FC lightweight Kurt Pellegrino underwent surgery this past week to repair a torn meniscus and got some bad news afterward.

Pellegrino's doctor fixed a slight tear in his knee cartilage but discovered something much worse: a torn ACL. He would have fixed it, but Pellegrino had signed only to authorize work on his meniscus.

The fighter now must book another date with the surgeon to get his ACL replaced, though he is adamant that he won't be sidelined by the injury any longer than March 2011.

"You hear all these athletes (that) are out for a year," Pellegrino today told MMAjunkie. "I won't be out for a year. There's just no way."

The knee injury occurred when opponent George Sotiropoulos knocked down and jumped on top of Pellegrino in the first round of their fight at UFC 116. Pellegrino's knee buckled and he screamed in pain, but he refused to quit.

"As soon as he jumps on top of me, I'm holding my left knee with my hand as he's punching me in the face," Pellegrino said.

Pellegrino also had torn his meniscus in a fight with Fabricio Camoes at UFC 111 and underwent corrective surgery 10 weeks prior to UFC 116, which took place earlier this month.

UFC fighter Kurt Pellegrino's meniscus surgery also detects torn ACL, return TBD