Tim is ready for another Wilde ride on MMA return

In September last year, only three weeks out from a fight he had booked in Milan, Italy, the 34-year-old suffered a freak accident in training that saw him tear both his MCL and ACL in his right knee.

A year of rehab followed and the Wolverhampton-born fighter had to work on both the body and mind to get back fighting again.

"I set a target of a year to rehabilitate myself and I've done it. I'm proud of myself," he told the Express & Star.

"Mentally is is tough. It's testing at times and I don't think I could have had it any harder as we battled through a pandemic as well.

"I've been trying to rehabilitate myself with gyms and swimming pools being closed and limited access to equipment.

"But that was only for stages of the rehab and I'm very lucky to have a very professional team around me that help me and have guided me through.

"Mentally it is tough, more so than physically. I'm always pushing myself hard physically but mentally it was tough.

"But I'm not finished fighting yet, I have a lot more to give."

Now, almost two years since his last fight, 'The Experiment' will fight Yves Landu on the main card for Bellator's 267 event in London on October 1.

For Wilde it is 'extremely frustrating' not to have carried on the momentum from his win over Charlie Leary in November 2019, which was the last major MMA event held in England due to the pandemic.

But now, on the first major MMA event in England since the pandemic began, Wilde feels like he has come full circle and is ready to show how he has improved.

He added: "I feel fantastic. It's a cliché but I am the best version of myself I've ever been.

"I've continued to grow and develop as a fighter. I've wanted to become a better athlete and have added gymnastics, more stretching and adding more muscle.

"I think people will be quite surprised when they see me get in there. My body shape has changed, I fight differently too. You can make a lot of improvements in two years."

Landu, who has a 16-8 record, is coming off an impressive flying knee knockout in his last fight in October 2020 and Wilde is prepared for what the Frenchman will bring.

"He's a veteran of the sport and a tough fighter," Wilde said.

"He's very experienced and will not necessarily see anything new that I haven't done already.

"One of his biggest accolades and threats is his agility and how athletic he is.

"I will be fully switched on and very focused in the fight. I'm an experienced fighter and training with some of the best in the country, so I'm fully prepared for whatever he thinks he'll be able to bring.

"I'm hoping that Bellator think a lot of me to get me out on the main card against another exciting fighter.

"They know that the fight will be fireworks."

Watch Tim Wilde in action at Bellator London: Lima vs. MVP 2 live on BBC iPlayer from 5:30pm BST on Friday, October 1. Limited tickets remain on sale from axs.com/uk and BELLATOR.com.