Record-breaking former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson will make his anticipated ONE Championship debut at March 31’s massive “A New Era” event from Tokyo.
Johnson was traded for former ONE welterweight champion Ben Askren in a highly-publicized, unprecedented move last fall. ‘Mighty Mouse’ lost the UFC 125-pound title he defended a record 11 straight times to Henry Cejudo in his last fight. Afterward, he and the UFC apparently didn’t see eye to eye after many years of trying to make him into a pay-per-view draw.
He’s moved on to ONE’s flyweight tournament, but the UFC flyweight division is also in a state of uncertainty as a result. Cejudo defended his title by knocking out TJ Dillashaw at January’s UFC on ESPN+ 1. There are less and less 125-pound bouts in the UFC, and the division could be axed altogether. If it is, ‘Mighty Mouse’ told MMAjunkie that ONE won’t just swallow all the fighters:
“I think ONE Championship, they’re very particular who they like to pick, and they’re not just going to swallow this division. That’s not what they’re looking to do. They’re cherry-picking the athletes for their roster and what fits the brand the best.”
Motivation
Johnson also discussed his reasoning for going to ONE. Many believed it to be his perceived discord with the UFC, yet that isn’t the case, he claimed. As a true martial artist, he had never gotten to fulfill his dream of fighting in the east and now could:
“It was more along the lines that I have five years left,” Johnson said. “I give myself five more years. God bless Vitor Belfort, 41, still kicking butt. I don’t think I can do it.
“You look at all the great athletes in MMA, (Mirko) Cro Cop, Vitor, (Gegard) Mousasi, those guys competing over in the east and then competed over in the west, and for me, I never got the opportunity to. So this is a perfect opportunity for me, for my last five years, to go out and try to do something totally different that I didn’t see myself doing.”
The Pressure’s Off
His experience in the UFC wasn’t exactly perfect, however. Johnson admitted the pressure to sell pay-per-views did mount on him in the UFC. Now that he’s not being forced to become something he isn’t, he can be his authentic self:
“I felt in the past when I was doing media for a different market, you’re trying to sell pay-per-view,” Johnson said. “Right now, the biggest thing (ONE CEO) Chatri (Sityodtong) says to all his athletes is, ‘Just be authentic.’ And that’s what I’m being.
“I love to go out there and give my best and display my skills in MMA to the world. I’m happy to be able to focus on that, so now I don’t mind talking to the media.”
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