UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson has started to show signs of wear and tear on his body.
After an injury knocked him out of a planned title defense earlier this year, “Mighty Mouse” returned and scored a victory over Tim Elliott recently.
During that fight, though, he suffered a tear in his popliteus muscle. The injury will not require surgery, but will keep Johnson out for the first part of 2017.
“I’m going to let this heal and not rush back in there,” Johnson told MMAFighting.com. “Maybe April or May (for a return), but if my injury needs more time, I’ll let it heal.”
Johnson is one title defense away from tying Anderson Silva’s UFC record of 10. He is the only fighter to wear the 125-pound belt.