Adriano Moraes wishes Demetrious Johnson will retire “without the ONE Championship belt”

If Demetrious Johnson decides to make his upcoming fight his last, Adriano Moraes will respect his wishes and still hail him as one of the greatest of all time.

While ‘Mikinho’ has nothing but love and admiration for ‘Mighty Mouse’, he simply won’t let his rival sail off into the sunset with the ONE flyweight world title in tow.

Ahead of the trilogy of the century at ONE Fight Night 10, Moraes vowed to do everything in his power to regain the 26 pounds of gold currently in Johnson’s possession.

The eight-time ONE flyweight world titleholder said in an interview on The MMA Underground:

“I don’t judge him because I think if he retired I think he deserves his retirement, the best one ever. But I wish he retired without the ONE Championship belt.”

The script couldn’t have been written any better following two epic contests between the two all-time flyweight greats.

Adriano Moraes drew first blood back at ONE on TNT 1 in April 2021, sending shockwaves to the MMA scene with a knee heard around the world. It marked ‘DJ’s first knockout loss of his Hall of Fame career.

16 months later, Demetrious Johnson returned the favor, serving the Brazilian his comeuppance with his own sensational flying knee finish, which effectively ended his reign at 135 pounds.

This Friday, all questions will finally be answered in the main event of ONE’s historic on-location US debut.

The sold-out crowd at the 1stBank Center in Colorado will witness greatness unfold right before their eyes on May 5.

If this truly is Johnson’s swan song, Moraes plans to give him one hell of a fight at ONE Fight Night 10.

The stacked 11-fight card will air live on US Primetime and is free for Prime Video subscribers in North America.

Watch Adriano Moraes’ full interview here: