Tag: Demetrious Johnson

Overreaction Time: Covington a fraud? Sold on Topuria to 155? Adesanya under pressure? More!

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” on the fallout from UFC Tampa, plus some major developments and a big main event booked.

The time for overreacting is here!

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” at noon ET/9 a.m. PT as host Simon Samano and MMA Junkie Radio host “Gorgeous” George Garcia debate these “overreactions” on the following topics in mixed martial arts:

  • UFC Tampa newsflash: [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag] was a FRAUD this whole time.
  • UFC Tampa: [autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag] is the MOST DANGEROUS fighter in the welterweight division.
  • UFC Tampa: The best finish of the night was ROBBED of a bonus.
  • [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag] moving to lightweight would be a GOOD MOVE for his career.
  • [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] was WISE to brush off Alexandre Pantoja’s callout.
  • UFC Saudi Arabia: The pressure is on [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] to win DEFINITIVELY against Nassourdine Imavov.

Watch the full episode in the video above.

2024 MMA retirement tracker: A list of those who hung up the gloves

Here’s a list of every notable retirement announced by fighters from the UFC, PFL, Bellator, and more in 2024.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

MMA is a constantly evolving sport with a revolving door of athletes entering and exiting. Currently, fighters from the era who helped make the sport so popular are beginning to trickle away from competition and hang up their gloves in order to move on to the next chapter in life.

If there’s one thing that’s well known about combat sports retirements, though, it’s that they often don’t last long. The urge to compete, and perhaps more importantly get a payday, will continue to drive fighters back even well beyond their expiration dates.

2024 has already seen a number of notable fighters announcing they are done with the sport, and we have a list of those who have opted to walk away this year (the list will update as new retirements are announced).

Spinning Back Clique LIVE: Pantoja, Rakhmonov’s big UFC 310 wins, UFC 311 & 312 title booking, more

On this week’s episode of Spinning Back Clique, the panel reacts to Alexandre Pantoja’s title win at UFC 310, recent title bookings, more.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.

This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Matt Wells, and Nolan King will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate the following topics:

  • [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] defended his UFC flyweight title in stellar fashion, submitting former Rizin FF champion Kai Asakura in the main event of UFC 310. After the fight, Pantoja called out former UFC flyweight champion [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag]. Could Johnson be convinced to return? If not, what’s next for Pantoja? Where does this loss leave Asakura? We discuss. 
  • Pantoja wasn’t the only one with a big win on Saturday. [autotag]Shavkat Rakhmonov[/autotag] cemented himself as the No. 1 contender at 170 pounds with a decision win over fellow top contender [autotag]Ian Machado Garry[/autotag]. With a UFC title fight on the horizon, what are Rakhmonov’s chances against Belal Muhammad? How much interest could this fight draw? We react to Rakhmonov’s big win and what could be next for Machado Garry.
  • Plenty of other things went down at UFC 310 outside the main and co-main event. Alexander Volkov lost a controversial and highly-debated split decision to Ciryl Gane. Kron Gracie was viciously knocked out in his MMA return. And veterans Anthony Smith, Chris Weidman, and Clay Guida all took defeats – which could mark the end of their MMA careers. We react to it all. 
  • The UFC got busy booking their next two pay-per-view shows. This past week, the promotion revealed the main and co-main event bouts for UFC 311 and UFC 312. A lightweight and bantamweight bout pitting Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan, and Merab Dvalishvili and Umar Nurmagomedov is set to headline UFC 311 on Jan. 18 in Los Angeles. Also, a middleweight and women’s strawweight championship bout headline UFC 312 on Feb. 8 in Sydney, as Dricus Du Plessis rematches Sean Strickland, and Tatiana Suarez finally gets her long-awaited shot at Zhang Weili. We reat to the championship bookings.
  • Things heated up outside the octagon these last few days. Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov had to be separated backstage on Thursday, and two days later, Dvalishvili and Dennis Buzukja got physical with a fan while walking through the arena at UFC 310. Buzukja was seen punching a fan. Nate Diaz and Islam Makhachev also threw things at each other before getting separated by security, and Jamahall Hill confronted Alex Pereira at the UFC Performance Institute. What’s going on? Is the UFC properly handling security? We discuss.
  • This coming Saturday, the UFC closes their 2024 with a Fight Night event in Tampa, Fla. UFC on ESPN 63 features a key welterweight bout between former interim champion Colby Covington taking on rising title contender Joaquim Buckley. Who will win? Could the winner set himself up for a title shot? We break it all down.

