'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Anthony Johnson’s return to MMA has been just as surprising as his retirement in 2017.
At UFC 210, Anthony Johnson fought for the UFC Light Heavyweight title for the second time and lost to then-champion Daniel Cormier in the second round via submission.
‘Rumble’ then shocked the MMA community by announcing his retirement.
And while Johnson’s social media posts made his imminent return to the fight game clear, it was the fact that he signed with Bellator FC which has surprised almost everyone.
UFC President Dana White had said in the past that he would be glad to have Anthony Johnson back in the UFC. Therefore ‘Rumble’s’ decision is peculiar, to say the least.
The question now arises, is it too late for Johnson to make a comeback?
At 36 years old, Rumble is far from being a young man.
While there has been no doubt that he has been training in his time away from fighting, there is no substitute for actual fight time.
To add to it, ‘Rumble’ has always relied on a deadly combination of power and speed.
Not for no reason does he have 16 KO wins to his credit, all of them violent and brutal.
With age, the speed goes away as reflexes get dull and muscles begin to deteriorate. We can all agree that no amount of gym time can compensate for the natural flexibility and recovery of a young body.
‘Rumble’ will need to tackle this issue first and foremost when he starts with his training camp for a fight, whenever it gets announced.
Johnson will not be the first to face this hurdle though.
Former Bellator Light Heavyweight champion Ryan Bader, who incidentally Anthony Johnson defeated at UFC ON Fox 18 in 2016, recently faced the same problem.
‘Darth’ Bader looked much slower compared to Vadim Nemkov in his last outing and lost to the Russian via KO early this year at Bellator 244. Nemkov is only 28 years old.
Other contenders in the Bellator LHW division such as Corey Anderson and Julius Anglickas are also much younger than Johnson.
Anthony Johnson, though, can seek solace in the fact that Jan Blachowicz found his best form and the UFC LHW gold only after his 36th Birthday.
Should Anthony Johnson fight instead at Heavyweight?
Anthony Johnson’s recent weight and muscle gain makes him an ideal candidate to fight at Heavyweight.
The speed which Anthony Johnson would lose due to extra mass and advancing age will be of less consequence against bigger fighters.
Additionally, the top heavyweights throughout recent history have been fighters who are way over the age of 35 years.
UFC HW champion Stipe Miocic is 38 years old. The previous champion Daniel Cormier was 40 years old.
And Ryan Bader, the heavyweight king of Johnson’s new promotion, is 37 years old too.
If one is being honest, the only current active heavyweight who can be considered a proper contender below the age of 30 is Curtis Blaydes.
Bellator has some great depth in its heavyweight division with fighters like Matt Mitrione, Fedor Emelianenko, ‘Big Country’ Roy Nelson, and Frank Mir to name a few.
All of these names are on the wrong side of 40 and are yet putting in stellar performances.
Therefore, a case can be made for Anthony Johnson going up to heavyweight and fighting for the strap rather than depleting himself with weight cuts at 205-pounds.
