MIAMI – Hector Lombard is returning to MMA and with that comes a new realm of potential matchups.
The former Bellator middleweight champion and UFC veteran signed a multi-fight deal with Eagle FC, as he gears up for his MMA return on May 20 at Eagle FC 48. And now resuming his MMA career, Lombard (34-10-1) would love to fight former teammate Tyron Woodley to settle an old dispute.
Lombard hopes Eagle FC signs Woodley, who’s currently a free agent, and will book a bout between the two. The 44-year-old says he’d accept the fight in a heartbeat if it ever came across his table.
“You already know, you don’t even have to ask me,” Lombard told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “That’s a done deal, I’m in.”
In the summer of 2021, Lombard and Woodley had a confrontation at a BKFC event. Lombard accused Woodley of hitting on his partner and since Lombard has been wanting to fight “The Chosen One.”
“He’s shameless, he’s fake, and I said it to his face,” Lombard said. “I don’t like fake people. He’s a liar and he takes cover in religion and uses it as a mask, but he’s fake. People like that I don’t get along with.”
Lombard has been competing in bare-knuckle boxing under the BKFC banner in recent years. He’s the BKFC cruiserweight champion. The Cuban fighter and former Olympic judoka plans to continue both bare-knuckle boxing and MMA career simultaneously.
Lombard hasn’t competed in MMA since his UFC release in 2018. He’s eager to get back to the sport where he competed for over a decade.
“I’m super happy, I’m super pleased to be fighting in Florida, in Miami,” Lombard said. “I can’t wait until I get to represent all the Cubans and my people and here we are. I’ve always had love for the sport of MMA and I will always for the rest of my life because it was a big part of my life for a long time. I will never get away from MMA.”