Issue 076
June 2011
He may be small but he’s got a lot of heart. Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson charts his rise to the upper echelons of the MMA world’s bantamweight division
Visitors to a training session at Washington’s famed AMC Pankration academy must certainly be forgiven if they stare – even momentarily – in disbelief. Surely a second look isn’t uncommon. I mean, really, just how big could that guy possibly be?
Billed by the Ultimate Fighting Championship at just five-foot-three, Demetrious Johnson may have earned that measurement while sporting a pair of Cuban heels. Yet the diminutive bantamweight has no problem sparring with any of his fellow Matt Hume-trained teammates, regardless of size. Matt Brown, Hayato ‘Mach’ Sakurai, Rich Franklin – the bigger, the better.
It’s his compact frame and oversized heart that earned him his fighting moniker ‘Mighty Mouse.’ Well, that and his slightly mouse-like ears, Johnson admits.
“It came from one of my coaches, Steve Skidds,” he reveals. “It started as an amateur. I’m always the smallest guy in the gym.
“When I was an amateur, I would always go 100%. I would pick my opponents up and slam them. Obviously with that and my ears and my short, compact body, it just fit perfect I guess.”
Johnson has never let size hold him back. He admits his then 108lb frame made high school football a little tough, but Johnson did just fine in his basketball, track-and-field and wrestling exploits. In fact, Johnson credits his time as a long-distance runner for teaching him how to hold the frantic pace that has quickly become his trademark.
“Running teaches you how to breathe and pace yourself,” Johnson says. “When I train and do my CrossFit, I can push a high pace. It’s all about pushing your body to failure, but I don’t do that. I keep a high pace and control my breathing. It’s the same in fighting. You have to pace yourself with a high-intensity pace, that way I can hold my own with anybody.”
Of course, since making his big-show debut in April 2010, Johnson has been doing far more than just holding his own.
Outside of wrestling, Johnson didn’t grow up training in traditional martial arts. But after watching the original season of The Ultimate Fighter, he decided he had found his latest athletic pursuit.
Insistent on not allowing himself to become a couch potato following his high school athletic career, Johnson starting mimicking what he saw on the reality competition series and took to hitting a heavy bag in a local gym. A chance encounter with two-time UFC veteran Reese Andy led to an invitation to AMC Pankration, and Johnson was unknowingly on his way to a professional fighting career.
“He said, ‘Hey, you’re hitting that bag pretty good,’” Johnson recalled of Andy’s initial impressions. “Next thing I knew, I was at AMC and meeting Matt.”
Before Johnson hit the pro ranks, he embarked on an incredible amateur career that including a perfect 21-0 record. Throughout it all, Hume was there to push and mold the athletic youngster into a professional prospect.
“Matt would say, ‘You’re not going to go anywhere until you finish people,’ so I started trying to do that more,’” Johnson said. “He’s always beating me up, not physically but mentally. He’s just straight with me.”
Johnson acted on his trainer’s advice when he finally started fighting for paychecks in July 2007. Opening his professional career with six straight stoppage wins, including a 66-second head-kick knockout under the Alaska Fighting Championship banner, ‘Mighty Mouse’ earned a call-up to the big stage and bright lights of the WEC.
Things didn’t go exactly as planned.
In a rousing three-round affair at WEC 48, Johnson came up short against Brad Pickett via decision. Newcomers aren’t always afforded a second look in the big show when they come up short, but UFC president Dana White said had it not been for the 2010 Fighters Only World MMA Awards ‘Fight of the Year’ nominee between Leonard Garcia and Chan Sung Jung that also took place at WEC 48, Johnson would have taken home a bonus for putting on the card’s Fight of the Night.
The effort netted Johnson a return trip to the WEC cage.
“I just go out there to have fun and fight my fight,” Johnson said. “It’s their decision. I can win, and they can still cut me. I just have to go out there and fight and win.”
That’s all Johnson has done since.
