Gina Carano, the former mixed martial artist turned actress, says she is "very open" to returning to the MMA world if the "circumstances were right."
The 2009 Strikeforce champ has for weeks been at the center of several rumors regarding who UFC Bantamweight Champ Ronda Rousey might face in her next bout.
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In an interview with Fox Sports on Monday, Carano seemed to add more fuel to the speculation when she said, "I've never retired. I've never officially said that."
"For some reason a part of me has always kept it open," Carano added. "I don't know, there's a certain part of me that thinks if circumstances were right, and I could keep doing what I'm trying to make my future into, that's an ideal world. If circumstances were right, you never know. I'm very open to it."
As for what exactly those circumstances would be, the 31-year-old from Texas said she would have to be able to continue her acting career, which is now five years in the making. She appeared in "Haywire," "Fast & Furious 6," and "In the Blood," in which she is the lead role. "In the Blood" opens in theaters on April 6.
"I feel like I can't say too much. I've got all this information that if I could just speak freely, this is actually what's going on," Carano teased. "I wish I could open up my mind and tell you exactly the things that I've seen and the conversations that I've had, but I think to sum it up in a nice, safe way for me is if circumstances were right, and if it's a good enough circumstance (I would come back) because my first love is MMA."
UFC President Dana White is said to have been very enthusiastic after learning of
Carano's apparent interest in returning to the ring, Yahoo Sports reported.
However, Carano acknowledged that to properly train for any bout, she would have to take a break from acting for at least six months, which could potentially impact her budding Tinseltown career.
"[I] need the time because you're taking somebody who hasn't fought in a while, that hasn't been in the fight camp-type environment," Carano said. "It would take me away from other projects or potential projects that I've been working this far in my life to get to."
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