The greatest flyweight in MMA history is now officially a ONE Championship fighter. Demetrious Johnson will be plying his trade in Asia from now on with Chatri Sityodtong announcing the news on Facebook earlier today.
Johnson (27-3) successfully defended his flyweight title an incredible 11 times, making him the most dominant champion the UFC has ever seen. The 32 year old was believed by many to be the pound for pound king prior to his split decision loss to Henry Cejudo in August.
That decision cost Johnson his belt and the UFC made the surprising decision to allow the former champion to join a major rival. In return the Las Vegas headquartered organization is widely expected to sign former ONE Championship welterweight champion Ben Askren, although no announcement has been made at the time of writing.
While Askren is undefeated he has not consistently faced top quality opponents like Johnson. ‘Mighty Mouse’ holds wins over the likes of Henry Cejudo, Kyoji Horiguchi, Joseph Benavidez, John Dodson, Miguel Torres and Norifumi Yamamoto.
In 2011 Johnson challenged for the UFC bantamweight title but was beaten by Dominick Cruz in a fight that went the full five rounds. If he decides to remain at flyweight then he won’t be short of potential opponents at ONE Championship with the title currently held by Geje Eustaquio.
Other flyweights on the roster include former champions Adriano Moraes and Kairat Akhmetov while the likes of Reece McLaren and Danny Kingad could also be in contention for a shot at the former UFC champion.
