Former UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin announced his retirement from professional MMA fighting in September of 2015.
However, if the right fight were to come along, then maybe MMA fans would see the former champion return to action.
“Is it possible I could come back? I mean, anything’s possible,” he said to MMA Junkie Radio. “But is it probable? Not likely. I’ve never really been interested in a legends league. Just because once you climb to the top of Everest, you wouldn’t say, ‘Hey, I just you want to climb up Everest and go to base camp.’ It just doesn’t work that way. But the right kind of matchup and fight could definitely pique my interest. It’s just not probable, so I don’t really want to give anybody any false hope as if I’m coming back.”
Franklin last competed at UFC On Fuel TV 6 in November 2012 and he was promptly knocked out by Cung Le. The retired fighter is now the One Championships Vice President and feels that there can be competition among top MMA promotions.
“I believe in competition,” he said. “I actually believe that the UFC being in Asia and having two global organizations over there only increases the awareness of MMA overall, and it just ends up helping both organizations out.”
One Championships returns to action on July 29 with “Conquest Of Kings,” with Kairat Akhmetov and Adriano Moraes meeting in the main event.