Anthony Johnson News

Tom Taylor - October 15, 2019

Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Anthony “Rumble” Johnson, who has decided to end his retirement to compete in the heavyweight division, recently claimed he’d be willing to cut back down to 205 pounds to fight the division’s king Jon Jones. “I’m gonna wait until I get about, lose about 10 more pounds, get to 235lbs. I wanna see how my body feels. Then if it feels good, then I’m going to probably make 205lbs,” Johnson told Brendan Schaub of a fight with Jon Jones.

Adam D Martin - October 13, 2019

Former UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is rumored to be returning to the Octagon as a heavyweight. He even recently said he wanted to fight Francis Ngannou. But speaking to Brendan Schaub on Below the Belt, Johnson said he would be willing to cut down to 205lbs to fight UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Here’s what “Rumble” said.

Adam Martin - October 8, 2019

Former UFC light heavyweight title contender Anthony “Rumble” Johnson told the media on Tuesday that he is targeting an April 2020 return to the Octagon as a heavyweight. He also said that when he comes back he is open to fighting top-ranked Francis Ngannou. Johnson was one of a number of fighters at the Dominance MMA media day in Los Angeles. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto asked Johnson if he is interested in fighting Ngannou, who is currently looking for an opponent. “Rumble” said yes, he is open to fighting “The Predator.”

Tom Taylor - October 8, 2019

Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Johnson recently announced his intention to end his retirement and return to the Octagon — as a heavyweight. Speaking at media day hosted by management outfit Dominance MMA on Tuesday, Johnson shared a rough timeframe for his return to the cage. He says he’s hoping to fight around April of the coming year.

Adam Martin - September 30, 2019

A warrant has been issued for former UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. The news is according to a report by BloodyElbow.com’s Tim Bissell. According to the article, on September 27, Palm Beach County issued the warrant for Johnson. Court documents revealed that the reason for the warrant’s issue was due to Johnson missing a scheduled appointment for a misdemeanour domestic battery charge that Johnson had received earlier this year. The report says that Johnson had recently accepted a plea deal and also completed a court-ordered anger management program before the warrant was issued after he missed his appointment.

Cole Shelton - August 27, 2019

Anthony Johnson retired from the UFC following a second loss to Daniel Cormier in April of 2017. Yet, the man they call “Rumble” is eyeing a comeback, according to his manager Ali Abdelaziz. Abdelaziz spoke to ESPN, and divulged that his client will return in 2020. They are currently filing the necessary paperwork to rejoin the UFC. One of the steps he must complete is to re-enter the USADA testing pool and be in it for six months before he can fight again.

Natasha Hooper - July 9, 2019

Francis Ngannou (14-3-0) is on a roll and shows no signs of slowing down. “The Predator” scored yet another first-round knockout victory last month at UFC Minneapolis, defeating former champion Junior dos Santos (21-6-0). Francis Ngannou has won three fights back to back. Disposing of Cain Valesquez earlier this year and Curtis Blaydes in 2018, Ngannou is sitting on a trilogy of first-round knockouts.

Tom Taylor - July 8, 2019

Former UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Johnson returned to action over the weekend, battling BJJ ace Craig Jones in a heavyweight grappling super fight in the main event of Chael Sonnen’s SUG 9. Unfortunately for “Rumble” fans, this bout ended rather quickly, as Jones forced the tap with a heel hook in less than a minute. See it below:

Drake Riggs - May 15, 2019

Last week it was reported that two-time UFC light heavyweight title challenger, the man known as ‘Rumble,’ Anthony Johnson had been arrested for domestic violence. MMA Junkie has now confirmed that on Monday, Johnson pleaded not guilty in Florida for his single count of misdemeanor domestic battery where his ex-girlfriend informed authorities that a ‘football hold’ was used by Johnson to pick her up and lead to her being relocated into another room during an argument that they had. The 35-year old retired MMA star did admit to doing this but denied that he was trying to inflict any harm. Police couldn’t find any visible injuries on the woman.

Tom Taylor - May 7, 2019

According to a report from TMZ Sports, two-time UFC light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Johnson was arrested for domestic violence on Monday night. Johnson reportedly admitted to getting physical with his girlfriend during an argument, but claimed that he only picked her up and did not intend to hurt her. TMZ obtained the police report linked to this incident, which states that the woman called the police to report an altercation. The woman claimed she was kicking Johnson out of their house, packing up his belongings, when he “put her in a football hold.”

Tom Taylor - April 12, 2019

Israel Adesanya, who battles Kelvin Gastelum for the interim middleweight title in the co-main of UFC 236 this weekend, is believed to have some of the best striking in MMA. The Kiwi kickboxer’s striking is so highly rated that he was actually flown into Florida by renowned coach Henri Hooft in 2015, where he served as a sparring partner for Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. At the time, Johnson was gearing up for a light heavyweight title fight with Jon Jones — a fight that never happened.

Nolan King - April 3, 2019

While Artem Lobov and Paulie Malignaggi tussled at the Bare Knuckle FC media day in New York on Tuesday, a familiar face was seen trying to break up the fray: former UFC title challenger Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. Serving as a promotional ambassador, Johnson held back Lobov with one hand, while effortlessly filming the the banter with the other.

Tom Taylor - March 8, 2019

According to a report from MMAjunkie, former UFC welterweight and light heavyweight contender Anthony Johnson has been hit with a restraining order. This restraining order was filed by a Florida woman who claims to have had a relationship with Johnson previously.

Cole Shelton - March 5, 2019

When Anthony Johnson announced his retirement from MMA, a fight many fans were disappointed that didn’t happen is ‘Rumble’ vs. Jon Jones. The fight had major intrigue given the fact Jones had looked unstoppable and Johnson had legitimate one-punch knockout power. The two were scheduled to fight at UFC 187 but the fight was called off after Jones was involved in a hit and run. From then on, the fight just didn’t come to fruition and Johnson walked away from MMA without ever getting the chance to fight Jones.

Drake Riggs - February 19, 2019

In the heavyweight division, seeing knockouts isn’t uncommon. The bigger the individuals, the stronger and more powerful they will be with their strikes. It’s simple, really. However, then we take a look at someone like this past weekend’s UFC Phoenix main event winner, Francis “The Predator” Ngannou who time and time again proves to have power levels that may very well just eclipse that of anything ever seen before on this planet. We’re talking over 9000.

Tom Taylor - February 6, 2019

Light heavyweight knockout artist Anthony Johnson has not fought since April of 2017, when he came up short in his second title fight with Daniel Cormier, but fans are still clamoring for him to return to the cage. While Anthony Johnson is ostensibly retired from competition, however, he’s never denied that he could be coaxed back to the Octagon under the right terms.

Thomas Taylor - January 9, 2019

Having smashed Alexander Gustafsson to a third-round TKO victory in the main event of UFC 232 in late December, Jon Jones is once again the UFC light heavyweight champion. With the belt once again wrapped around his waist, Jones is now scheduled for a fight with Anthony Smith at UFC 235. If the champ clears that hurdle, he can look forward to more huge fights in the UFC light heavyweight division and beyond.

Tom Taylor - November 6, 2018

Former UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Johnson has now been retired from MMA for more than a year, and he has definitely been missed. From the sounds of it, however, he could soon end his retirement — to the elation of his many fans.