Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin announces comeback to MMA

Two of the largest hands ever wrapped for an MMA bout are set to be put to the test yet again.

Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin has confirmed that he is planning to return to the sport that earned him significant, if brief, success. Carwin, who claimed the interim iteration of the UFC heavyweight title when he steamrolled Frank Mir in the co-main event of UFC 111, has indicated a desire to get his fighting career back on track at the age of 41. The owner of some of the most devastating knockout power in UFC history, Carwin announced his comeback but claimed that it would take place away from the Octagon. "I look forward to freely speaking with the other MMA promotions," Carwin wrote in a post on the UG. "The heavyweight division has a lot of great fights and not all of them are in the UFC." Carwin was contracted to the UFC but after speaking with matchmaker Joe Silva, the decision was made to cancel his deal so that he would be free to fight in a different organisation. "We decided mutually that my value and what I bring to the heavyweight division will be better utilised elsewhere," Carwin continued. The Colorado-born fighter has been involved in some of the biggest heavyweight fights of all time and his monster clash with Brock Lesnar will go down in history. A renowned knockout artist, Carwin had put together a perfect record of 12-0 (with all fights finishing inside the first round) prior to meeting Lesnar at UFC 116. The heavyweight unification bout went in Lesnar's favour but Carwin had claimed the first round and almost finished the former WWE superstar. After Lesnar, Carwin was beaten comprehensively by Junior Dos Santos and after suffering a series of injuries after coaching opposite Roy Nelson on The Ultimate Fighter 16, Carwin made the decision to hang up his gloves. But he seems to be back now and 41 is definitely not too old, especially for heavyweights who tend to come into their prime in their mid-to-late thirties. "I am excited about what the future holds" Carwin said. "I want to prove to myself and my fans that I belong at the top of the division. Today that journey begins." The GAA Hour Hurling Show relives Tipperary’s sensational All-Ireland victory with Paidí Maher. Listen below or subscribe on iTunes.