Demetrious Johnson News

Justin Golightly - December 19, 2017

With the insane year that we’ve had in combat sports, it’s easy to forget that Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson and TJ Dillashaw seem to actually be headed towards one of the biggest fights in UFC history. Dana White said it was happening after UFC 218, while Johnson himself even said the only thing preventing it would be money at this point. Either way, Dillashaw is already training hard for the long, 10-pound trip down to flyweight. Duane Ludwig recently was interviewed and is confident that they will have the upper hand in the superfight. “I’ve already [spent time studying Demetrious Johnson]. There’s already notes and footage of game plans. I’ve dedicated my life to martial arts since the age of eight, this is what I do for 31 years. It’s very fascinating and super fun for me to do this and it’s already done and I’ll continue to do more of it but Demetrious Johnson has already been broken down and we feel that we have the upper hand in that fight. That’s for sure.”

Justin Golightly - December 5, 2017

Potentially the biggest fight of 2018 is the long-hyped super fight between UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw and UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson. Dana White announced the huge superfight at the UFC 218 post-fight press conference and Dillashaw has already started completely changing his training regiment in order to lose the weight to get down safely. While he’s been quiet on potentially the biggest fight of his career, he finally broke his silence. “We’re working on it. We’re working on it, you know. Like I said, I haven’t been out and about and talking about this whole logistics matter, but yeah, we got a call. [My manager] Malki [Kawa]’s doing his job and making sure we get everything right and in line.”

Tom Taylor - December 4, 2017

On the heels of Dana White announcing TJ vs DJ next, TJ Dillashaw is bringing his body weight down over a 20 week period and trying to lose 6.4lbs of muscle to make Flyweight. pic.twitter.com/KT4NSTYXjx — Justin Golightly (@SecretMovesMMA) December 4, 2017

Chris Taylor - December 2, 2017

UFC President Dana White says a super fight between UFC champions Demetrious Johnson and T.J. Dillashaw is one hundred percent happening. The brash UFC boss caught up with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto following the conclusion of tonight’s UFC 218 event in Detroit where he broke the news.

Justin Golightly - December 2, 2017

It’s UFC 217 all over again with tonight’s UFC 218. The card is stacked from top to bottom and all the fighters are going to be fighting for the spotlight. Not to be left in the dark underneath the ridiculous main and co-main events, Henry Cejudo will fight Sergio Pettis in what is sure to be a lightning blitz of a battle. Flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson has said himself the the scrap between (#2) Cejudo and (#4) Pettis is for the number one contender spot. However, what if the superfight with TJ Dillashaw goes down? No problem, says Pettis. He’s actually willing to step aside and wait until Johnson finishes his business. “I’m 24 years old, I’m getting better and better, and if they want me to fight again before a title, I’m good with that. I’m building my resume, getting some money on top of it and getting some experience. TJ [Dillashaw] vs. [Demetrious Johnson], that’s an interesting fight, even for me. I’m a fan of the sport. It’s entertainment and it makes sense. It’s part of the business. I have no hatred towards that. I understand it. If they want me to build my resume and get to that DJ shot, I will. If I have a great performance against Henry Cejudo, maybe I can get there.”

Justin Golightly - December 1, 2017

Back in September at UFC 215, former flyweight title challenger Henry Cejudo returned with a vengeance and took it all out on Wilson Reis. He knocked the contender out in the second round to earn Performance of the Night. Not only did he bounce back from recent losses, he looked like he improved drastically and added tons of new tools to his game. The champion Demetrious Johnson said himself that Cejudo’s fight with Sergio Pettis at UFC 218 determines who the No. 1 contender will be, but TJ Dillashaw is pushing a move to flyweight for an immediate title shot. A fight that Cejudo thinks “Mighty Mouse” Johnson wins. “Hopefully, the winner of this fight [with Sergio Pettis at UFC 218] fights for the belt. I want to fight for the belt. Demetrious [Johnson]. If anything — I don’t know, I don’t mind mind the idea — I can welcome TJ Dillashaw to the flyweight division. You know, I’m not afraid. Cutting down 10 extra pounds to this weight class? It gonna’ be a big difference. I’m a big 125-er and I know what it’s like cut 10-pounds. An extra 10-pounds on top of that. And personally, I think DJ would easily get the win [against TJ Dillashaw].”