Mighty Mouse rebounded with a WEC 51 submission win over a previously undefeated Nick Pace, setting up an entertaining three-round tilt with powerful slugger Damacio Page at the now defunct organization’s penultimate event, WEC 52.
Outmuscled in the early going, Johnson was escorted to the floor in violent fashion multiple times in the opening round. However, he was able to weather the early storm, make a few minor adjustments, and net a third-round submission victory. Johnson, who could easily compete in the flyweight division were it available at the sport’s highest level, said he’s used to dealing with a size discrepancy. The key, he said, is to weather the early storm while maintaining his trademark pace.
“Most of the time, it all depends on the opponent,” Johnson said. “Damacio Page, we knew it was going to be like that. We knew that he was going to gas. The gameplan was to draw him out. He always swings wild punches, and we knew we could take advantage of that and make him miss.
“The first round, I was getting tossed like a ragdoll. I went back to my corner, and they told me not to go behind his hips because that’s when you’re getting tossed. In the second and third round, I made those adjustments, and I was able to hang with him.”
The two wins were enough to secure Johnson’s future in the UFC when the WEC’s talent was ceded to the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion.
“WEC was kind of like our own little home,” Johnson reflects. “Each time we fought, you knew you were going to see guaranteed fantastic fights. It’s sad to see no more WEC, but it’s a good change for lighter-weight guys.”
Johnson made his UFC debut at February’s UFC 126 event, and he made a bit of history along the way. Welcoming Japanese superstar Norifumi ‘Kid’ Yamamoto to the Octagon for the first time, Johnson was initially scheduled to compete on the evening’s un-aired preliminary card. However, after Johnson and his fans led a social-media campaign begging the UFC to air the contest, White announced the bout would stream free on the promotion’s official Facebook page – a first for the organization.
“I’m the kind of person that just keeps my mind wide open,” Johnson said. “I saw it as a longshot, but with Dana White, you can ask, ask, ask, and he might be at sitting at home, leaning back in his chair and say, ‘You know what? I got everybody bugging me about this Kid Yamamoto and Demetrious Johnson fight. I might put it on.’”
Johnson was even featured in the event’s pre-fight press conference, where he sat alongside superstars Ryan Bader, Vitor Belfort, Rich Franklin, Forrest Griffin, Jon Jones and Anderson Silva. Despite the sudden increase in attention, the unflappable Johnson said there were precious few differences between the bright (and quite hot) lights of the UFC and the less-watched fights of the WEC.
“There were a lot more interviews this time,” Johnson said. “It’s a little more serious. I could tell the fans were hyped up. I was sitting on the podium and sweating because I had a jacket on. I was thinking, ‘Man, I should have taken this off when I got up here.’
“We got to do a little pre-staredown, which was new. Other than that, everything is still the same. Burt Watson is still the same. I could see Dana White a little more, but the rest is about the same.”
With three straight wins under his belt, Johnson may need to get used to that seat at the podium. Charismatic both in and out of the cage, Johnson has a high-energy personality that perfectly complements his non-stop fighting style. But he admits his team refuses to let his early success derail the work ethic that has quickly catapulted him to contender status in the UFC’s bantamweight division.
“When I get home from my fights, there is always a lot of tearing video apart. But that’s my coaches’ job and I know when I get home they’re going to tell me everything I did wrong, which is totally fine because that’s what makes me a better fighter.
“If I went to the gym and they said, ‘That’s fantastic; you did everything right. Let’s go get some brewskies, and we’re good to go,’ then I would never progress. My coaches are good about chopping me down. “
Of course, if Johnson continues his rapid progress his coaches may find it a little more difficult to criticize each performance. Mighty Mouse is expected to face Brazilian prodigy Renan Berao at June’s The Ultimate Fighter 13 finale, and a win would unquestionably place him among the 135-pound division’s elite.
It’s a position he welcomes with open arms.
“Each time I fight and win, I’m getting better and learning on the fly and making adjustments,” Johnson added. “This is a business, and I don’t want to work for the rest of my life. I’m bringing it, so you better be ready.”
