Erick Silva Recovering from Elbow Surgery, Sharpening Jiu-Jitsu Skills with Renzo Gracie

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Erick Silva is on the mend from a September elbow surgery, but the UFC welterweight is hardly taking time off.

Silva this week said that he will use his recovery time to improve his ground skills by training with Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Renzo Gracie in New York City.

“I’ll stay at least two weeks at Renzo’s academy, sharpening my jiu-jitsu,” Silva told Sherdog.com, “but I’ve talked to Renzo and it’s gonna have to be something really technical due to my surgery.”

Following an Aug. 23 decision loss to Neil Magny, Silva opted for surgery to remove bone fragments from his elbow, the same procedure his X-Gym teammate Ronaldo Souza underwent a few months prior.

“I had the surgery three weeks ago,” Silva said. “Those bones were causing a painful inflammation and preventing me from training. I hope to return to full sparring in mid-November.”

When his time in New York is through, the 31-year-old Brazilian plans to spend a few months training stateside with another team, though he has yet to decide which.

“I’m not sure yet, but I’m going someplace where I can interchange and improve my MMA technique,” Silva explained. “That’s what I need at the moment, and I’m really motivated for that.”