Demetrious Johnson’s MMA career is nothing short of legend. The fighting community and MMA fans often sang praises of astounding records at UFC and ONE Championship. To this day, he remains among the few complete fighters in the sport. However, following an exceptional 15-year-long career in the sport, ‘Mighty Mouse’ has decided to leave the sport.
Demetrious Johnson announced his retirement at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. He delivered a heartfelt retirement speech, shedding tears as he did so. The 38-year-old was signed to ONE Championship at the time. During his time with the promotion, he had five wins in 6 fights. Not only that, he was also crowned the flyweight champion.
Some of Johnson’s remarkable victories came against Adriano Moraes, where he defeated the Brazilian fighter twice following his initial loss. Interestingly, before that, DJ had an astounding career in the UFC. As such, since his debut, he defeated several formidable opponents in the quest for greatness. Interestingly, back in 2012, Johnson also became the first flyweight champion of the UFC.
Demetrious Johnson, one of the absolute greatest MMA fighters to ever compete, just announced his retirement at the ONE Championship event in Denver.
DJ, 38, walks away with a pro record of 25-4-1. He’s one of the most decorated champions in UFC history and the greatest… pic.twitter.com/OTRoFuhCLR
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) September 7, 2024
Johnson’s UFC career numbers are exceptionally good, with just four losses in 21 of his fights at the promotion. However, in 2019, the UFC made a shocking trade for which DJ left the promotion and joined ONE Championship. That was one incident that baffled the MMA fans, which shows the respect he has in the community.
MMA fans bid farewell to the legendary Demetrious Johnson
Even though Johnson hasn’t fought much in MMA lately, he has been very active in his grappling career. He has won several gold medals in his name, which have earned him a lot of respect in his career. Interestingly, DJ also stays active with his content to stay connected with his fans. As such, he even analyzes several intriguing matchups.
Demetrious Johnson at ONE Championship (Image via Instagram)Following Demetrious Johnson’s retirement speech, the CEO of ONE Championship announced that Johnson would be inducted into the Hall of Fame in his honor. This made him the first fighter inducted into the ONE Championship Hall of Fame. The fight fans had emotional reactions upon hearing the retirement speech. Check out some of them below.
Demetrious Johnson: “They wanted me to leave the belt in here, I ain’t doing that sh*t. I came into this sport as a champ, I’m leaving my black ass as a champ too.” 😭😭
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) September 7, 2024
Demetrious Johnson just gave one of the more emotional retirements live in Denver on ONE FC.
Shoutout to one of the undeniable GOATS of combat.
ONE FC also inducted him into the hall of fame. So Dana White I’m giving you ONE WEEK to do the same for him in the UFC HOF… pic.twitter.com/2gy8eMyh7X
— THE MMA GURU (@THATBOYMMAGURU) September 7, 2024
Retiring as champ, the GSP way. He seems to be having fun winning all those BJJ competitions.
— Brax Moore (@brax_moore_more) September 7, 2024
Underrated. One of the greatest to ever do it. 🐐
— Blockasset (@Blockassetco) September 7, 2024
The most underappreciated GOAT contender in my opinion. Accomplished things no one else did
— Shakiel Mahjouri (@Shak_Fu) September 7, 2024
One of the greatest fighters ever, arguably the goat. Was a honor to watch him fight hope he enjoys retirement
— Los (@HushBulla) September 7, 2024
Legendary career, nothing left to prove…
Man deserves all the appreciation of the world..
Thank you Demetrius …
— Jawabi Bhai (@Jawabibhaii) September 7, 2024
One of the greatest to ever do it
— Charlie Quinn (@CharlieQuinnMMA) September 7, 2024
Gotta have him in your Mount Rushmore of all time greats
— Charlie Quinn (@CharlieQuinnMMA) September 7, 2024
Truly one of the first “Mixed” Martial Artists. Elite on different levels. Happy retirement champ!
— Fight Philosophy (@fphilosophyofl) September 7, 2024
One of the greatest, if not the greatest of all time
— Aj (@AjDuxche) September 7, 2024
Several fight fans heap praise on Johnson’s incredible career and labeled him as the ‘Greatest of All Time’. On the other hand, a few of the prominent social media handles also urged UFC CEO Dana White to honor DJ’s career as well. As such, they want White to induct Johnson as a UFC Hall of Famer.
