Healthy Tito Ortiz nine weeks into training camp, still waiting for Bellator to call

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz -- who junked retirement to give his mixed martial arts (MMA) career another go under the Bellator banner -- is deep into his latest training camp, where he awaits his next summons.

Your move, Bellator.

Ortiz (16-11) was expected to battle fellow UFC jetsam Quinton Jackson at the promotion's inaugural pay-per-view (PPV) event last November, but was forced to bow out after suffering a neck injury just a few weeks before the fight. But that's water under the bridge, according to "The People's Champion," and he's 100-percent healthy.

From his conversation with MMA Weekly.

"Everything is good. I'm about my ninth week in training. I'm kind of on hold right now, waiting for Bellator to set me up with a match. I thought I'd be on this pay-per-view that's coming up, but they wanted to wait... I told them that I want to fight. I told them that I'm ready to go. I left it to them to get it done. I'm just training and waiting for the call. When they call, I'm ready. Whoever it is, I don't care."

But there's no guarantee the phone will ring.

That's because Bellator head cheese Bjorn Rebney is afraid that Ortiz could be facing paralysis after a 15-year career that has been riddled with injuries, and insists "there isn't a definitive answer in terms of when he could come back." In addition, "Rampage" has moved on to bigger and better things.

Like his "King Mo" grudge match at Bellator 120.

Ortiz is just 1-7-1 since his win over Ken Shamrock back in 2005 and at 39 years old, is quickly running out of time. Now that the Bellator light heavyweight tournament is drawing to a close, there are a handful of fighters coming off a loss who might make a good fit, under the circumstances.

If not, at least he's got an exotic shoulder to cry on.