Alan Belcher thought four words when a doctor told him earlier this year that he had a spinal fracture.

"I couldn't believe it," said Belcher, in a recent interview with Fighters.com.

Belcher has recovered from the crack in the spinous process at the base of his back well enough to face Yushin Okami in a key middleweight contest in December at UFC 155: Dos Santos vs. Velasquez II. The two met in 2006, with Okami claiming a decision victory in the UFC debut for "The Talent." Since that time, Belcher has battled several injuries to put himself on a four-fight win streak.

With the UFC middleweight Top-10 an unknown right now, Belcher understands the importance of picking up his 19th career victory next month over "Thunder."

"This time around, it's going to be a lot different," Belcher said. "Nothing will slow me down. I came back from the eye problem. A lot of people thought my career was over, but I made the choice to start fighting again. I came back from that - I can come back from anything."

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