UFC heavyweight Stefan Struve was set to return from a 16-month layoff from the cage at UFC 175 on July 5, but a panic attack kept Struve from ever making it out of the locker room to fight Matt Mitrione.

Given that “The Skyscraper” needed a long layoff from fighting due to a rare heart condition, it was a given that the UFC didn’t want to take a chance when he suffered a panic attack earlier this month.

Despite those facts, Struve’s manager, Lex McMahon, says his star client will return to the Octagon eventually.

Here’s an excerpt of what he said during an appearance on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour:

"I've subsequently spoken with Dana [White] several times and his question has been ‘Does Stefan want to fight?'" McMahon said.

"I've spent a fair amount of time with Stefan since the canceled bout, and his response was 100 percent, he definitely wants to fight.'

McMahon would not put a timetable on Struve’s return; he said he expected the 7-foot tall submission specialist to return “sooner than later.”

After winning four-straight fights between October 2011 and September 2012 (all finishes), Struve lost his most recent contest against Mark Hunt at UFC on FUEL 8 in March of last year.

Struve suffered a broken jaw in that defeat, which also contributed to his time off from the cage.