MIAMI – [autotag]Rashad Evans[/autotag] is a UFC Hall of Famer with nothing left to prove. So why come back?
Evans (19-8-1) hung up his gloves following a knockout loss to Anthony Smith in June 2018, but his itch to compete never completely faded. The former UFC light heavyweight champion is coming out of retirement and will face Gabriel Checco (12-5) at Friday’s Eagle FC 44 event.
It’s been three-and-a-half years since 42-year-old Evans last competed, but the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had helped him put things into perspective.
“It’s competition,” Evans told MMA Junkie. “I’m a competitor, and if I can go out and just enjoy it one more time or however many other times that I’m blessed to do so, then I want to do so. At this point in my life I feel like why leave anything left on the table? If anything that this whole pandemic and everything around COVID has taught us is that tomorrow is not promised. And if you’re able-bodied and you want to do something, then you should do it because I feel as if we’re running out of time to do things that we want to do.”
Friday may or may not be a one-off fight for Evans, but his entire focus is on getting past Checco.
“Just wait and see what happens,” Evans said. “That’s the thing about it, opening the can. Everybody’s like, ‘OK, how many are you going to do? What’s going to be next? Who’s going to be next?’ But before worrying about what’s next, let’s worry about what’s now.”