It appears we almost got to see Anthony Johnson fight at heavyweight once again.
While “Rumble” mentioned the idea of moving up for a one-off fight and actually talked about Andrei Arlovski without saying his name, nothing came of it.
Now, Arlovski is explaining why.
Now I have to apologize to UFC and @Anthony_Rumble
I have never turned down a fight. My team turned it down for me when I was in Russia— Andrei Arlovski (@AndreiArlovski) December 13, 2016
The UFC and Johnson seemed content to keep him on the recent UFC 205 card after an injury scrapped a bout with Daniel Cormier for the light heavyweight title.
In 2013, Johnson scored a decision victory over Arlovski while both were signed to the World Series of Fighting.