Throughout his illustrious career, Demetrious Johnson has cemented his place as one of the greatest in MMA competition. The flyweight G.O.A.T. candidate has earned his keep under UFC and ONE Championship via his super athleticism and fight acumen. However, even someone as ‘Mighty’ as Johnson can have a blank slate in their chapters. Speaking with former ONE Atomweight World Champ, “Unstoppable” Angela Lee, he recently opened up about growing up without a father.
Although he grew up with no father to guide him, “Mighty Mouse” went on to achieve incredible success. He won belts in both the UFC and ONE Championship. Johnson defended his UFC flyweight title 11 consecutive times, a record high to date. Despite his chip on the shoulder for inadequate PPV compensations, all and sundry allude to him as the best to do it. However, during their first-ever call, it got awkward when his own father did not know him.
At the time, I never knew who my father was…Eventually, I got his social security number; I gave it to a friend who finds people around the world, Bloodhounds. I called him, I said, ‘Hey, how’s it going? This might sound weird, I’m your son’. He goes, ‘Huh, okay’…I go ‘Does a name Karen Crowe’ which is my mom’s name, ‘Does that ring a bell’? He goes, ‘I can’t say that it does’. I’m like, oh fu*k, he doesn’t remember my mom.
Demetrious Johnson via his “MIGHTY” Podcast (@Mighty15x) LIVE from Hawaii, with Angela Lee
ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong recently named Demetrious Johnson (25-4-1) the inaugural Hall of Famer, announcing his out from MMA at ONE Championship 168 in Denver. Despite their clashes, even UFC CEO Dana White told John Morgan (@JOHNMORGANMMA) for Cageside Grind City Media that ‘Mighty’ would have a place in the UFC HOF wing as well. His achievements in and beyond UFC/ONE FC have been one to behold. So eventually, Johnson taunted his father to ‘Google him’ during their call.
So he goes, ‘Ok, you’re my son’. He always knew about me, but not really. I was like, ‘I want nothing from you. I want no money, I don’t need nothing. All I wanna know is what happened’. Because I don’t know what happened…He told me everything, I’m like ‘Alright, I appreciate you being honest’. He goes, ‘So, what about you’? I was like, ‘Just Google me’ [laughs] and call me back’ …[laughs]
Demetrious Johnson further said
🥹Demetrious Johnson shared a story about meeting his father for the first time in his life at the age of 31.
“He asked me how am I doing. I said just google me and call me back.”😁
🎥 YT @MightyMouse ▫️ pic.twitter.com/sDCZOgYL58
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) October 9, 2024
Johnson excelled in sports without full parental backup. Proving that he was always destined for greatness. While participation in martial arts has been known to cause brain deterioration, DJ was a different case. He was just born to be ‘Mighty’. While he bravely opened up about the first conversation with his father, Angela Lee had her own tale to tell.
Former ONE women’s champion Angela Lee confesses to Demetrious Johnson about her retirement
Much akin to Demetrious Johnson, ex-ONE Women’s Atomweight Angela Lee needs no introduction. The 28-year-old has enjoyed some of the most legendary career runs in the world’s biggest mix-base fighting sport. However, Lee took everyone by surprise when she decided to hang it up at the ONE Fight Night 14 event last September. When she called it quits, her stellar stat was nothing short of what DJ himself did.
Even after the shock unprecedented “trade” for Ben Askren in October 2018, Johnson made a quick mark at ONE FC. His title trilogy against Adriano Moraes will be one for ages. ‘Unstoppable’ recently caught up with Johnson on his ‘MightyCast‘ show. She revealed that she once lost her love for fighting.
Lee made her mark at the age of 19 when she won the inaugural ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Championship. After her first nine fights, she challenged Xiong Jing Nan. It was for the ONE Women’s Strawweight MMA World Title at ONE: A NEW ERA in 2019 and lost the crown from the equally formidable Chinese fighter but rebounded seven months later.
However, Angela Lee said that she wouldn’t really be honest with herself if she kept fighting because she lost the same ‘spark’ for it. There were initial disagreements with her family and camp, who said that this was not the time to call it quits. However, DJ agreed with her choice, having thought along similar lines.
Upon her return, she defeated then-interim champ and brand face Stamp Fairtex at ONE X in 2022 to cement her top spot. She never even lost her 115-pound title strap. Whatever the choice, whatever the reasons, ‘Mighty’ and ‘Unstoppable’ have proved why their monikers fit them. Hence, their choice to pull out remains as valid as ever.
