Nicole Scherzinger announced that she would not be returning to the panel of The X Factor this year, amid Simon Cowell churning up the rumour mill that a Cheryl Cole X Factor return may be possible.

Nicole Scherzinger Quits X FactorNicole has announced she will quit The X Factor to focus on her music

Nicole, who has been a judge on the UK (and original) version of The X Factor panel since 2011, claims she is leaving the show to focus on her music career. Nicole began her career with the group The Pussycat Dolls before releasing her solo album, 'Killer Love', in 2011. The 'Poison' singer has not released new music in around three years now and we can only imagine that she’s itching to get back into the recording studio.

Nicole has said that her decision to quit the show has not been an easy one, as she has built herself a life in the UK over the past few years that she’s been living and working here. Her on-off relationship with British F1 driver, Lewis Hamilton, may also be one of the reasons that Nicole is reluctant to leave and return to the States.

Although the news that Nicole Scherzinger quits X Factor is still apparently not 100% confirmed and may be up for discussion, one thing is for certain. Show creator, Simon Cowell, has announced that he will definitely be returning to the UK panel for this year’s singing competition following the cancellation of the US version of The X Factor.

With Simon Cowell always comes controversy. The music mogul and ex-Girls Aloud singer Cheryl, who found fame on Pop Idol back in 2002 and was once a very popular judge on The X Factor panel, have been embroiled in a famous feud since he axed her from the US version of the show in 2011. Cheryl has been very vocal about her feelings towards Simon ever since, so it seems likely that savvy Simon knows millions would tune in to watch him and Cheryl back on the small screen together.

Cheryl Cole X Factor ReturnSimon has hinted Cheryl Cole may return as a judge on The X Factor

Simon seems certain that his return to the UK X Factor will reverse it’s recently ailing ratings, and certainly nothing would help ratings quite like an appeased (or perhaps not?!) Cheryl return. We wonder what lengths Simon will go to to get Cheryl to agree, and if she does whether there will be any fireworks?

The US version of The X Factor has already been cancelled due to low ratings, now the question remains whether Simon will be able to save the UK show and if he’ll be able to persuade Cheryl on-board to help him.

Read our previous story on the cancellation of the US X Factor and Simon’s impending return to the UK.