until I’m one hundred percent ready.”

The time off and surgery has also allowed Clements to look into the new UFC insurance coverage, and after asking him a few questions, it’s clear that the policies are not so cut and dry and the process moves at super heavyweight pace. Slow and steady as she goes and not worth discussing to any length.

Technical decision aside, he did lose that fight to Riddle with his end being an ill-timed spinning back elbow, that landed him in a nice standing triangle choke. It will be nice to see Clements get back to full health, put in a solid training camp and face the likes of a Papy Abedi, Nick Catone or Brock Jardine on a Toronto card later this year.