41-year-old UFC veteran welcomes Donald Cerrone back as latter hints at unretiring: "I’ll be ready when he is"
Donald Cerrone is looking to return to the octagon. ‘Cowboy', who has been out of action for two years, recently posted a video on his Instagram account announcing his decision to end his retirement. In response, a fellow UFC veteran has expressed his eagerness to share the cage with the Hall of Famer.
In his recent post, Cerrone appeared to be improving his grappling skills with Brazilian jiu-jitsu star Gordon Ryan and looked sharp with his pad work as well. He revealed his desire to compete in 50 fights across his WEC and UFC career and intends to return for two more bouts to fulfill his goal.
In his Instagram video, Cerrone said:
"The No. 50 been sitting in my mind for a while. Working with Transcend the last two years, taking TRT and a bunch of peptides… Now we've got a protocol for all you people that, 'Oh, what if you get on it you can't ever come off?' Well, I now have to come off and piss clean. ..Fight in a few months. So watch this.”
In response to Cerrone's desire to return to action, two-time welterweight title challenger and promotional veteran Stephen Thompson took to X (formerly Twitter) to claim he is ready for the fight whenever the ‘Cowboy’ is.
“I’ll be ready when he is. Would love to share the cage with a legend! A couple of vets putting on a show.”
Cerrone last graced the octagon in 2022 at UFC 276, losing to Jim Miller via submission. Meanwhile, Thompson, also 41, recently fought at UFC 307 against Joaquin Buckley, losing the fight in the third round via knockout.
Dana White opposes Donald Cerrone's potential UFC return
While Stephen Thompson is enthusiastic about Donald Cerrone’s comeback, UFC CEO Dana White isn't on board. When asked about Cerrone’s potential return, he said he doesn’t like the idea despite his admiration for the fan favorite.
At the post-fight press conference following the latest episode of ‘Dana White’s Contender Series,’ White expressed his disinterest in seeing 'Cowboy' come out of retirement.
“I hate it. Love him [Cerrone], hate that. He retired, it's just, for what? What's left to prove? It's just there's nothing left to prove for him.”
Check out Dana White's comments below (18:48):