Issue 121

November 2014

How UFC 205lb title contender Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson's decision to move up two weight classes saved his career – and his life.

Watching Anthony Johnson wrap his hands, grinning from ear-to-ear, giggling and joking with his teammates ahead of practice at Blackzilians HQ in Boca Raton, Florida, you can see the contentment that has allowed him to string together an eight-fight win streak and ultimately led him to within touching distance of the UFC light heavyweight belt.

Johnson is happy with his place in the world. He's truly basking in the Florida sunshine served up daily on the East Coast. And as for the training session ahead, well, he's at home and doing what he loves. The scene offers a serene window into the life and times of a man who has overcome much more than most to chase his MMA ambitions.

Back in January 2012, 'Rumble' Johnson was lost. Alone in the dark. His career, dogged by years of punishing his body to drop down to 170lb, was in ruins. A planned switch up to middleweight to face Vitor Belfort imploded in his face as another catastrophe on the scales was superseded by a spiritless performance and first-round submission defeat.

This time his apologies also fell on deaf ears. And perhaps rightfully so. After all, he'd already been afforded another shot at a new weight class, long after twice botching attempts at the welterweight limit. Flying back from Brazil with the impression of Belfort's right forearm still reddening his throat, Johnson was out of the UFC and, he admits, out of his mind.

“When I got cut I didn't have a mind; I was lost. I didn't know what to think. I couldn't think. My mind was everywhere. I was just a lost kid, really,” Johnson recalls to FO. “For a long time I just didn't know what to do.”

Eventually, supported by those closest to him, Rumble found the light. And he's been running with it ever since. “One morning I just woke up and thought, 'Screw everybody!' That was the mentality I took at the time. My teammates, my coaches, my close friends and my family never gave up on me, though. They kept pushing me. They refused to let me give up.”

Now arguably the most dangerous man in the UFC at 205lb, Johnson has been reborn. He's healthy, happy, strong and dominating once again. So the obvious question is, does he regret not moving up weight classes sooner?

“No. I don't regret anything I did in the past because if I hadn't done those things then I wouldn't be who I am and I wouldn't be where I am right now. It was all experience,” he says. “I'm glad I competed at 170lb. And if you think about it, if I had fought at 205lb back then people might not have ever known who I was. 

“I could have been that guy that goes 0-2 or 0-3 in the UFC who nobody ever hears of again. Because I know one thing for sure, my talent level back then isn't what it is right now. So it all worked out the way it was supposed to.”

Johnson admits a childhood spent on the wrestling mats was to blame for his persistence with the welterweight class. The former junior college national champion was raised in the grind. Practically killing yourself to make weight was all part of the training.

He says: “That's exactly why I punished my body for so long. Growing up being a wrestler you kind of become a hard-headed, dominate-at-all-costs alpha male. That's the mental state that it takes to wrestle. That's just who we are. 

“When people say you can't do this or you can't do that, a wrestler will go out there and do his best to prove them wrong. Wrestling is just such a mental game and so that's what I brought over with me into MMA. It worked sometimes and it backfired sometimes too. But I don't regret it. I am blessed for the ups and the downs I've experienced during my career. And if it wasn't for the flaws I had when I was younger then I wouldn't be the man I am now.”

Johnson was lucky, and he knows it. Regularly cutting 60lb to fight was a dangerous game and he's aware just how fortunate he was to not seriously damage himself. “Dropping so much weight was stupid and dangerous, I know that now.”

He recalls: “When I fought Dan Hardy I went from 230lb to 170lb. That was over a 12-week camp, with about 13lb coming off in the final week. But that was the hard part. The last 12lb or 13lb was always tough. 

“On the Thursday night, the night before the weigh-ins, I had like 6lb or 7lb left to go and I went to bed thinking I would lose a couple in my sleep, that's what usually happens, perhaps a pound or two goes over night. But I woke up and I hadn't lost anything and, man, that last 6lb or 7lb was the hardest cut I ever had. It just wouldn't come off. 

“I was always late for weigh-ins because those last 5lb or so were always hell. It was the worst thing possible. When I fought Hardy, I had Charlie Brenneman and all my coaches lock me in the sauna. And I told them not to let me out, and they wouldn't let me out. But there was a point where I was begging them. 

