Demetrious Johnson News

Tom Taylor - March 12, 2018

Earlier this year, rumors of a possible Demetrious Johnson vs. TJ Dillashaw superfight were rampant. More recently, however, the buzz surrounding this potential fight has quieted down. Luckily, it sounds like the fight is still very possible in the near future. On Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, the flyweight champ Johnson reaffirmed that this is still the fight he wants.

Chris Taylor - March 11, 2018

Demetrious Johnson expected to make “huge announcement” on Monday According to Front Row Management’s Abrahim Kawa, who represents some of the biggest fighters in mixed martial arts today, current UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson will be making a “huge announcement” on tomorrow’s edition of The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani.

Tom Taylor - March 11, 2018

Having established himself as the most dominant champion in UFC history, UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson is now being linked to a showdown with current UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw. Unsurprisingly, this clash of incredibly talented fighters has got the fight world divided, as some people believe the ultra-dominant Johnson will win, while others favor Dillashaw, who is likely to be the bigger, stronger man in the cage.

Justin Golightly - March 9, 2018

Dealing with a knee injury since Summer of last year, Joseph Benavidez has been out on the sidelines watching the flyweight division move on without him. Only, it hasn’t really moved on. The unstoppable Demetrious Johnson is still at the top and all the major players have also been beat by Benavidez. That’s why when he makes his triumphant return against Sergio Pettis at UFC 225, he wants to prove he’s still number one and get another crack at Mighty Mouse. “For anyone who says I shouldn’t [get a shot] or that I’ve fought him twice or whatever — I realize when there is money to be made, maybe you’ll pick the No. 8 guy in the division because it will sell more. But with our division, there’s not a star. Demetrious [Johnson]is the best fighter ever, and he’s not a star. So what do we really have? All we have is our talent. That’s what’s great about the division, you can see things that 125-pound guys can do that some other guys can’t. All we have is our skill. So if we don’t have a big fight, why wouldn’t you have the best fighters fight?”

Justin Golightly - February 21, 2018

Despite the UFC trying to put together a rematch with Cody Garbrandt for the bantamweight title to save UFC 222, TJ Dillashaw has his eyes on the long-hyped superfight with UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson. Other than Johnson himself saying it is in negotiations, not much else has been said publicly about the scrap. Along with giving the reasons why Garbrandt doesn’t deserve a shot, Dillashaw also spoke on Monday that all roads seem to still point to the match-up to go ahead and slide in that co-main even slot for UFC 226. “I haven’t really heard much in the sense of [the fight with Demetrious Johnson being official]. They’re just telling me to get healthy, so obviously I’ve been doing some physical therapy and working on getting healthy and staying ready, and yeah, continuing to watch my body [composition], staying low [in weight] if this thing really happens. They know I want it. Demetrious wants it. He’s talking about how he wants to be on a big card; there’s a perfectly big card for it now coming up in July. They got Stipe [Miocic] and [Daniel] Cormier [headlining UFC 226], so all of the stars seem to be aligning. It’s just all about getting it done now.”

Drake Riggs - February 20, 2018

It appears that we may be losing out on one of the three potential super fights that have recently been teased to us. At least for now… Henry Cejudo’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz tweeted out that he will be rematching the UFC flyweight champion, Demetrious Johnson, some time in the Summer.

Justin Golightly - February 17, 2018

The year of the superfight is truly upon us. Whether they all go down or not, three giant fights between champions in different divisions are expected to fight each other. Whether this is the UFC’s big explosion like the death of a star, or their metamorphosis to survive in the future, it’s clear that things are changing. So, if we’re going to crack open the door to allow for epic fights like these, why not just kick it off the hinges? Let’s take down the political boundaries between organizations and have champions be able to fight other champions to really decide who are the top fighters on our humble spinning rock. Unfortunately, that’s impossible until some sort of MMA Ali Act is passed. However, there is no red tape on our imagination, so this is what we’ll explore in the very first edition of Fight Think. 5.  Bellator World Grand Prix winner vs. Stipe Miocic/Daniel Cormier winner (Bellator heavyweight champion vs UFC heavyweight champion)

