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Anthony Johnson has teased a return to mixed martial arts (MMA) in the past, but now it seems to be official. According to a report by ESPN, Johnson’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, revealed that “Rumble” will return in 2020 and he intends to fight at Heavyweight.
Furthermore, Ali says Johnson will soon start the process of getting back into United States Anti Drug Testing (USADA) pool in anticipation of a return in March of 2020. Once all of that is out of the way, Anthony hopes to lock down fights against ranked big men, including the likes of Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos.
Johnson last competed back in 2017, losing to Daniel Cormier for the second time at UFC 210. Prior to that, “Rumble” had won three straight after losing to “DC” the first time at UFC 187. Johnson was initially linked up to fight Jon Jones at that event, but “Bones” was yanked and stripped of his title after his hit-and-run incident in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
After leaving the fighting arena, Johnson went on to open a medical cannabis facility. He also found a new hobby in pumping iron, as “Rumble” got super swole from hours and hours in the gym.
Anthony did express his interest in a 265-pound matchup against Jon Jones, but that is unlikely to happen as “Bones” is content with staying the ruler of the Light Heavyweight division.
Unless, of course, UFC comes correct with the cash.
Johnson is no stranger to the Heavyweight division, having faced — and defeated — Andrei Arlovski under the now-defunct World Series of Fighting (WSOF) umbrella in 2013, knocking out “The Pitbull,” rearranging his jaw in the process.