Rashad Evans is back, and he wants a fight.
The former UFC light heavyweight champion plans to unretire and compete again whether it be in MMA or boxing in the near future. Evans retired from MMA back in 2018 after a storied career that saw him capture the UFC light heavyweight title in 2008.
In a recent interview with ESPN, Evans said that after pondering over the idea of fighting again, he is now committed to returning and looking to get a bout in as early as this year.
“I’m going to compete again, one way or another,” Evans said. “I’m committed to that. I’ve thought about it, in and out, and I’m ready to compete. I really want it to happen this year.”
Evans admitted that he was mainly looking to box, citing the money as one of the reasons. It’s no secret that the whole trend of the celebrity and retired athletes’ crossover boxing fights pay a lot of money to the competitors, supposedly more so than in a regular MMA fight.
However, “Suga” has not ruled out the possibility of returning to fight in MMA because whilst he is a prizefighter, he is a competitor at heart.
“I’m primarily looking at boxing, but if something came up that made sense as far as MMA, that’s what I’m training every day,” Evans said. “But it’s a different physical tax on my body, versus only doing boxing … [Money] goes into this decision. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t. At the end of the day, I’m a prizefighter. But at the same time, it’s not the whole picture. I enjoy competing.”
In 2008 at UFC 92, Evans became the UFC champion when he defeated Forrest Griffin via TKO after being one of the top fighters in his division for many years beating legends such as Michael Bisping and Chuck Liddell. Afterward, he lost his title to Lyoto Machida.
Evans climbed his way back to the mountaintop of the division again by defeating the likes of Quinton Jackson, Tito Ortiz, and Phil Davis to challenge Jon Jones for the title in 2012, where he eventually fell short. Evans retired in 2018 after falling into a five-fight losing streak in the UFC.
Do you think Rashad Evans will return to boxing or MMA and how well do you think he does?
