Former UFC featherweight contender Ryan Hall is finally on the road to recovery.
‘The Wizard’ has been out of action since his unanimous decision victory over Darrick Minner in December 2021. That victory was a big one for Hall, as it helped him get back on track after his knockout defeat to Ilia Topuria. That loss was the first in his promotional career and also snapped an eight-fight winning streak.
Sadly the good times didn’t last for the jiu-jitsu ace. Over the last year and a half, Hall has suffered injury after injury, preventing him from returning to the octagon. In fact, the featherweight contender has gotten 16 surgeries since his last fight in 2021.
However, Ryan Hall is finally feeling healthy enough to target a return to the octagon. In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, the featherweight stated that he’s planning on returning in a grappling match at Polaris in June. But fear not, Hall is still focused on his MMA career.
Ryan Hall discusses his hiatus from the cage
“Long and short of it, it’s been 16 surgeries since. But we’re on the back end of it. I just had one on Tuesday. But it’s, fortunately, going in the right direction. I’m looking forward to being back healthy, feeling better than I have in a very, very long time, and looking forward to competing again soon,” Ryan Hall stated. “The ACL was really bad and I got a septic infection.” (h/t MMA News)
“I think we’re good from now forwards,” he continued. “Looking forward to competing at Polaris in June. That’ll be a grappling match. That’ll be a good test to the body to see how we are about getting back in the UFC… Absolutely [I want to return to MMA]. MMA is all I care about… I spent years in the rankings and then got dropped for inactivity because of bad luck and people not being willing to fight.
“I managed to end 2021 on a good note. I just wanna get back to pushing forward and growing and learning, moving forward to fight the best guys I can. My hope is to compete around, realistically like August or September, and then try to get two in this year.”
What do you make of this news? Who do you want to see Ryan Hall fight in his return? Sound off in the comment section below PENN Nation!
