UFC Welterweight contender, Thiago Alves, underwent successful brain surgery today to repair the malformation that prevented him from competing at UFC 111. Surgeons gave Alves the green light to resume training in as little as three weeks.

Initially, Alves’s fighting career seemed in jeopardy; however, it was revealed that the condition wasn’t going to effect his profession.

Alves will remain in the hospital for one day for observation. According to his trainer, Ricardo Liborio, Alves is already thinking about his next fight.

“The first thing he said when he got out of anesthesia was, ‘When can I get back to training?’ In three weeks, he should be training if he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

Alves and his training camp, American Top Team, have already requested a fight on the UFC 114 card in Las Vegas. No potential opponents have been revealed.

(source: MMA Junkie)