THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

UFC President Dana White says that heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar is recovering from a bacterial infection in his intestinal tract.

"He's in stable condition and should be released soon," UFC President Dana White said Monday.

Asked if Lesnar was in a Bismarck hospital, White said, "I think he is," but did not want to say which hospital because he wanted to protect Lesnar's privacy.

White told reporters at UFC 105 over the weekend in Manchester that Lesnar was seriously ill in hospital but didn't say what he was suffering from.

White said Monday he is encouraging Lesnar to check into the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., for further treatment. He also said he did not know if the 32-year-old South Dakota native will fight again.

"It depends on how serious this is," White said.

Bismarck's St. Alexius hospital said Lesnar was not a patient there. The other hospital in the city, Medcenter One, would not confirm or deny he was there.

Lesnar, who grew up on a dairy farm in Webster, S.D., is a former wrestler at Bismarck State College. He lives in Alexandria, Minn.

Lesnar was an NCAA heavyweight wrestling champion, and later wrestled professionally with World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. He failed at a bid to play for the Minnesota Vikings.

Lesnar announced last month he was withdrawing from his Nov. 21 UFC title defence match because of mononucleosis.

White said Monday that Lesnar wanted to thank his fans for support. But he said it's tough to tell how six-foot-three, 265-pound Lesnar is feeling.

"He's never in good spirits and he's not in good spirits now," White said.