If you look at what he said after Gutknecht suffered the same sort of thing after the Groves fight his words come across a little differently

“I just hope he can come out the other side and make a full recovery like I did .

“You are in there doing something you love and the fighter in you means you don’t want to give up.
you just read them two little sentences and it sounds like he was itching for it back then.

He didn't make a full recovery, if he had then he wouldn't have had his licence took off him.