Brock Lesnar.

THE CANADIAN PRESS

LAS VEGAS -- Brock Lesnar is back home in Minnesota recuperating from surgery with a more positive prognosis for the future, according to his coach.

Lesnar was released from hospital Tuesday after treatment for a bacterial infection in his intestine.

"He's at home now, much better than he was," Lesnar's coach Greg Nelson, head instructor at the Minnesota Mixed Martial Arts Academy, said Wednesday. "He was in a lot of pain, obviously dealing with a lot of different medicines dealing not only the pain but also for the infection."

The prognosis is more positive, said Nelson.

"Definitely, he's feeling better. He's at home, that's where he wants to be."

Nelson said there was "no definitive answer" yet whether Lesnar would require surgery in the future.

"We'll see and if he does, he'll obviously go to a good place," Nelson said, "because obviously his goal is to get back and get back in the cage."

UFC president Dana White told Yahoo that Lesnar had a hole in his intestine and is slated to go to the Mayo Clinc next week for tests. His fighting future remains up in the air, the UFC boss said.

Lesnar, a former NCAA wrestling champion and pro wrestling star, was originally slated to defend his UFC heavyweight title against unbeaten Shane Carwin on Saturday's UFC 106 card in Las Vegas.

But the fight was postponed when flu-like illness prevented Lesnar from training. That was later upgraded to mononucleosis, forcing the cancellation of a rescheduled bout Jan. 2 at UFC 108.

"He just couldn't train, he wasn't able to push himself to the level he wanted," said Nelson. "He was just worn down ... he just didn't have any energy. But it could have been the fact that not only did he had mono, but he may have had complications due to the infection that was building up as well."

The seriousness of Lesnar's medical condition was revealed by White after UFC 105 last Saturday in Manchester, England.

"He is not well and he is not getting any better... . He's very, very sick and he's going to be out for a while," White told reporters. "He's got a lot of problems."

If Lesnar remains sidelined, the UFC will probably set up a fight to determine an interim champion. It did just that when Randy (The Natural) Couture was on the outs with the organization over a contract dispute.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira won the interim title at UFC 81 over Tim Sylvia. When Couture returned, a mini-tournament was held with Lesnar beating Couture and Frank Mir downing Nogueira. Lesnar then stopped Mir at UFC 100 to settle the title picture once and for all.

Carwin, for one, does not want to go the interim route this time, however.

"I am sure most of you know I am not the leader of the Lesnar Fan Club," Carwin said in an entry on the popular MMA Underground forum (www.mixedmartialarts.com).

"That being said, antics or not, he is our UFC heavyweight champion. He beat a future Hall of Famer to keep that belt and he NEEDS our prayers and good thoughts right now.

"At the end of the day I can take off my UFC shirt and say here is a man, a champion that has been brought down by an illness not another man. It is very humbling if you think about it."

In a sport that prides itself on respect, the 32-year-old Lesnar was criticized for his post-fight performance at UFC 100 when he taunted his opponent, made a rude gesture at fans, dissed a sponsor and made a crude comment about post-fight sex with his wife.

The six-foot-three, 265-pounder remains a force of nature in the cage, ruling the heavyweight division despite just having five MMA bouts. While polarizing the fans, he is also one of the organization's biggest pay-per-view draws.