(Courtesy of MMAFightingonSBN)

Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson rose to prominence as one of the greatest champions in UFC history, having ruled over the flyweight division with an iron fist for years. 

He recently made the move from America to Southeast Asia as part of a blockbuster trade between the UFC and ONE Championship. Johnson crossed over to ONE, while former ONE and Bellator champion Ben Askren entered the Octagon for the first time in his undefeated career.

Johnson made his ONE Championship debut at ONE: A New Era on Sunday in Tokyo, where he submitted Yuya Wakamatsu in the quarterfinal round of the promotion’s flyweight grand prix tournament. 

Aside from a change in scenery, Johnson has had numerous other adjustments to make with the move to the Asian market, including a different ruleset and different weigh-in procedures that pits him against larger fighters, although they all weigh roughly the same weight now.

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Following his victory over Wakamatsu, Johnson spoke with MMAFighting.com about the monumental shift in his career, the fight, his future plans with ONE championship, and fellow former UFC champion Eddie Alvarez’s disappointing debut loss under the ONE banner.