Jeremy Stephens using Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson as inspiration for return run

MORRISTOWN, N.J. – Jeremy Stephens isn't ruling anything out, even in his third UFC stint.

One of the most seasoned fighters on the promotional roster, Stephens (29-22 MMA, 15-19 UFC) returned from nearly four years away from the promotion in May when he competed in, and lost, a rare one-off bout against Mason Jones.

The loss didn't sit well with him. Even though he returned to BKFC for a bout vs. Mike Perry in October, Stephens still had the UFC on his mind.

So Stephens repeated what worked for him to get the Jones bout; he messaged UFC CEO Dana and asked for another opportunity. The message was received. Stephens takes on King Green (34-17-1 MMA, 15-12-1 UFC) at UFC 328 at Prudential Center in Newark.

"UFC is my dream," Stephens told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. "I've been watching this sh*t since like fifth grade with my grandfather. I was like, 'Man, I want to do that.' To be doing it as long as I've done it, I know this is my calling. To get that calling taken away and then have it back, you have no idea what it feels like to be here."

Stephens, 38, sounded as motivated as ever. He revealed his late-career confidence comes from having watched the late Anthony Johnson, a fighter who departed the promotion but returned to eventually become a UFC title challenger.

"I grew my name inside the UFC," Stephens said. "To get the following and then create something out of nothing? Most people get canned from the UFC and they get fat. They f*cking retire. They lost their mental health. I'm not even joking. That's not even funny. That's just f*cking facts.

"I have a big brother that's looking down, Anthony Johnson. I've seen him do it. He got outside the UFC, moved up weight classes, and he was just banging heads. Next thing you know, he was banging on the UFC door again. They let him back, and then he ends up fighting for a title. I kind of kept that inspiration."

Stephens has an old-school mentality. He prefers to stay active, rather than comfortable. Nearing 40, he knows he doesn't have too many years left, so he's trying to maximize them as best he can.

"Just keep me busy," Stephens said. "You won't ever see me sitting on the sidelines. I've been doing this sh*t since I was 16 years old, fighting three or four times a year. I'm 39. In 2025, what did I fight? Three times? I'm making good money. I'm loving providing for my family, creating financial freedom for them. But I love doing this. I love to hurt motherf*ckers. They pay me really well to do it. I love knocking people out. I love creating new knockouts. I just don't have a right hand. I've got flying knees, spinning backfists, head kick KO, left hook, ground-and-pound, one of the bloodiest fights in history. That's without steroids.

"I don't think anybody else can compete with me. I have probably one of the top-10 highlight tapes in the world, and I'm still doing it. It's just out of pure love and passion. It's just something I was born to do."