Demetrious Johnson has no doubt that ONE Championship 'was the best thing' ever in his career: "I'll stand by that"

Former ONE flyweight MMA world champion Demetrious Johnson recently gave its well-deserved flowers to the world's largest martial arts organization by stating that it was the best thing that happened to his professional career as a fighter.

Johnson, who competed in the UFC before moving to ONE Championship in 2018, has doubled down on this take during a recent appearance on MMA Fighting's YouTube channel for an interview.

The 38-year-old combat sports legend stated:

"ONE Championship was the best thing that ever happened to me in my career and I'll stand by that. I'll take that to the grave."

Watch the full interview of Demetrious Johnson here:

'Mighty Mouse' finished his professional career under the banner as the undisputed king of the flyweight MMA division after relinquishing the 26-pound golden belt last September 2024 during the ONE 168: Denver card.

He also won the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix title in 2019 after sweeping the tournament with wins over Yuya Wakamatsu, Tatsumitsu Wada, and Danny Kingad.

Johnson also scored victories against Adriano Moraes (twice) and Rodtang Jitmuangnon during their mixed-rules superfight.

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Demetrious Johnson reveals his smooth relationship with ONE boss Chatri Sityodtong

During the same interview, the American icon also shared his healthy relationship with ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong and how they built a good relationship, particularly during the negotiations for his megafight with Thai superstar Rodtang Jitmuangnon.

According to Johnson, Sityodtong has been very supportive of his decisions and lauded him for empowering athletes by saying:

"It's always been transparent. And even when it came down to fighting Rodtang, it was like, hey, you know, what do you think? And I'm like, yeah, I think it's good. I don't try to be a world champion in Muay Thai, but we can do something else. And he goes, okay, we'll call you back. And they came back with the super rules fight. So I think that was a good stepping stone for us to build our relationship and that business relationship between athlete and promoter and the CEO of the company."