Denver holds a special place in Demetrious Johnson’s heart: “I actually had my first big fight here”

Mixed martial arts icon and former ONE flyweight MMA world champion 'Mighty Mouse' Demetrious Johnson of the United States was overcome with a rush of memories and emotion in the Circle last weekend when he announced his retirement from the sport that made him a legend.

Johnson stepped in front of a packed Ball Arena crowd at ONE 168 in Denver, Colorado, and laid down his gloves for good, riding off into the sunset as a man widely considered one of the greatest MMA fighters to ever compete.

However, Denver holds a special place in 'Mighty Mouse's' heart because it's where his legendary rise all began.

Speaking to veteran ONE Championship broadcast analyst Mitch 'The Dragon' Chilson, Johnson talked about why Denver is so memorable for him.

'Mighty Mouse' said:

"It feels good, man. It feels good. I actually had my first big fight here in Denver, Colorado. I won my first fight against Nick Pace, and to come back here and finish the trilogy out with Adriano, to come back here, ONE Championship makes his debut back here. It's been absolutely amazing."

Needless to say, Johnson will go down as one of the leaders of MMA's GOAT conversation.

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch all the action of ONE 168: Denver via replay on demand via Amazon Prime Video.

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Demetrious Johnson knew for months that his time in MMA was coming to an end: "I don’t wanna stay too long at the party"

'Mighty Mouse' Demetrious Johnson was not going to follow the same path of legends before him who overstayed their welcome in the cage.

So the former flyweight MMA king made the executive decision to call it a career.

He told ONE he had already come to terms with his decision to retire months ago:

"A little bit, I kinda knew already that I was already in that form or chapter in my life. Don’t get me wrong, like I know I’m gonna miss it because I know I can still fight, but there comes a point in time where the athlete just goes ‘I’m done, I don’t wanna stay too long at the party.’"