UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson will have an opportunity to make Mixed Martial Arts and Ultimate Fighting Championship history this Saturday. "Mighty Mouse," who is dropping "Mouse" and ony be called "Mighty" these days, will meet Ray Borg in the co-main event of October 7's UFC 216 pay-per-view broadcast.
Johnson, the number one ranked pound-for-pound fighter on the planet, has won 12 consecutive fights and has an opportunity to break Anderson Silva's title defense record with a win over Borg. Right now, Johnson and Silva are tied at 11 title defenses each.
In a recent interview with TMZ, Johnson was asked about the first time that he was punched in the face. Without hesitation the UFC champion recalled it like it was yesterday.
The story
"I remember back in elementary (school), me and my buddy were arguing. I thought WWF (wrestling) was absolutely real. The Rock, Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels, and all this stuff and he said 'this (expletive) is fake.' I said 'let's do it this way. I'll do WWF and you can do collegiate style wrestling and we will find out if it's real."
"We get down to the school. We get to the flag pole. Every fight's at the flag pole. And we're going, and we're wrestling and he punched me right in the face. I'm like, 'this mother (expletive) just punched me.' Then it's game time and everything went out the door."
The TMZ reporters then asked the UFC champion, "Did you punch him back?"
"Absolutely," Johnson said.
He was then asked if he won the fight. Johnson replied, "Yes I did, because the duty.... the teacher drove by on her car and she came back around. She goes 'What are you guys doing?' I said 'we're wrestling.' She goes, 'it looks like you were kicking his (expletive).'"
World's best
Johnson's position as the number one pound-for-pound fighter has been solidified in the UFC, and there has been a struggle to find a suitable opponent for the organization's first and only flyweight champion.
In 2016 the UFC held a reality series, season 24 of "The Ultimate Fighter," where 16 of the best 125-pound fighters competed in a bracket-style tournament with a shot to challenge Johnson for the title. Tim Elliott won the tournament but was unsuccessful in the fight against Johnson.
UFC officials have talked about the possibility of Johnson moving up to 135 pounds for a superfight but nothing has been solidified. Should Johnson defeat Borg on Saturday, he will have essentially wiped out the entire list of top contenders at 125 pounds.
