Demetrious Johnson: “This will stack up as something that I’ve never done before in my career”
Interview with Demetrious Johnson above
This Saturday, March 26, ONE Championship celebrates its 10th-anniversary show with a star-studded fight card.
Quite possibly the most interesting matchup for the evening takes place in the co-main event of the evening. ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion, and all-around Muay Thai phenomenon, Rodtang Jitmuangnon will take on former UFC flyweight champion, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson.
Both champions in their own right, this bout will test the others durability like it hasn’t been tested before. With a special rule set in place. Rounds 1 and 3 will be traditional Muay Thai rules with MMA gloves. While rounds 2 and 4 will be MMA rules, allowing grappling to take place.
While exhibition and/or special rules bouts are nothing new to combat sports, aging decades ago with fighters such as Muhammad Ali participating in bouts with varied rules of their preferred sport. This particular fight carries more weight than some special rules bouts of recent times.
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson will go down as one of the best bantamweight/flight weights to ever compete in Mixed martial arts. He and a few others put their weight to class on the map in a time when smaller weight classes didn’t get the respect or attention they deserved and were almost cast out due to being overlooked. Seizing his opportunity, Johnson helped spearhead an entire division as he fought his way into title contention.
Rodtang Jitmuangnon is a Muay Thai phenom that got an early start in the sport, partaking in his first bout at a mere 10 years of age. Quickly falling in love with the sport, Rodtang would successfully compile over 250 wins by the time he turned only 21 years old. Among other prestigious championships such as the Omnoi Stadium World title (2x), Rodtang chalked up the biggest win of his career when won the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Title in 2020, stopping Jonathan Haggerty in the third round of their bout.
“Mighty Mouse” took to the mic at the ONE X’ media day to discuss his impending matchup with the Muay Thai living legend, Rodtang, and where it falls under his list of accomplishments.
“For me, this will be one of those achievements that I’ve done something out of the box,” Johnson says. “You know, for me, my entire mixed martial arts career, you look at Cro Cop vs Wanderlei Silva, you look at Shinya Aoki when he did his mixed rules fights umm you know. This will stack up on something that I’ve never done something before in my career. That’s where I put it. A lot of my friends are excited about this fight. A lot of fans are excited about this fight, and I am too. So, I have my WEC, my UFC, and then I have my ONE Championship,” Johnson says.
While Johnson is aware that his biggest concern is “getting knocked out, obviously,” Johnson says, he isn’t expecting an easy night on the ground either.
“The biggest thing is (that) it’s a three-minute round,” Johnson explains. “You know, mixed martial arts is a five-minute round. So, with it being a three-minute round, the fight starts on the feet, and in mixed martial arts, you can use footwork, you can use distance. You really don’t need to gauge in mixed martial arts,” Johnson emphasizes. “So, let’s say the second round we’re on the feet, I get him down and I have two minutes to pass guard. I don’t think he’ll be a fish out of water,” Johnson expresses. “He comes from a great camp.”
ONE X: Part II will broadcast live and free on Watch.ONEFC.com, ONE’s YouTube channel, and ONE’s Facebook page at 5 p.m. SGT/5 a.m. ET.
Also, ONE X: Part I will broadcast live and free on Watch.ONEFC.com, ONE’s YouTube channel, and ONE’s Facebook page at 1 p.m. SGT/1 a.m. ET.
ONE X
Saturday, 26 March 2022
GRAND FINALE
ONE Women’s Atomweight World Championship
(C) Angela Lee vs. (1) Stamp Fairtex
Atomweight: 105 LBS – 115 LBS
Special Rules Super-Fight
Rodtang Jitmuangnon vs. Demetrious Johnson
Flyweight: 125 LBS – 135 LBS
ONE Flyweight World Championship
(C) Adriano Moraes vs. (2) Yuya Wakamatsu
Flyweight: 125 LBS – 135 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
(3) Shinya Aoki vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama
Lightweight: 155 LBS – 170 LBS
Muay Thai
Eduard Folayang vs. John Wayne Parr
Lightweight: 155 LBS – 170 LBS
ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Championship
(C) Superbon Singha Mawynn vs. (1) Marat Grigorian
Featherweight: 145 LBS – 155 LBS
PART II
ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Championship
(C) Nong-O Gaiyanghadao vs. Felipe Lobo
Bantamweight: 135 LBS – 145 LBS
ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Championship
(C) Capitan Petchyindee vs. (2) Hiroki Akimoto
Bantamweight: 135 LBS – 145 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
(3) Ham Seo Hee vs. (2) Denice Zamboanga
Atomweight: 105 LBS – 115 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
Itsuki Hirata vs. Jihin Radzuan
Atomweight: 105 LBS – 115 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
(1) Kim Jae Woong vs. (4) Tang Kai
Featherweight: 145 LBS – 155 LBS
PART I
ONE Featherweight Kickboxing World Grand Prix Championship Final
(4) Chingiz Allazov vs. (3) Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong
Featherweight: 145 LBS – 155 LBS
Submission Grappling
Reinier de Ridder vs. Andre Galvao
Middleweight: 185 LBS – 205 LBS
Muay Thai
Nieky Holzken vs. Sinsamut Klinmee
Lightweight: 155 LBS – 170 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
(5) Lito Adiwang vs. Jeremy Miado
Strawweight: 115 LBS – 125 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
(3) Stephen Loman vs. Shoko Sato
Bantamweight: 135 LBS – 145 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
Amir Khan vs. Ryogo Takahashi
Featherweight: 145 LBS – 155 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
Kang Ji Won vs. Paul Elliott
Heavyweight: 225 LBS – 265 LBS
Submission Grappling
Mei Yamaguchi vs. Danielle Kelly
Atomweight: 105 LBS – 115 LBS
Mixed Martial Arts
Ryuto Sawada vs. Senzo Ikeda
Strawweight: 115 LBS – 125 LBS
