Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is already feeling like he needs to scratch something specific.
Johnson, 33, was choked out in the second round of his April 8 Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight title fight with Daniel Cormier at UFC 210 in Buffalo, New York and abruptly announced his retirement from MMA after 28 bouts in 10-plus years. Retirements in MMA are viewed with suspicion, as so many high-profile fighters have returned to action not long after hanging up their gloves. However, watching two former opponents square off in the main event of this past Sunday's UFC Fight Night 109 card in Stockholm, Sweden seems to have stoked a fire inside of Johnson even more quickly than we're used to.