Johnson: I felt bad taking Gustafsson’s title shot
Anthony Johnson: “”It just seems like [Alexander Gustafsson]’s been through Hell and back to get his rematch for a title, and he just didn’t get his opportunity again.
Alexander Gustafsson arguably gave light heavyweight champion Jon Jones the toughest title fight of his career. After defeating Jimi Manuway, Gustafsson took on Anthony Johnson to earn a rematch with Jon Jones, a fight that did not end well for the Swede. Johnson recently joined the MMA Hour to talk about the fight and even how he felt sadness for his opponent after the fight:
Johnson made an appearance on The MMA Hour on Monday, and said it was the first time in his MMA career where he felt a pang of sadness in victory.
“I did because, I mean, we all knew what the deal was before the fight,” he told Ariel Helwani. “He was supposed to have his title shot and then he got injured, and then Jon and DC [Daniel Cormier] had their beef going on, so they let that fight continue, even though I think DC got hurt. And Alex should have had his title shot back then. It should have been Alex fighting instead of DC. But this is the UFC. This is their business so, they can do what they have to do. It’s Zuffa.
“It just seems like he’s been through Hell and back to get his rematch for a title, and he just didn’t get his opportunity again. I mean, I felt bad for him. So when he was crying, to me that’s what was going through my head. I was like damn, his dreams just got shot to hell. I just felt bad about it.”