Former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson is now a ONE Championship athlete. That means that he can look forward to MMA bouts with top ONE Championship flyweights such as Geje Eustaquio, Adriano Moraes, Kairat Akhmetov and Danny Kingad, and perhaps even scraps with top ONE bantamweights down the road.
Of course, that is not where Demetrious Johnson’s options as a ONE Championship athlete end.
In April of 2018, ONE Championship launched a thrilling new venture called ONE Super Series, which showcases contests in striking-based martial arts such as Muay Thai, kickboxing, boxing, and even Sanda.
Speaking on a Sunday evening conference call with the media, Demetrious Johnson divulged that he would be interested in testing his mettle in these other martial arts in the near future.
ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong also agreed that it would be exciting to see Johnson compete in ONE Super Series bouts down the line.
.@MightyMouse says he is up for competing in Muay Thai, kickboxing etc. as part of ONE Super Series. Wants to compete in MMA for awhile first, of course.#ONEChampionship
— Tom Taylor (@TomTayMMA) October 29, 2018
While Demetrious Johnson is open to potential ONE Super Series bouts in the future, his priority is getting his footing in the ONE flyweight division.
At the moment, the former UFC champion’s first ONE Championship bout is not official. That being said, it sounds as though he might compete in a number one contender bout before competing for the ONE flyweight title, most likely so the reigning champion Geje Eustaquio (11-6) can partake in a rematch with the man he defeated to win the title, Adriano Moraes (17-3).
In this event, it seems like that Johnson would be welcomed to the ONE cage by former champion Kairat Akhmetov (25-2) or rising contender Danny Kingad (10-1).
.@MightyMouse says he has no issue with earning his first ONE Championship title shot. Says he's happy to take a number-one contender fight before fighting for the belt. @YODCHATRI mentions a fight with Kairat Akhmetov as a definite possibility.
— Tom Taylor (@TomTayMMA) October 29, 2018
Would you be interested in seeing Demetrious Johnson compete in striking-based martial arts such as Muay Thai and kickboxing in ONE Super Series?
Who do you think he should fight in his ONE Championship MMA debut?
This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 10/29/2018.