ONE flyweight world champion Demetrious Johnson (25-4-1) has been discussing the possibility of retirement recently.
In the lead-up to his main event trilogy bout against Adriano Moraes (20-5) at ONE Fight Night 10 this past weekend, “Mighty Mouse” noted that he was considering where he was at in his career, and he remained coy on his plans following his unanimous decision win over the Brazilian superstar last Friday, May 5.
As the combat sports world dissects ONE’s debut show on U.S. soil, we discuss why it would be a better place if the mixed martial arts GOAT decided to continue his glittering career.
1. He is still the best flyweight on the planet
First of all, it’s not like Johnson has fallen back into the pack.
If his performance this past weekend is anything to go by, the ONE flyweight king is still the best flyweight MMA practitioner on the planet.
At 36 years old, Johnson looks to still be in his prime. So, there is still time for him to roll out more world-class performances before father time comes knocking at the door.
2. There is still one big flyweight challenge left
Following his win, Johnson was confronted by No. 2-ranked flyweight contender and former divisional kingpin Kairat Akhmetov inside the ONE circle.
“The Kazakh” stamped his ticket to a shot at the ONE flyweight world title he once held after scoring a unanimous decision over No. 4-ranked Reece McLaren earlier on the ONE Fight Night 10 card.
“Mighty Mouse” already holds a win over No. 3-ranked Danny Kingad and two over top-ranked Moraes, meaning Akhmetov is the only one left for him to complete the top three.
And that’s something that will, hopefully, keep the world champion up at night.
3. ONE is just getting started in the U.S.
“Mighty Mouse” was a fitting poster boy for ONE’s historic U.S. on-ground debut show. And following the success of ONE Fight Night 10, which sold out weeks in advance, the promotion has already teased a return to America.
With the Singapore-based organization’s star only starting to rise in the West, now might not be the best time for any of its stars to call time on their careers.
The Washington native may still have a huge role to play as ONE pushes further into the western market after years of domination in the East, and that could be enough to convince Johnson to stick around and see how high the roof is on this new journey.