Justin Golightly - February 16, 2018

Let’s get real here for a minute. The things that Demetrious Johnson has done are incredible. He’s literally lapped his entire division, he’s the most dominant champion in UFC and ZUFFA history, and if the superfight with UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw happens and Johnson is able to win, it will be hard to argue that he’s not one of – if not the – greatest of all time. What makes Johnson so great are things like UFC 216. Not only did he break Anderson Silva’s title defense record defending his UFC flyweight title against Ray Borg, he did it by submitting him with a freaking German suplex into an armbar. It’s not surprise the fans voted that it was the best submission of all-time. “I’ve done that submission for like three of four years now and everybody out there is like, ‘Oh, that’s The Mouse Trap’. That’s not the Mouse Trap, I have another submission series for the Mouse Trap. That’s the Mighty Wiz Bar because Matt Hume showed me that armbar, I can’t remember how long ago, but I’ve got such a big arsenal working with the same coach for 13 years that you build that database over time. […] “It’s always been in my back pocket, in my toolbox, but I never try to force submissions. When you start trying to force things, that’s when you over-extend, you make mistakes.”

Justin Golightly - February 8, 2018

Demetrious Johnson versus TJ Dillashaw. The UFC flyweight champion fighting the UFC bantamweight champion in an ultra high level MMA double title fight. It’s a match-up that everyone has been clamoring for, but still some people aren’t in favor of it. Although, it’s easy to see why Dominick Cruz isn’t keen on the idea. If you count the WEC bantamweight title which the UFC absorbed, Cruz was the bantamweight king from 2010 until he was stripped due to injuries in 2014. A title he nearly immediately got back upon his return from Dillashaw himself. The very same title he wants back. “I think [the bantamweight championship] should be my next fight, but they play weird games where they want to give TJ Dillashaw an easier fight because he doesn’t want to fight somebody hard right after he won the title. He wants an easy fight. So, he wants to fight somebody that he knows he can keep the belt a little longer before he knows he gets a really hard fight, whereas I went TJ Dillashaw, Urijah Faber, Cody Garbrandt and then I lose the belt. Let’s go TJ. I beat you. Don’t you want to get that back? Stop going down and looking for little baby boys at 125. Silly Dilly, that’s what I call him.”

Justin Golightly - February 8, 2018

While Dana White is talking about still making a rematch between TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt, Dillashaw’s trainer Duane Ludwig is still pushing for the Demetrious Johnson superfight. It makes sense considering Johnson himself has said they’re in negotiations for co-main event of UFC 226 with Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier. As with most things, it’s probably both fighters wanting the money they deserve that is stalling things, but Ludwig says that no matter what the obstacles, this fight needs to happen for the future of MMA. “[TJ Dillashaw]’s a ninja. That’s why he’s the champion and that’s why he’s going to fight Demetrious [Johnson]. Demetrious, where you at buddy? C’mon, Demetrious. Let’s make this happen. Whether I’m TJ’s trainer, or friend, or instructor, or Sensei or not, right? For me, just as a martial art enthusiast, I want to see that fight happen to see who truly is the best mixed martial artist.”

Tom Taylor - February 5, 2018

UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw has been vocal in his belief that, if he gets his desired fight with UFC flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson, the winner of said fight will be MMA’s pound-for-pound king. “[The fight is about] who’s the best pound-for-pound,” Dillashaw said on a recent episode of BJ Penn Radio. “It’s not some bullshit, hyped drama. This is what the sport is really about, it’s who is the best in the world. Demetrious got that number one spot. I feel like I’m the best fighter in the world, man, and I just want to prove it. DJ has my spot and I want to claim it. I’m the best pound-for-pound fighter. I had a couple split decision losses that I didn’t agree with it. If you throw those ones out of the way, I’d be on a 13 fight win streak, seven fight title defense. I’d be where I’m supposed to be, but this is the way for me to get to where I want to be. Demetrious is on top and it’s time for me to take him out.”

