Luke Rockhold appears to be leaning toward fighting again despite encouragement from UFC president Dana White to retire following his most recent setback.

Rockhold (16-5 MMA, 6-4 UFC), the former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion, is coming off back-to-back knockout losses and hasn’t had his hand raised since September 2017.

He last lost by second-round knockout last July against Jan Blachowicz, marked an attempt to explore the light heavyweight division. It did not go well, and in the months that followed, Rockhold expressed uncertainty about his future in combat sports.

Since then, though, Rockhold has undergone shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum and rotator cuff. Recovery has given him plenty of time to think, and the 35-year-old said he now is more open-minded.

“I just kept my mouth shut (because I didn’t want to retire prematurely),” Rockhold told MMA UK News. “People just do it to seek attention. I’m not trying to make some big statement, make attention about it when I’m not sure about it. Here we are now. I’m getting healthier, and I might be getting an itch. We’ll see.”

If Rockhold does return, it appears a drop back down to the middleweight division would be in order. Should that happen, Rockhold’s credentials and name value would likely put him in position for a notable fight, and he said there are some compelling possibilities.

“A lot of interesting choices (for me),” Rockhold teased. “If Anderson (Silva) is still interested and seemingly he is. Maybe, you never know. (Chris) Weidman’s got a fight coming up. If something, he comes out of that well, you never know. There’s options.”

Rockhold said his top priority is to get completely healthy so he can make an informed decision when it comes to his career. The coronavirus pandemic also factors into the situation, because while the UFC has plans to continue cranking out fights beginning May 9, Rockhold is among those who understand the future isn’t guaranteed.

“We’ll see how the UFC and everyone comes out of this coronavirus (pandemic), because it’s going to bury a lot of companies,” Rockhold said. “I’m curious to see how these fights come to be.”