Demetrious Johnson isn’t formally completed together with his MMA profession, however he may be shut.
One of the crucial completed fighters in MMA historical past, Johnson holds a lot of UFC information, together with most consecutive title defenses (11), amassed when he dominated the flyweight division from 2012 to 2018. After dropping the title to Henry Cejudo at UFC 227, Johnson then acquired traded to ONE Championship, the place he’s spent the previous six years and is the present flyweight champion. Nonetheless, Johnson has not competed since successful his trilogy combat in opposition to Adriano Moraes again in Could of 2023, and apparently “Mighty Mouse” isn’t targeted on returning any time quickly both.
“I all the time like to go away that door open,” Johnson advised the JAXXON podcast. “… You’re all the time going to have that love for combined martial arts… I’m not formally retired. I’m simply saying combined martial arts is just not on my thoughts proper now.”
Johnson has been open over the previous few years about eager to pursue different alternatives outdoors of simply MMA, together with different fight sports activities disciplines and particular one-offs. However Johnson says that doesn’t imply he’s completed with MMA. For the ONE flyweight champion, it’s a matter of the fitting combat.
“It doesn’t imply if one thing got here by, ‘Hey man, you need to do that combat?’ Positive, why not?” Johnson stated. “I nonetheless prepare day by day. My weight continues to be good…
“I don’t prepare MMA. I prepare martial arts. It’s jiu-jitsu. I haven’t hit pads in, what – (yesterday) was the second time I hit pads in a yr and a half. I can nonetheless transfer. I nonetheless have it. I really feel like folks suppose whenever you don’t prepare combined martial arts you may’t do it. It won’t be to the very best stage, however I can get again to the very best stage. So for me, I feel when the time does come and I do formally retire, then I’ll be extra open about, these are the the reason why, I set targets for myself.”
