Anthony Johnson’s plan to come out of retirement and return to the UFC appears to still be on track, although he’s not yet enrolled in the USADA’d testing pool, which he would need to do at least six months before his return fight.
“Everything is going smooth,” Johnson told MMA Junkie. “No date set, yet. I just plan on catching a lot of bodies when I come back, that’s all I know. It don’t matter if it’s heavyweight or light heavyweight. I’ll knock ’em all out. It don’t matter.”
The 36-year-old had put on a lot of weight during his time away from the sport, getting up as high as 285lbs, but he says he’s since shed a significant amount and is keeping his options open as to which division he will return in and has his sights set on both light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones and heavyweight kingpin Stipe Miocic.
“I weigh 230, 235 right now – something like that,” Johnson said. “I’ll fight both. It don’t matter what weight. Both athletes, they’re both champions, they’re both great fighters. The best ever in both weight classes. So, I’ll be glad to take the opportunity to fight both of them, no matter what.”
For a number of years Johnson was resistant to the idea of returning to the sport, but now he believes he has to do it to prove what he is capable of.
“When you feel like you’ve still got it, or you still feel like you have something to prove, you’re willing to go out there and sacrifice your life pretty much to go out there and prove it. Not just to everybody else, but to yourself.”
