Demetrious Johnson says it’s almost impossible to take a breather once you become a world champion

Demetrious Johnson knows there’s no bigger pressure in mixed martial arts than possessing a coveted world title.

Apart from defending and holding onto that precious belt, there are also the off-the-cage responsibilities that he a world champion has to answer to.

During his recent MIGHTYcast podcast, Johnson shared what he and former UFC bantamweight world Aljamain Sterling talked about during their random meeting in Las Vegas.

Johnson, the reigning ONE flyweight MMA world champion, said in detail how he and other MMA world titleholders have practically zero time for themselves.

He said:

“That was one of the things that I hated about being a MMA champion because once you win the world title once you win, or even defended it, you go to the f*cking press conference and go, ‘Hey, hey, what's going on guys?' ... 'John Morgan here for MMA Junkie. Great fight, great crowd. So what's next?’ It's like, I haven’t even got an opportunity to get back the room then hit it from behind with my wife. Give me an opportunity to get home and get some sex.”

Johnson, especially, has been living that life for more than a decade now.

The American legend is the inaugural UFC flyweight world champion and he defended the strap for a record 11 straight times.

After dominating the UFC, Johnson moved to ONE Championship, where he continued to collect precious hardware. Johnson became the ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix Champion in 2019 and then the ONE flyweight MMA world champion in 2022.

‘Mighty Mouse’ has since defended his flyweight throne against rival Adriano Moraes in their trilogy match at ONE Fight Night 10 this past May in Denver.