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Demetrious Johnson, Ben Askren discuss who won UFC-ONE Championship trade

In 2018, an unprecedented trade in MMA took place between the UFC and ONE Championship, but who won?

In 2018, an unprecedented trade in MMA took place between the UFC and ONE Championship, but who won?

Former UFC flyweight champion [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] was traded for ex-ONE Championship title holder [autotag]Ben Askren[/autotag]. Johnson went onto capture the ONE flyweight title, capping off his career by besting Adriano Moraes 2-1 in their rivalry.

Meanwhile, Askren came in with a bang by finishing Robbie Lawler in his octagon debut at UFC 235. Despite then being on the receiving end of the fastest knockout in UFC history courtesy of Jorge Masvidal, his ability to sell a fight made him a big star in such a short amount of time.

Judging by the way things panned out, Johnson thinks both organizations benefitted from the trade.

“My standpoint, I said everybody won,” Johnson told Askren on his “MightyCast” podcast. “I got to go to ONE Championship, make good money. You got to come to the UFC, get the opportunity to fight, see what you could do there. The UFC got you, which you were very good about creating buzz. Your sh*t-talking was actually intelligent sh*t-talking. You would be very good snippets.

“So if it wasn’t for you, they might not have the rise of Jorge Masvidal without that flying knee. …Without that flying knee you would never have Jorge Masvidal, ‘Street Jesus’ baptizing people coming up, then you wouldn’t have Kamaru Usman, you wouldn’t have Leon Edwards. Then you look at ONE Championship, they got me, I was able to fight, I get knocked out over there to show that their competition is actually legit. I come back and I beat Adriano. So I think, all in all, everybody won. What say you?”

After losing to Masvidal, Askren was submitted by Demian Maia in October 2019, before opting to hang up his gloves. He agrees with Johnson on both parties benefitting, where his move to the UFC re-ignited a final run.

“ONE Championship, the thing that was golden for them is I wasn’t going to fight,” Askren said. “I was done. If you stay in the UFC, I’m assuming you’re going to continue to fight, at least for a while. And in ONE Championship, I was legit done. I wasn’t fighting anymore.

“So, they essentially sold an asset that was kind of off market for – and you had a five-year run where I think you’ve done some grappling matches, you did a mixed-rules match, you did MMA, you’ve done a lot of things over there, which is obviously very cool. I think the most correct answer is everybody won. I got what I wanted, you got what you wanted.”

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Former UFC champ ‘comfortable’ saying Tom Aspinall could beat Jon Jones

Demetrious Johnson thinks Tom Aspinall has the physical attributes to beat Jon Jones.

[autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] believes [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] has the physical attributes to beat UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag].

Interim champ Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) is hoping to get his title unification bout with Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC), who defended his title with a third-round TKO of Stipe Miocic in Saturday’s UFC 309 main event.

Jones wants to be compensated handsomely for a potential Aspinall fight, and Johnson sees Aspinall as the man to beat him.

“I think Tom Aspinall has the speed, the athleticism and the power to give Jon Jones problems,” Johnson said on his YouTube channel. “Tom Aspinall is still young, and he’s still getting better, but I think this version of Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall is very – Tom Aspinall can beat him.

“I feel comfortable saying that just because you have somebody who’s going to take the fight to Jon Jones and not be scared. Now, can Tom Aspinall run into one of those elbows and a spinning back sh*t and a flying knee? One thousand percent.”

Johnson’s current pecking order at heavyweight goes PFL heavyweight superfights champ Francis Ngannou, Jones, then Aspinall. He thinks Ngannou would also be a tough stylistic matchup for Jones.

“I wish I would have seen Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall because once again, I still think the heavyweight king of the world is probably Francis Ngannou because he never lost the heavyweight championship,” Johnson said. “He knocked out Stipe Miocic, and that was when Stipe Miocic was a little bit more active. …

“I think Francis has the power factor and the athleticism, and I bet you he can probably defend Jon Jones’ takedown, and I bet you he can probably deal with Jon Jones’ range.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

This date in MMA history: Demetrious Johnson starts historic UFC flyweight title reign

A dozen years ago, “Mighty Mouse” made history.

