“I truly believe that” - Demetrious Johnson believes he’s ‘one of the best flyweights’ of all time

In a career that has lasted nearly two decades, Demetrious Johnson has proven himself to be one of, if not the best, flyweight fighters in the history of combat sports. On Friday at ONE on Prime Video 1, ‘Mighty Mouse’ will get the chance to prove it once again when he meets ONE Championship’s reigning flyweight king Adriano Moraes.

Of course, this will be the second time 'DJ' and ‘Mikinho’ will square off inside the circle. Their first meeting in April 2021 left fans stunned when the Brazilian champion delivered a crushing knee to a downed 'DJ', knocking him out for the first time in his storied career.

While the loss did nothing to damage Johnson’s already solidified legacy as a flyweight great, a win in the highly anticipated rematch could make Johnson one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the history of the sport. Speaking to The MMA Super-Fan on YouTube, Johnson confirmed his belief that he is one of the greatest flyweights in the sport but stopped short of calling himself the greatest of all time.

“Well I’m acknowledging that I’m one of the best flyweights to ever walk the planet Earth, 1000% I’ll say it. I mean as far as the greatest of all time - with Jon Jones, Khabib [Nurmagomedov], all those guys - I’d leave that to the community.”

Johnson doubled down on his statement, saying that the stats don’t lie in regards to his accomplishments as an elite-level flyweight.

“But there hasn’t been a flyweight out there who’s done what I’ve done, who imposes his will or his game right? I truly believe that. The stats speak for themselves even over in America and in here, so for me, I’ll say it.”

Watch the interview below:

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Demetrious Johnson recognizes the biggest challenge is the height difference between himself and Adriano Moraes

The biggest struggle that Demetrious Johnson faced in his first outing with Adriano Moraes, and will face in the rematch, is the significant height and length difference. In a recent interview with the NY Post, ‘Mighty Mouse’ was asked about the height difference and if Moraes felt different than other taller opponents he has faced in the past. He responded:

“Well, obviously, yeah. He’s [5-foot-8]. You feel that when you try to get to him. And then obviously, when he’s laying on you, he’s got longer limbs that are entangling you. So when I fought Tatsumitsu Wada [in 2019], I thought the same thing: just long bodies, long legs. It’s just the weight class I’m in.”

Demetrious Johnson has discussed taking a more measured approach in the impending rematch. With a renewed focus on grappling and already having shared the circle with the flyweight world champion, fans should expect a much different Demetrious Johnson at ONE on Prime Video 1.