Demetrious Johnson on newfound love for grappling: “There’s so much knowledge for me to learn”

Reigning and undisputed ONE flyweight MMA world champion ‘Mighty Mouse’ Demetrious Johnson’s recent escapade at the 2023 IBJJF Worlds Masters bore fruit, as the 37-year-old mixed martial arts veteran captured gold as a brown belt in his first-ever pure BJJ competition.

As an MMA fighter, Johnson has seen and done it all, spending the majority of his career on top of the world. He is a former UFC flyweight champion and now the reigning ONE flyweight MMA world champion in ONE Championship.

To say that Johnson has achieved all he set out to do in the cage is an understatement. In fact, many consider ‘Mighty Mouse’ to be the greatest of all time.

So what’s a guy like Johnson to do after he’s conquered the highest hills in his chosen discipline? Shift his focus to a new realm, of course.

Speaking to FloGrappling in a recent interview, Johnson talked about his renewed vigor for competition after competing at IBJJF.

‘Mighty Mouse’ said:

“So, I’ve been grappling since I was 18 years old, you know, training at AMC Pankration. And then once I found GRPL Club [Jiu Jitsu] the gi just became something beautiful to me. There’s so much knowledge, still so much knowledge for me to learn.”

See the interview below:

What’s next for Johnson? In typical ‘Mighty Mouse’ fashion, he will probably head back home and spend time with his family, doing the things he loves – playing video games and making YouTube videos.

As for his MMA career, no one knows if Johnson will be back to defend his flyweight gold, or ride off into the sunset. He is rumored to be next in line to face ONE flyweight submission grappling world champion ‘Darth Rigatoni’ Mikey Musumeci later this year in a grappling war. But that fight has yet to be confirmed.

Stay tuned to Sportskeeda MMA for all the news and updates on Johnson’s next move.