“I was screaming at them to give him 10% or 25% and even my whole goddamn check so I could get out. But they wouldn't. Then I was threatening them too. 'If you don't let me out, I'm beating all your asses!' I was shouting through the door. But nobody let me out and I thank them for that. That was always the toughest part for me, cutting the last few pounds.

“I wouldn't want anybody to go through some of the things I put myself and my body through. I'm just surprised my kidneys didn't shut down on me to be honest. I was blessed in that nothing ever shut down like that, but I got lucky. I passed out a couple of times, but nothing ever completely shut down on me.”

He offers: “I just want to tell young fighters to listen to their body because nobody knows it better than you. Some guys can cut more than others as all body types are different. So it should always be your decision at the end of the day. 

“It's not what your body can get down to, it should be whatever weight your body feels strongest and healthiest at. But I didn't learn that until after... Once I learned that, everything just got better and better for me.”

For the first time, Johnson allowed his body to mature naturally. Walking around comfortably at 230lb without lifting a dumbbell, he finally accepted light heavyweight was his future. “I'm still cutting to get down to 205lb, but it's not hard,” he says. “You know it's easy now because fight week I'm smiling. I never used to smile that close to a weigh-in. I used to just be looking down at the ground and hating the world. But now I'm smiling and enjoying myself.”

Johnson's own career revival has run side-by-side with the emergence of the Blackzilians as one of MMAs premier fight camps. A difficult first few months, filled with comings and goings, ensured the Boca Raton gym stumbled rather than marched onto MMA's biggest stage.

As Johnson's own career has turned round, things have also settled down in the gym and over the last 12 months results and morale have climbed steadily. It's something Johnson is acutely aware of. He says: “We had some people come and some go and that's just life. But as a team we have continued to grow and move forward. 

“And we're going to keep growing and if there's someone that doesn't fit with the team then they just won't be there, it's that simple. We're now too tight as a team, more like a family, to allow any individuals to distract us in our pursuit of success.”

That pursuit, for Johnson at least, leads straight to the 205lb UFC gold. And whether he has to fight once, twice or even three times before he gets his chance doesn't matter to him. 

Rumble and 'The Rock'

Celebrity fans sat cageside are nothing new at UFC events. VIPs of all shapes and sizes, from Paris Hilton to Mike Tyson, frequent UFC cards and none are more popular than 'The Rock' Dwayne Johnson.

Whilst promoting his latest movie, Hercules, The Rock tipped Anthony Johnson to become UFC champion in 2015, stating that Rumble was his favorite. Not surprisingly, it was praise the fighter, and his family, enjoyed reading.

“It was awesome. Coming from a small town and getting a superstar of the caliber of 'The Rock' saying what he did about me was amazing. I've got a smile on my face right now just talking about it. It was crazy. All my family saw it. And they were all like, 'Wow!' too. 

“But I can't allow stuff like that to distract me either. I've got to keep grinding and staying focused and moving forward. But you can't help but feel proud of yourself and have a smile on your face and think, 'Wow, I made it in some type of way at least,' when you get comments like that. Especially from somebody like him too, as he's just so respected as an amazing athlete and actor, so it was just cool, man. 

“Hopefully one day I'll get the chance to meet him and shake his hand. It's not that I'm a groupie or anything like that; I don't look at people like that. The way I see it they've just achieved their dreams and have a little more money, but 'The Rock' is cool, man. I think of all the athletes, actors or whatever out there he would be on my list of people who I would really like to meet. 

“Along with Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson, 'The Rock' is awesome. I would also love to meet Lance Armstrong. Regardless of what he took and what he did, it still took an athlete to achieve the level of success he did. I have respect for all those guys. If I met them I would probably get star struck for the first time in my life. It'd be crazy.”

Rumble adds: “Jeremy Piven (actor) wore one of my T-shirts recently so maybe I should send one to The Rock too. Plus, David Ortiz, the baseball player, is also a friend of mine and he's asked me for a shirt too.”

Johnson says with a laugh: “Maybe I should get some celebrity shirts printed especially.”