Justin Golightly - February 3, 2018

Demetrious Johnson confirms ‘negotiations have begun’ to fight TJ Dillashaw as the co-main event of #UFC226: Cormier vs Miocic. pic.twitter.com/xEcrsiQV4a — Justin Golightly (@SecretMovesMMA) February 3, 2018

Justin Golightly - February 1, 2018

If you’ve followed UFC flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson‘s life at all outside of the Octagon, you’d know that when he’s not dominating in the Octagon, he’s interacting and playing against fans on his Twitch stream. Rain or shine, holiday or no holiday, he can be found playing all your favorite games live on the platform. Recently, two streaming and sports entertainment worlds collided when Johnson and WWE’s Xavier Woods got together and played some of the new Dragon Ball FighterZ game. You don’t even have to insert a coin to check it out. “That’s what we’re working towards [to be the best fighter on planet Earth]. Gotta keep on working harder to cement that legacy. One hundred percent [I would want to be in a Tournament of Power in the Universe Survival Saga]. One hundred percent. I would win it. I don’t want to spoil the sagas coming up for you, but I’m probably one of the strongest guys in that tournament.”

Tom Taylor - February 1, 2018

UFC 226, which goes down on July 7, is going to be headlined by a heavyweight superfight between reigning champion Stipe Miocic and reigning light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. And from the sounds of it, another blockbuster superfight is in the works for the card’s co-main event: a flyweight title fight between dominating divisional champ Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and current bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw. News of this targeted bout was first reported by BJPenn.com’s Chris Taylor.

Tom Taylor - February 1, 2018

One of the most talked about fights in MMA today is a possible superfight between dominating UFC flyweight champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw. Pretty much everybody has an opinion on this possible blockbuster, and that includes John Dodson, who has fought both Johnson and Dillashaw in the past. Dodson fought Dillashaw back in 2011, stopping him with a volley of first-round punches. He’s battled Johnson twice, losing both fights by unanimous decision. In Dodson’s mind, this Johnson vs. Dillashaw could well be predicted with a bit of MMA math: if he beat Dillashaw, but lost to Johnson, then Dillashaw is likely to lose to Johnson.

Justin Golightly - January 31, 2018

Somewhere someone is looking at numbers skyrocket. The engagements and impressions are out of control. Suddenly, a dull UFC week is sparked with an army of 14,000 fire emoji. This is what happens when the UFC announces a fight the magnitude of Daniel Cormier moving up to face Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title. A tweet like that holds its own gravitational pull. It drags in thousands who release their own satellites out to orbit around the news. People message friends, they send out hyperlinks and quote RTs. The drop of the information is like an event in and of itself. However, not every match-up is like this. Most entire cards aren’t like this. Nowadays, it takes an adrenaline shot to remind fans that MMA is still exciting as hell. Is this the way the UFC stays alive?  Before the ginormous sale, the UFC ramped up their fight cards like the climax of a Michael Bay movie. This all culminated in their pay-per-view draw poster boy fighting Eddie Alvarez in unprecedented champion versus champion main event at UFC 205. Since then however, things have dwindled. Conor McGregor is gone along with other marquee names like Ronda Rousey and Jon Jones.

Tom Taylor - January 22, 2018

UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, who owns the record for most consecutive title defenses of any champion in UFC history, is currently recovering from a surgery. That said, he’s already eyeing his next fight. While Johnson has expressed some disinterest in a potential fight with bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw in the past, he seems to have come around. Speaking during a MetroPCS Q&A in the buildup to UFC 220, Johnson announced that he’s hoping to fight Dillashaw this July, on a big card in the midst of the UFC’s International Fight Week.

Justin Golightly - January 18, 2018

At UFC 216, Demetrious Johnson not only broke Anderson Silva’s title defense record, but did it with a German suplex-cancel into an armbar. He made history by breaking the record, but by possibly pulling off the most spectacular submission ever in the UFC. In classic humble fashion, Anderson Silva recently was asked about Johnson’s status as a potential greatest of all time candidate, a status that Silva also enjoys, and bowed out stating that Mighty Mouse is indeed the GOAT. “You know, Demetrious Johnson is the new champion. He’s the best one. I have my passion about my sport, and I love when I hear people talking about this. Demetrious, people need to respect [him] because he’s a great fighter. I think Demetrious [is the greatest of all time]. Absolutely, absolutely.” — Anderson Silva speaking to TMZ.