Joshua Pacio sings praise for Demetrious Johnson's glorious MMA career: "He's achieved it all"

ONE world champion Joshua Pacio had nothing but praise for one of MMA's all-time greats, Demetrious Johnson, as he bid farewell to the sport at ONE 168: Denver earlier this month.

'Mighty Mouse' took to the Circle inside the packed Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, on Sept. 6 to say his final goodbye to a career that spanned almost two decades, where he reached the highest of highs alongside claiming the flyweight MMA world titles in the two biggest global promotions.

Speaking on Demetrious Johnson's retirement and his impressive run on the global stage, the ONE strawweight MMA world champion had this to say to Sportskeeda:

"It's impressive that he came over to ONE Championship. Even though he didn't win the world title on his first attempt, he used that challenge to come back and become a champion here. You could say he's achieved it all."

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Demetrious Johnson's complete journey in ONE Championship

After recording 11 title defenses in UFC, Johnson inked a deal with ONE Championship in Oct. 2018. The 38-year-old started his tenure with three successive wins over Yuya Wakamatsu, Tatsumitsu Wada, and Danny Kingad to secure the ONE Flyweight MMA World Grand Prix Championship crown.

Unfortunately, his first shot at the ONE flyweight MMA world title didn't go his way as divisional king Adriano Moraes knocked out the MMA icon — becoming the first to do so — in the second round of their clash at ONE on TNT I.

That, however, did not deter Johnson from mounting a better challenge when they ran it back a year later.

This time, Demetrious Johnson flipped the script with a near-identical finish of 'Mikinho' to secure the coveted 26 pounds of gold and earn his spot atop the stacked flyweight MMA throne. The Washington native closed out his rivalry with the Brazilian with a unanimous decision victory on the promotion's record-breaking on-ground debut in North America, ONE Fight Night 10.

Apart from his usual MMA exploits, the mixed martial artist also graced the Circle alongside ONE flyweight Muay Thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon in a mixed-rules super fight at ONE X. He submitted the Thai superstar with a rear-naked choke at 2:13 of the second round.

Despite bidding farewell to the sport that has left him with plenty of moments to cherish, Johnson hinted during his retirement speech that he'd be open to a submission grappling contest under the ONE Championship banner in the future.