‘Rumble’ Johnson gave a minor update on his illness on Instagram.
On September 18, Anthony Rumble was forced to withdraw from his semi-final grand prix and light heavyweight championship fight with Vadim Nemkov. He did not give a reason, although he did post a somewhat cryptic Instagram post.
“Really wish I could go into detail about how ill I truly am. Just know I need as many prayers as I can get, and I’ll see you in 2022, God willing…Never been this afraid of anything in my life, but I’ve remained strong with the support of friends and family,” Johnson wrote.
“Not asking for anything but prayers 
See you in 2022 hopefully 
This is gonna be a battle, and I’m gonna have to dig deeper than I ever have before.
Love you all #RumbleSquad NOT COVID”
Nothing more was posted, but on Friday, October 8, Johnson gave a minor update about what he was dealing with on his Instagram. He posted two videos and a picture with a glass of bacteria removed from his stomach.
“Just showing a little bit of what’s been going on. This video is a month old…
When I 1st went to the hospital from being sick they pumped all bacteria from my stomach.This container was the size of a football. No wonder why I wasn’t feeling good but this is only ONE of the reasons and only the 1st pump they did because they did another one days later and I had plenty then.2nd picture is after the 1st pump,” Johnson wrote.
“All the wanna be Dr’s on IG it’s nothing like you’re guessing, so don’t waste your time.”
There is no clear answer to what Johnson is dealing with, but thankfully he is feeling better and letting the public know what is going on.
Johnson was replaced by No. 5 ranked Julius Anglickas. He will fight Nemkov for the Bellator light heavyweight championship next Saturday at Bellator 268.
Bellator 268 goes down October 16, 2021, in Phoenix, Arizona, at the Footprint Center.