UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar appeared on ESPN’s SportsCenter this morning, speaking publicly for the first time since pulling out of October’s UFC 106 promotion because of illness.

SportsCenter anchor Josh Elliott asked Lesnar about his return to the octagon, and UFC president Dana White about when that might be.

Comments from White (left) and Lesnar, speaking from a Las Vegas studio:

“I woke up in shock. I felt like I was shot in the gut… I had a hole in my stomach.” – Lesnar, on the pain that forced him to the hospital

“This summer.” – White, on Lesnar’s return

“It was a miracle. They (doctors) were dumbfounded. They couldn’t find any problem in my stomach.” — Lesnar, on a Jan. 5 check-up

Lesnar, a former WWE champion, has been featured in WWE and UFC video games as well as Madden NFL 06. He also was a late cut in 2005 from Minnesota Vikings training camp. He has been sidelined from UFC by what was first believed to be mono but later was revealed to be an intestinal disorder, diverticulitis.