Johnson had teased a big announcement in the lead-up to fight night in Denver, Colorado. And, when he stepped into the cage to chat with ONE commentator Mitch Chilson, Johnson struggled to hold back tears as he officially brought the curtain down on his mixed martial arts career.
“It feels good (to be in Denver), man, it feels good,” he began.
“I actually had my first big fight here in Denver, Colorado, won my first fight against Nick Pace, and to come back here and finish the trilogy out with Adriano (Moraes), to come back here ONE Championship makes its debut back here. It’s been absolutely amazing, man.
“It’s been a long, amazing career. And before I, you know, do the big announcement, I know y’all want to see your boy, you know, get in there. But first, I want to say thank you so much to the fans. You guys have always been amazing to me to live out my dreams and show my passion through martial arts.
“I want to say thank you to all of my teammates from the very beginning, back in 2006 all the way to 2024 – it’s been a long journey. Thank you to Matt. Thank you to my wife. Thank you to my children, my mother in law.
“Thank you, you guys, you guys that made me a better person, a better athlete. Thank you to my wife for always encouraging me to pursue my passion, my dreams.
“Thank you to everybody at ONE Championship, the staff, the competition team, the social media team, all the guys should appreciate you. Thank you to Chatri for giving me the opportunity to display my martial arts on this platform.”
Then Johnson made the announcement that he was finishing his MMA career.
“Like I said last time when I came here to Denver, Colorado. I told you guys that was potentially my last fight, and I was not lying.
“I am done. I am done competing in mixed martial arts. And I want to say thank you guys so much for giving me the opportunity. Appreciate you guys, and thank you. Thank you to my dad. He’s been in my life for the last eight years. He’s been absolutely amazing to my children. I love you guys. You guys are absolutely amazing. You guys do whatever you want in life, as long as you guys are good people.”
Johnson was then joined in the cage by ONE Championship chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong, who paid his personal tribute to “Mighty Mouse” before announcing him as the inaugural inductee into the ONE Championship Hall of Fame.
“DJ, you’re the greatest martial artist in history for me,” Sityodtong stated.
“From one lifelong martial artist to another, I have so much mad respect. You traveled the entire world, fought on the two biggest organisations in the world, conquered both. There is no other mountain for you to conquer.
“He is not only the greatest mixed martial artist of all time, but also the first inductee to the Hall of Fame in ONE Championship, DJ!
Johnson then finished off an emotional announcement by revealing that, while his MMA career may now be at an end, his competitive drive hasn’t completely finished, with “Mighty Mouse” revealing that he has a new passion he plans to pursue.
“I’ve fallen in love with jiu-jitsu. I absolutely love it. It’s all I think about. It’s all I watch,” he said.
“It’s kind of like my new passion, just like with mixed martial arts. When I saw ‘Suga’ Rashad Evans working out and I was home from college, I was like, ‘You know what? I think I can do that too,’ and that’s where it brought me to.
“So now I’m done competing mixed martial arts. Maybe one day you guys will see me in here grappling, doing a grappling match. But right now, I’m a gi boy, so I’m just gonna pursue my passion in Brazilian jiu-jitsu in the gi.
“Fans, one more time, thank you guys so much. I truly appreciate you guys, everybody, all my peers in mixed martial arts, all the other fighters who’ve always showed me nothing but respect. It’s right back to you guys. We appreciate you guys. Thank you to one championship. Thank you to everybody around the world. Thank you to my wife, my family, my dad, father-in-law. Everybody, I love you guys. Mighty out!”
Then, Johnson made sure he really did leave the ONE Championship circle on his terms as he revealed, “Oh! They wanted me to leave the belt in here. I ain’t doing that. I came into this sport as a champ. I’ll leave my black ass as a champ, too! Ousss!!
