P4P legend Demetrious Johnson believes boxing has been far more exciting than MMA this year
P4P great Demetrious Johnson believes boxing is much more exciting than what’s going on in the world of mixed martial arts these days.
Over the last several months, fans of the sweet science have been treated to a plethora of noteworthy clashes, starting with Francis Ngannou’s sophomore appearance inside the squared circle, followed by a stunning scrap between Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney.
And, of course, you can’t talk about boxing without mentioning the 12-round war between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
Meanwhile, in MMA we’ve got Conor McGregor out partying six weeks ahead of his long-awaited return, Jon Jones refusing to fight Tom Aspinall, and Ronda Rousey still crying about a decade-old loss.
Speaking with The MMA Hour host Ariel Helwani on his MightyCast podcast, ‘Mighty Mouse’ suggested that there is much more to be intrigued with in boxing than anything the UFC or PFL is putting out.
“Right now I feel like boxing is more exciting than mixed martial arts,” Johnson said. “There are points in time when mixed martial arts is having its peak, but right now you just have Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney. Then you got Francis Ngannou who just got knocked out by Anthony Joshua and we had Tyson Fury vs. [Oleksandr] Usyk where Usyk just beat him and became the [undisputed] heavyweight champion. That fight was absolutely amazing from round one to round 12. I was on the edge of my seat.”
“Right now, we’re sitting here waiting for… in ONE Championship we got a couple of things like Kade Ruotolo making his debut in MMA, but I think the story we’re waiting for in MMA is Islam [Makhachev] taking on Dustin Poirier.”
Though Demetrious Johnson isn’t wrong, there’s still plenty in MMA to be excited about
Demetrious Johnson certainly has a point, but that’s not to say the UFC hasn’t put out anything to be excited by over the last several months. We’re a mere six weeks removed from the promotion’s landmark event in Las Vegas that delivered us Max Holloway’s insane buzzer-beating KO against Justin Gaethje and Alex Pereira’s viral finish of Jamahal Hill.
In June we’ve got the UFC’s debut in Saudi Arabia featuring the return of undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev and Conor McGregor’s welterweight showdown with Michael Chandler at UFC 303 which, according to Dana White, has already smashed the record for highest gate in promotional history.
