UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson has come to new terms with UFC, announcing that he’s signed an eight-fight deal with the organization.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Johnson discussed the signing, and why he got what he wanted from them without needing to hit free agency.
“I’ve signed a new eight-fight deal, I’m very excited to announce that,” Johnson said. “I think there’s great things to come in the future…
“I think when fighters [test free agency], they want to see what they’re worth, but at the same time, if they negotiate with the UFC, and they get what they like, there’s no point going and testing free agency. And the thing is, even Rampage Jackson said it before, nobody treats you better than the UFC.”
The dominant 29-year-old Champion is gunning for the record for consecutive title defenses, hoping to best the mark set by Anderson Silva. He’s taking some other cues from Silva’s career, focusing on winning fights and letting stardom come to him from there.
“Dana White’s like ‘dude, go out there and win your fight and everything else will take care of itself,'” Johnson said. “A long time ago I was in Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta’s office talking to him and he was like Lorenzo was like, ‘you’re so f***ing dominant, we need to make people believe you can lose and tune in’. … Dana White was just like, ‘keep on winning, Anderson Silva didn’t [become a star] til he fought Chael Sonnen and had that five round war and the rematch.'”
Penick’s Analysis: So long as he got terms he’s happy with, great for him. The extended deals leave less room for negotiating should his star go up significantly within a couple of fights, unless of course he got terms in there for renegotiation at some early stage. Regardless, he’s the best in the world at 125 lbs, and one of the best fighters in the world period, so as long as he feels he’s being treated well and taken care of then good for him.
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To quote Saddam Hussein, “Yeah, you killed me. Where was I gonna go, Detroit?”