MMA Spotlight: Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson

By Anthony “Zute” George

After Demetrious, Mighty Mouse Johnson’s record tying 10th consecutive UFC title defense; Anderson Silva being the other, social media has been buzzing with debate about Johnson’s standing in UFC history? Is he as great as The Spider? Is he the greatest of all time? Who let the dogs out? Just keeping you on your toes. Personally, I am not a big fan of such conversations. Why can we not just appreciate a fighter for his greatness? Why does fighter dominance often lead to fan debate?

Boxing and MMA fans often do not see eye to eye. One thing they have in common is that they love their lists. Mighty Mouse finds himself at the top of most people’s pound for pound list in the UFC today, and is creeping up the all-time list after his tenth defense of his flyweight title. A fight where he dominated the formidable Wilson Reis. Johnson has not lost a step, in fact, he appears to be getting better.

This is significant because Fox conducted and opinion poll of this fight and 19% of the fans voted for Reis as the winner. On the surface the numbers appear to be in keeping with Johnson’s dominance. However, since I am asking a lot of questions, doesn’t 19% seem a bit high against a fighter who has been a sure thing since 2013? I suppose it is a result of how good people think Reis is, and was up until his fight with Johnson. When you get to the championship level, it is very rare to see one fighter appear to be head and shoulders above top competition in the UFC. That is what we are seeing with Mighty Mouse.

When Anderson Silva was defending his middleweight ten consecutive times, he was just as dominate. Until he got knocked out by Chris Weidman. Silva, while still active, has not been the same fighter since his lost the title he held for so long. Can the same thing happen to Johnson? Based on how he looked against Reis it is unlikely, however not impossible. Johnson feels he is the best and wants to be paid as such. He next fight will be for the UFC consecutive title defense record. Seems like a natural to headline a PPV. Who would the opponent be? Joseph Beneavidez, Henry Cedujo and Ray Borg are the respective 1,2, and 3 ranked flyweights. Do any of these fighter’s sound like a viable dance partner? I do not mean as a worthy challenge, but as someone who could sell at the top of a PPV. We will have to wait and see.

While I will not participate in any debates about where Johnson falls in the best of all time, I will say he appears to be more focused than Silva was at this point of their respective title reigns. Johnson still has plenty of firs in his belly despite being a dominate flyweight champion for years; the only UFC flyweight champion as a matter of fact. Perhaps it is because Johnson has not earned top tier PPV status despite his greatness. It was certainly on his mind after the Reis fight. By the time Silva got to his tenth defense, he seemed to be losing interest. Taunting his opponent appeared to be more of the game plan, a tactic that got him knocked out against The American Dream. I cannot predict the future, but I can almost guarantee such circumstances will occur during a Demetrius Johnson title defense. Who it will be against, and where it will take place, is anyone’s guess.

Zutes Boxing Talk & Zutes MMA Talk are podcasts that bring you the world of combat sports straight up with no twists. In each episode, “Zute” calls upon the best boxing & MMA minds in the business to talk about the current state of the fight game, and interviews some of the best fighters in the world of combat sports. Carlos Palomino, Mikey Garcia Sergey Kovalev, Shonie Carter and Jeremy Horn are among the guests that have been featured on the podcast.

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