Justin Golightly - November 17, 2017

After reclaiming his UFC bantamweight title from Cody Garbrandt at UFC 217, TJ Dillashaw only has his sights set on one fighter: Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson. He’s arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter right now, a dominant flyweight champion, and has just broken Anderson Silva’s title-defense record with a move out of a comic book. A fight like this could be one of the most elite MMA fights of all time. It’s a no brainer that Dillashaw wants to make the fight happen, especially since it was in the works before Johnson’s last defense against Ray Borg. Coach and MMA legend Duane ‘Bang’ Ludwig recently opened up more about the potential fight. “We were en route to fight Demetrious [Johnson] at one point and the direction he was taking with his strength and conditioning coach, TJ [Dillashaw] was looking phenomenal on the mitts and the sparring and the training and he looked good, his spirits were good. So, obviously we didn’t make 125 and fight and compete, but when were were en route of that, nothing really changed. TJ’s not a big ‘35er, so he can make ‘25. It’s not going to be easy, but he’s the most dedicated person that I’ve ever seen. He really is. I think it needs to happen.”

Tom Taylor - November 8, 2017

Having reclaimed the UFC bantamweight title with a second-round knockout of Cody Garbrandt, TJ Dillashaw is now hell-bent on a flyweight title fight with dominant divisional king Demetrious Johnson – perhaps the best fighter alive today. “Demetrious can’t run from this one,” Dillashaw said shortly after he defeated Garbrandt to reclaim the bantamweight title. “This one’s too big. (Johnson) broke his (title-defense) record. He got to pad himself and break his record. Now, let’s make some money.”

Justin Golightly - November 2, 2017

Throughout the recent build-up for UFC 217, Cody Garbrandt has had two fighters on his mind: TJ Dillashaw and Demetrious Johnson. He’s not looking past his bantamweight title defense, but he’s been vocal about a ‘business move’ to challenge the dominant flyweight champ for awhile now. The lure of a huge fight and the chance to become a two-division champion is easy to understand, but Garbrandt went even further in a recent interview. Belt or not, Johnson is still the fight. “My eyes are set on becoming a name that’s going to live on forever from the UFC and MMA. I’d like to go down and fight Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ [Johnson] after this fight. I’m not looking past [TJ Dillashaw]. I’m so happy for ‘Mighty Mouse’, him and his wife and family are amazing, he’s a great champion for kids to look up to, he’s the pound-for-pound best. No animosity but I can make [125 pounds], if he wants to come up to [135 pounds], it doesn’t matter. That’s a fight that I would like. That’s a fight that makes sense. There’s a lot of things for me to gain going down to 125. I’d be a two-weight world champion just like Conor McGregor. I can simultaneously defend both belts.”

Justin Golightly - October 25, 2017

Cody Garbrandt is about to squash one of the biggest rivalries in MMA with the violence that awaits us at UFC 217. He’ll be defending his title against TJ Dillashaw, who needs no introduction. Potentially stacking back-to-back wins over long-time bantamweight king Dominick Cruz and former champion Dillashaw, would be a huge feather in the hat of Garbrandt. However, the current belt holder doesn’t want to just stop there, he wants to fight Demetrious Johnson next to become a two-division champion. He’s talked about it before, but he doubled-down on this ‘business move’ today on the UFC 217 conference call. “With a knockout over TJ [Dillashaw] I’ve wiped out the division. There’s a big gap between myself, then it goes [Dominick Cruz], and then TJ, and then it falls off from there so TJ is my next adversary, my next challenge. I know what he brings to the table. I’m focused and prepared on that, to wipe him out and then go on from there. I always like to have a fight ahead of myself, you know, plan ahead, and obviously I’m focused on TJ, but Mighty Mouse is next at 125 pounds. I can make 125 on November 4th if I wanted to.”

