UFC
UFC Champ Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson says only "uneducated fools" think he's a boring fighter
Aug 28, 2015 - 1:20:19 PM UFC Champ Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson says only "uneducated fools" think he's a boring fighter

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson has been pegged with an unfair reputation as a "boring" fighter, but he doesn't particularly care about the opinions of those who feel that way.

"It's only the fans and uneducated fools out there that say, 'Oh, you're boring,'" Johnson said during a media conference call on Thursday (via MMAJunkie.com). "You can say so, but you just don't understand what I'm doing. There's a process going on with the technique I bring to the table.

"I try not to think about that stuff because it's only going to go so far. When you start thinking about that stuff then you don't give great performances. I'm in the history book for the latest submission in UFC history. I'm more focused on that; going out and performing and being a well-rounded fighter."

The Champ simply doesn't care about making everyone happy, and thinks if you can't appreciate what's happening in that cage you can find something else with which to be entertained.

"You can't make everybody in the world happy," he said. "People make comments about me being honest and speaking my mind and some people are like, 'I wish he would just shut the hell up.' There's a person where you can make them a cup of tea and they're going to like it or they're not. You can't make everyone in the world happy. Once you start trying to make everyone in the world happy and make the fans happy then you're going to lose sight of what's more important and that's being the best mixed martial artist in the world.

"When I knocked out Joseph Benavidez, one of the comments that made me laugh so hard was, 'Yeah man, I sat there and watched Joseph Benavidez get knocked out by Demetrious Johnson and I just shrugged my shoulders and went out and bought a burrito.' OK, that's good. So like I said, I'm not focused on trying to get the fans' notoriety and getting them rallied behind me. If you want to see great mixed martial arts, tune in when I fight. If you want to see drama and all of that stuff, you guys can go watch 'Bachelors in Paradise.' They'll give you enough drama you can want to watch."

Penick's Analysis: There's a large segment of the fanbase that absolutely doesn't care about technique as much as they do the visceral finishes and sloppy brawls. It's why we consistently see garbage kickboxing earn "Fight of the Night" awards in the UFC. Johnson's technical brilliance takes time to wear opponents down in many of his fights, but that's exactly what he does, and he finds ways to finish them. He's a great, great fighter, and though that doesn't always lead to big numbers, continuing to take fighters out will force recognition of his greatness eventually.