Dana White on Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson's UFC return: "he sort of disappeared again"

Former UFC Light Heavyweight title challenger Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson seems to have fallen off the radar. He stated that watching Daniel Cormier vs Stipe Miocic 2 inspired him to make his comeback.

He was expected to return at Heavyweight and stated that he would only take a fight that "made sense" - such as one against Francis Ngannou. He spoke extensively about his return but after the COVID-19 pandemic, any such talk seem to have died down.

Dana White spoke to reporters after UFC on ESPN 11 and said that 'Rumble' Johnson has somewhat disappeared:

“You know what, there was talk about it for a minute and then it all stopped and he sort of disappeared again. Listen, it is good because if you don’t wanna fight and if you walked away the first time, and you’re coming back for what? What are you coming back for? If it’s just a payday, he’s a smart kid he can go do a lot of other things man.” (H/T BJPENN.com)

He referred to the Josh Emmett vs Shane Burgos classic and said that MMA currently is a "young man's game". Johnson last fought three years ago in April 2017, where he was defeated by Daniel Cormier, thus putting an end to his career in the process.

It's not known when he's going to return, but the pandemic and empty arenas might have a role to play with it. One could also speculate that the recent fighter pay issue - with names like Jorge Masvidal, Jon Jones, and Henry Cejudo expressing their dissatisfaction with fighter pay - could have a role to play in it as well, and stop him from returning to the UFC.

Either way, he would make for a great addition to the UFC heavyweight division.