ONE Championship steps back into U.S. primetime on Friday, August 26, with a flyweight rematch for the ages at ONE on Prime Video 1: Moraes vs. Johnson II.
Demetrious Johnson will get a second attempt to dethrone Adriano Moraes in the main event after failing to secure the win in their first meeting last year. And he has gotten some assistance from a former rival.
It was all about timing. Although the rematch was not yet official, “Mighty Mouse” found himself in Arizona with a predetermined date with Henry Cejudo.
“We had this plan way before ONE Championship even had Amazon Prime announced. And one of the things I’ve done in my career in the past is I’ve canceled vacations when I have a fight coming up. And so now that I have three children, I’ve missed vacations,” said Johnson.
“So I was like, I’m done canceling vacations. We have this vacation already planned to go out to Arizona and stay in our vacation home, and Henry Cejudo’s gym, Fight Ready, amazing gym, it’s out there. And I reached out to him. I said, hey when I come back out here, do you want to get together and train? He said, absolutely, man. So I reached out to him and said, Hey, I’m back out here for two weeks. Let’s get to work. And he was like, let’s do it.”
Moraes poses a unique challenge for Johnson due to his length, but he is also a world-class grappler. Johnson has added Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu training to his camp with Professor Yan McCane, but his time with Cejudo, an Olympic Gold Medalist, will also pay dividends in grappling situations.
But the biggest bonus for “Mighty Mouse” was not any certain technique. It was getting to see Cejudo’s mindset in how he assesses the sport.
“It was amazing. He was legit. The biggest thing I took from him is how disciplined he is. He’s probably one of the most disciplined athletes I’ve ever trained with,” stated Johnson.
“What I mean by disciplined, I think disciplined in the way his mentality is going forward about how he competes and fights and how he approaches a fight. When I went out there and trained with them, we both recognized how we’re both amazing athletes. We’re both built, and we train differently. And I can see a lot of that.”
Johnson and Cejudo will forever be linked for their two outstanding matches against one another.
The deadlocked series saw Johnson win by a swift knockout in the first round before losing a razor-thin decision in the second meeting. But their competitive spirit has left a lasting impact on fans.
For Johnson, it reminds him of one of the most famous, albeit fictional, combat sports rivalries.
“It kind of reminds me of Rocky and Apollo. Because we’re in a gym, and we both compete against each other, just like Rocky and Apollo are competing with each other two times. And now we are training; he might come up to Washington,” said the Washington native.
“At the end of the day, for me, I want to see everybody, whether it’s my opponents, whether it’s past opponents or future opponents, I want to see everybody eat. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s about. Make sure you fight, and you make enough money to do what you want.”
“He can still eat here at my table. He can pull a chair up and cut up a piece of this food. So, you know, I really enjoyed training with Henry. I really enjoy exchanging information. I showed him my mindset, he showed me his mindset.”
What Johnson learned will be put to the test on Friday as he tries to claim the ONE Flyweight World Championship and continue to improve upon his already lasting legacy.
ONE on Prime Video 1: Moraes vs. Johnson II airs live on Prime Video at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Friday, August 26.