Russell Ess - October 19, 2017

Demetrious Johnson is coming off a historic win with his 11th consecutive title defense. In doing so, “Mighty Mouse” surpassed Anderson Silva’s record for the most consecutive title defenses and could continue to add to it still being the active UFC flyweight champion. Not only did Johnson pull off the win and set the new record at UFC 216, but “Mighty Mouse” did it with pizzazz by pulling off a finishing move that many have never seen before. Johnson used a suplex to armbar sequence in the fifth round that had everyone in awe.

Justin Golightly - October 13, 2017

Demetrious Johnson just beat Anderson Silva’s record, successfully defended his title, pulled off one of the most amazing submissions in UFC history, but he’s always on to the next challenge. He’s going to continue to try and take his gaming to the next level by competing at TwitchCon this year. He’ll be joined in the tournament by cosplaying UFC strawweight Angela Hill and the first ever UFC lightweight champion Jens Pulver. All three of which have streamed their gameplay on Twitch. Oh yeah let’s go @H1Z1KotK can’t wait to compete at the invitational this Sunday. #takeyourshot #TwitchCon2016 pic.twitter.com/nBwl8rLxzG

Russell Ess - October 10, 2017

There are coaches for all aspects of mixed tiatial arts. You have head coaches that bring everything together and others that help on a specific discipline such as wrestling, striking, or jiu-jitsu. Then, for some athletes, they also hire a mental coach to help them through their mental blocks or issues that can hold back an athlete from their full potential. Georges St-Pierre and Vitor Belfort are examples of some of the biggest stars in mixed martial arts that have worked with a mental coach during their careers. Now, with the sport being highlighted by promotional beasts such as Conor McGregor, could fighters use a promotional coach to hype themselves up and build more fan interest?

Russell Ess - October 10, 2017

I couldn’t even believe this as I was watching it. #Repost @lovatojrbjj ・・・ This is getting posted everywhere, but it’s too beautiful for me not to share as well! Congrats @mightymouse125 for making history & thank you for displaying so much incredible technique in all of your fights! #demetriousjohnson #UFC #JiuJitsu #MMA A post shared by Joe Rogan (@joerogan) on Oct 8, 2017 at 10:21am PDT

Chris Taylor - October 8, 2017

UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson made history at last night’s UFC 216 event in Las Vegas! “Mighty Mouse” recorded his eleventh consecutive title defense by scoring a dramatic fifth-round submission victory over Ray Borg in the co-main event of UFC 216.

Tom Taylor - October 8, 2017

Last night, in the co-main event of UFC 216, UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson shattered the record for consecutive title defenses in the UFC, moving to eleven-straight with a jaw-dropping fifth-round armbar over Ray Borg. In the wake of this dazzling win, Johnson is once again being widely referred to as the greatest of all time. At the UFC 216 post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White gave his take on the GOAT debate.

Justin Golightly - October 7, 2017

Demetrious Johnson is now hours away from his attempt to break Anderson Silva’s title defense record, forever cementing him in UFC and MMA history. Even before Johnson reached this peak in his career, fans and media alike have purposed the idea he move up in weight to create new challenges. He was even in talks to fight TJ Dillashaw, before deciding to continue on his at flyweight. The last time Johnson fought in a bigger weight division was coincidentally the last time he lost. It was against former bantamweight king Dominick Cruz. While Cruz has been praised for his own mind for the sport, he returns the favor when it comes to Johnson.  “When I look at [Demetrious Johnson] since we fought, the place he’s made the most leaps and bounds was in his mind. I think DJ had a lot of early-on doubts about how good he was or could be. As he dropped to this division, where he felt he was at his actual weight class, you saw his confidence change. You saw his words change, the way he promoted the fight change. Everything about him kind of changed. That’s just confidence. That’s just knowing he’s the champion and knowing he’s the best in the world at 135 pounds as well. It just changed his mindset.”

Russell Ess - October 6, 2017

UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson (26-2-1)  has the chance to set the record for the most consecutive UFC title defenses on Saturday night at UFC 216. “Mighty Mouse” is currently tied with former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva as they both hold 10 consecutive title defenses each. However, Johnson is still the champion and has the possibility of racking up much more title defenses to add to his record, unlike Silva at this point.