‘Rumble’ closer to UFC return after submitting first USADA drug test

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Anthony Johnson is officially back in the USADA drug testing pool. It looks like Anthony Johnson will be heading back to the UFC after all, as the former light heavyweight title ch…

UFC 210: Cormier v Johnson 2

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Anthony Johnson is officially back in the USADA drug testing pool.

It looks like Anthony Johnson will be heading back to the UFC after all, as the former light heavyweight title challenger recently completed his first drug test since re-entering the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s (USADA) drug testing pool earlier this year.

Johnson, who retired following his submission loss to Daniel Cormier at UFC 210, submitted his sample on Sept. 10, according to MMA Junkie.

Johnson has been retired for over three years but revealed at a recent press conference for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) that he has missed competing in the UFC.

“Honestly, I miss the sport,” Johnson said last month. “I miss the sport. I miss competing. I know at one point, I was against guys coming back from retirement. You just see them get mopped up. B.J. Penn came back, got mopped up. I’ve seen everyone that came back out of retirement get mopped up. I just don’t want to be one of those guys to get mopped up, but I still feel good. I have no injuries.”

Johnson, who is widely considered one of the most vicious knockout artists in MMA, will return to the UFC as a light heavyweight.