Despite recent skid, Gray Maynard re-ups with UFC for late winter return

Personally, I thought Gray Maynard should have retired following his loss to Nate Diaz back in late 2013, but it doesn't matter what I think because A) I don't run a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion and B) I don't have to feed Maynard's kid.

That said, I was a little surprised to hear he recently scored a new deal with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), one that will put him back inside the cage by the end of March, according to his conversation with MMA Fighting.

"I just got a contract done. I talked to Dana and stuff like that. He wanted me to go do all the MRIs and just kind of get checked out from head to toe. He told me, 'hey man, you've got a life after the sport. You've got a daughter.' He's cool. He knows my daughter, he knows my girl, and he just wanted to make sure I got looked at head to toe and he said, if you're clear, let's talk. So we talked and I got a new deal."

A split-decision victory over Clay Guida is the lone win for Maynard over the span of six fights, dating back to summer 2010, in which he's been knocked out in all four of his losses (with one draw). That's a pretty steep decline for a fighter who was once considered one of the best lightweights in the world.

It will be interesting to see how the promotion matches him up in his return.

Any suggestions?