A dozen years ago, [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] made history.

“Mighty Mouse” outworked Joseph Benavidez for a split decision in the final of a four-man tournament to become the UFC’s inaugural flyweight champion. It was the start of a run in the division that will be hard to topple.

Johnson defended the 125-pound title 11 consecutive times before he lost it in a highly debatable split decision to Henry Cejudo at UFC 227 a little more than six years ago. After that, he moved to ONE Championship, where he won that promotion’s 135-pound title before he recently announced his retirement.

On the anniversary of that first UFC flyweight title fight, take a look back at Johnson’s UFC title wins while he was considered by many to be the top pound-for-pound fighter in the sport.

Johnson def. Joseph Benavidez, UFC 152

Demetrious Johnson vs. Joseph Benavidez, UFC 152

Johnson def. John Dodson, UFC on FOX 6

Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson, UFC on FOX 6

Johnson def. John Moraga, UFC on FOX 8

Demtrious Johnson vs. John Moraga, UFC on FOX 8

Johnson def. Joseph Benavidez, UFC on FOX 9

Demetrious Johnson vs. Joseph Benavidez 2, UFC on FOX 9

Johnson def. Ali Bagautinov, UFC 174

Demetrious Johnson vs. Ali Bagautinov, UFC 174

Johnson def. Chris Cariaso, UFC 178

Demetrious Johnson vs. Chris Cariaso, UFC 178

Johnson def. Kyogi Horiguchi, UFC 186

Demetrious Johnson vs. Kyogi Horiguchi, UFC 186

Johnson def. John Dodson, UFC 191

Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson 2, UFC 191

Johnson def. Henry Cejudo, UFC 197

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Johnson def. Tim Elliott, TUF 24 Finale

Demetrious Johnson vs. Tim Elliott, TUF 24 Finale

Johnson def. Wilson Reis, UFC on FOX 24

Demetrious Johnson vs. Wilson Reis, UFC on FOX 24

Johnson def. Ray Borg, UFC 216

Demetrious Johnson vs. Ray Borg, UFC 216

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Demetrious Johnson: UFC champ Merab Dvalishvili’s conditioning will be X-factor vs. Umar Nurmagomedov

Demetrious Johnson sees UFC champion Merab Dvalishvili having a major advantage over Umar Nurmagomedov.

[autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] sees UFC bantamweight champion [autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag] having a major advantage over [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag].

Dvalishvili (18-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) defeated Sean O’Malley (18-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) in a dominant decision win to claim the bantamweight title in Saturday’s UFC 306 main event at Sphere in Las Vegas.

Umar Nurmagomedov (18-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) is waiting in the wings for his title shot, but Dvalishvili is not sold on him being No. 1 contender. However, if Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov do end up fighting, Johnson thinks Dvalishvili’s gas tank will give him an edge.

“This is going to be interesting because I feel his conditioning is going to be the X-factor because we know he’s not going to stop,” Johnson said on his YouTube channel. “He’s going to be a busy bee around the octagon to where this gentleman (Nurmagomedov) has the high kicks, he’s very long, he’s very big, and he also has the wrestling.

“But he does not have the work ethic like this man (Dvalishvili). Not saying he doesn’t have the work ethic, he doesn’t have just that, ‘I’m coming to smash you, I’m coming to smother you,’ like Khabib. This man (Dvalishvili) has that bear gene where he just comes and gets you, where he’s (Nurmagomedov) more strategic.”

Nurmagomedov competed in his first main event at UFC on ABC 7 in August, when he outlasted Cory Sandhagen in what was dubbed as a title eliminator.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 306.

Demetrious Johnson explains reason behind retirement: ‘I don’t find mixed martial arts fun anymore’

Demetrious Johnson revealed why he decided to hang up his gloves.

[autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] revealed why he decided to hang up his gloves.

Former UFC flyweight champion Johnson (25-4-1), who defended the title 11 times, announced his retirement from MMA this past week. He retired as the ONE Championship flyweight (135 pounds) title holder.

