Johnson, a former undisputed flyweight champion in the UFC — who retains the record for the most consecutive successful title defenses in the history of the Octagon, appeared at ONE Championship 168 in Denver over the course of the weekend, emotionally confirming his retirement from mixed martial arts competition.
Preparing to potentially continue in his recent run of massive appearances at a host of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world championship competitions, Johnson called time on his run following a prior unanimous decision win over three-time foe, Adriano Moraes in May of last year in Colorado — retaining ONE flyweight crown.
Demetrious Johnson praised in retirement by UFC boss, Dana White
And sharing his thoughts on Johnson’s retirement from mixed martial arts over the course of the weekend, UFC boss, White claimed he always “defended” the former UFC star from apparent fan discourse, before confirming he would also enter their respective Hall of Fame following his decision to hang up his gloves.
Yeah, I didn’t know he (Demetrious Johnson) [retired],” Dana White told Grind City Media. “God for him. (An) incredible career he had. I never had a problem with Demetrious Johnson. Absolutely [he’s a Hall of Fame inductee].”
“Listen, if you go back to when he was here [in the UFC], I was defending him from the fans,” Dana White explained. “Who’s defended Demetrious Johnson more than me?”
Demetrious Johnson has long cemented his place in the minds of MMA fans as one of the greatest of all time and the greatest flyweight the sport has ever seen. Many in the MMA community are celebrating and reflecting on Johnson’s performances and…
Demetrious Johnson has long cemented his place in the minds of MMA fans as one of the greatest of all time and the greatest flyweight the sport has ever seen. Many in the MMA community are celebrating and reflecting on Johnson’s performances and accomplishments in the sport after he announced his retirement at ONE Championship’s […]
Flyweight legend Demetrious Johnson announced his retirement from MMA on Friday at ONE 168. An emotional Johnson said goodbye to the sport and became the…
Flyweight legend Demetrious Johnson announced his retirement from MMA on Friday at ONE 168. An emotional Johnson said goodbye to the sport and became the…
The mixed martial arts career of UFC and ONE Championship legend Demetrious Johnson has reached its conclusion. Johnson officially announced his retirement from the sport of MMA following 15 months of uncertainty. His final appearance was a headline v…
The mixed martial arts career of UFC and ONE Championship legend Demetrious Johnson has reached its conclusion. Johnson officially announced his retirement from the sport of MMA following 15 months of uncertainty. His final appearance was a headline victory at ONE Fight Night 10, the Asian promotion’s United States debut in May 2023. After outpointing […]
UFC legend Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson says that Sean Strickland does not deserve the next title shot. The ONE…
UFC legend Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson says that Sean Strickland does not deserve the next title shot. The ONE MMA world champion recently shared his insights on the UFC middleweight title scene and a potential champion-versus-champion fight involving Dricus Du Plessis and Alex Pereira.
Dricus Du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland?
Du Plessis impressed many with his performance against former champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in Perth, Australia. The South African fighter showcased his skills by going head-to-head with Adesanya for three rounds before submitting him with a rear-naked choke in the fourth round. This victory solidified Du Plessis as the top fighter in the 185-pound division and sparked discussions about his next opponent.
Johnson, speaking on his YouTube channel, expressed uncertainty about Adesanya’s future after his two consecutive losses. He suggested that Adesanya might fight the loser of the upcoming bout between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev. Despite Adesanya’s current situation, Johnson expressed a desire to see him continue fighting.
For Du Plessis, Johnson proposed a match against the winner of the Whittaker vs. Chimaev fight, dismissing UFC CEO Dana White’s suggestion that Sean Strickland should be next in line for a title shot. Johnson was not impressed by Sean Strickland’s previous fight against Paulo Costa and suggested Sean Strickland seek other opportunities.
“I think we see him fight the winner of Khamzat and Robert Whittaker. I know Dana White went out there and said the winner of this fight is gonna fight Sean Strickland. I don’t know if I want to see that fight. I think Sean Strickland could do something else, because when he fought (Paulo) Costa, I didn’t think it was a very exciting fight.”
Alex Pereira’s Situation
Johnson also commented on Alex Pereira, the current light heavyweight champion, who had previously held the middleweight title. Pereira hinted at returning to the middleweight division after Du Plessis’ victory over Adesanya. However, Johnson advised Pereira to focus on defending his 205-pound title against Khalil Rountree at UFC 307 and potentially against Magomed Ankalaev before considering a move back to middleweight for a champion-versus-champion fight.
‘Might Mouse’ said:
“I don’t want to see that, right? Maybe if he gets past (Rountree and Magomed) Ankalaev – if he beats those two guys, then I’d love to see him come down to 185. But I think right now you leave Alex Pereira against Khalil, and then you have the winner of Robert Whittaker versus Khamzat taking on DDP.
Kai Kara-France’s Opportunity
In the flyweight division, Johnson praised Kai Kara-France for his first-round TKO victory over Steve Erceg, suggesting that Kara-France deserves a title shot against reigning champion Alexandre Pantoja. With former champion Deiveson Figueiredo no longer in the division, Johnson believes Kara-France’s recent performance warrants a chance to compete for the belt.
“He’s on a successful run, big knockouts in the division. I think right now, this would be a good opportunity to have Kai Kara-France fight Alex Pantoja. I think right now, when you look at the division, you don’t have (former champion Deiveson) Figueiredo in there anymore. He’s at 135. Kara-France just knocked out Steve Erceg, a guy that Pantoja couldn’t finish. So I think you give Kai Kara-France the opportunity to fight for the belt against Alex Pantoja.”
PERTH, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 18: (R-L) Kai Kara-France of New Zealand punches Steve Erceg of Australia in a flyweight fight during the UFC 305 event at RAC Arena on August 18, 2024 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
In the main event of this past weekend’s UFC Fight Night in Abu Dhabi, a new top bantamweight contender emerged. Umar Nurmagomedov was able to leapfrog the majority of the top ten at 135-pounds by defeating Cory Sandhagen over five rounds. Many have expected for a long time that Nurmagomedov just needed the opportunity to […]
Many have expected for a long time that Nurmagomedov just needed the opportunity to show that he was an elite level talent and that finally happened him for on Saturday night.
He was left very impressed by Nurmagomedov’s performance and believes that he should be the next in line to face the winner of the upcoming title fight.
“Mighty Mouse” spoke about how either option of O’Malley or Dvalishvili taking on Nurmagomedov in a title defense makes for an engaging match-up.
Whichever way it ends up unfolding, Johnson is excited to now have another name in the mix at the top end of bantamweight.
“I like him [Nurmagomedov] taking him [O’Malley] to the ground, I don’t think he’ll be able to get Merab down, I’m not sure. But, I think this match-up, whoever wins this one fighting Umar, I think it’s the right thing to do and I can’t wait to see all three of these guys get the opportunity to lock horns each other or one of them fights the other one.”
UFC legend Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson says that Sean Strickland does not deserve the next title shot. The ONE…