“Mighty Mouse” explains that he’s reached a point where he gets more fulfillment in training with random athletes from his era than continuing to fight in MMA.

“I’m not going to fight anymore, and the reason why is, I don’t find mixed martial arts fun anymore,” Johnson said on his “MightyCast” podcast. “Reason why is because I find more fulfillment in doing jiu-jitsu because I feel it’s harder. I find more fulfillment in helping and training with different people. If I ever wanted to feel Merab’s gas tank, I want to see how good he is, I want to feel his strength, the only way that would ever happen is if me and you were to fight each other.

“If I was a professional athlete, right? It would just never happen. But if I’m like, hey, I don’t care about winning. I don’t care about, you know, ever having an opportunity to fight you. ‘Hey Merab, can I come train with you?’ Yeah, you’re like, ‘Demetrious come train.’ And then when we train together, you’re not going to have like, ‘I need to beat you.’ You’re trying to learn from me. I don’t know. I’ve never trained outside of training camp when I would fight.”

Johnson has stayed active with grappling and jiu-jitsu competitions, but no longer feels like he’s growing when he fights. He competed in his final MMA bout in May 2023, when he successfully defended his ONE flyweight title in a unanimous decision win over Adriano Moraes to complete their trilogy.

“Once I get ready for a fight and I beat somebody, it’s like, OK, I beat him, I made this money – which is great,” Johnson said. “But I didn’t get to learn anything in that 25 minutes, if that makes sense.”

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Video: Where does Demetrious Johnson rank on the GOAT list?

Demetrious Johnson announced his retirement from MMA. We reflect on his legendary career on “Spinning Back Clique.”

One of the all-time greats, [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] has called it a career.

The former UFC and ONE Championship champion announced his retirement from MMA last Friday in an emotional message on the ONE 168 broadcast. Johnson (25-4-1) defended his UFC flyweight title 11 consecutive times, which is the current record for the most consecutive UFC title defenses.

There’s no doubt “Mighty Mouse” is great, but where exactly does he rank among the greatest of all time? What kind of legacy does he leave behind?

MMA Junkie’s Brian “Goze” Garcia, Nolan King, Danny Segura and host “Gorgeous” George Garcia react to Johnson’s retirement and reflect on his impressive body of work.

Watch their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below on YouTube.

https://youtube.com/live/suYDv4qZZAk

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Daniel Cormier praises ‘universally respected’ Demetrious Johnson after MMA retirement

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier pays homage to Demetrious Johnson.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] appreciates [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag].

Johnson, a former UFC flyweight champion who defended the title 11 times, announced his retirement from MMA during the ONE 168 broadcast this past week. “Mighty Mouse” (25-4-1) called it a career as the ONE Championship flyweight (135 pounds) title holder.

ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong named Johnson as the first inductee into the ONE Championship Hall of Fame, and UFC CEO Dana White said Johnson will also have a place in the UFC Hall of Fame.

Cormier thinks Johnson’s character should be praised as much as his in-cage achievements.

“I think what spoke the truest to Demetrious Johnson, he left to ONE FC and finished his career there,” Cormier said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Chael Sonnen. “We did the best fighters of all time, and he was sitting right up on that stage with us breaking down fighters because he gets respect. That’s one of the hardest things in the world to get, especially when you’re dealing with a whole bunch of alpha personalities in the sport, to be universally respected. Demetrious Johnson is universally respected, not only as a fighter but as the father, as the husband.

“He’s a great guy that truly does deserve all the credit and accolades and everything he’s going to get in this next phase of his career. And he’s a guy – he’s small, but he don’t take no stuff. That big body building YouTuber was like, ‘I’ll grapple DJ,’ and DJ goes and submits him. Demetrious will beat on you. So many great memories inside the octagon, but he also made great memories outside the octagon, and he’s building a great future for himself. So congratulations, Demetrious Johnson, one of the greatest champions the UFC has ever seen.”

Johnson, who was ranked No. 3 on MMA Junkie’s 30 Greatest UFC Fighters of All Time list, competed in his final MMA fight in May 2023 – a trilogy against Adriano Moraes. He successfully defended his ONE flyweight title by unanimous decision.

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