Demetrious Johnson Reflects on the Moment Dana White Questioned His Pound-for-Pound Supremacy

The UFC’s flyweight division has long struggled with underexposure and low pay-per-view interest, to the point where Dana White even considered scrapping the division entirely on multiple occasions. There were also claims that the UFC president refused to grant pay-per-view points to 125-pound fighters, a sharp contrast to what champions in other divisions received. Much of this played out during Demetrious Johnson’s reign as the division’s undisputed king from 2012 to 2018. 

Johnson, the UFC’s first-ever flyweight champion, defended his title an incredible 11 times, earning the admiration of hardcore MMA fans who still regard him as one of the greatest fighters of all time. However, that respect from purists never translated into mainstream popularity. Because of that, Johnson often struggled to secure the same financial perks. On top of that, the lack of star power around his run even fueled debates led by White, who argued that Johnson wasn’t truly the best in the world or the pound-for-pound #1 fighter during his prime.

Demetrious Johnson Reveals Dana White Saw Conor McGregor as Pound-for-Pound #1

DJ recently had a conversation with Israel Adesanya on Young Man Ramble (h/t Bloody Elbow) and revealed that Dana White once told him to his face in 2017 that he didn’t deserve to be the UFC’s #1 pound-for-pound fighter, choosing Conor McGregor instead.

“Dana White, I’ll never forget,” Johnson said. “We’re at a Snoop Dogg concert. It’s me, Dana White, we’re talking. He’s drinking Bud Light. And I’m sitting there just chilling. And he goes, you know what? You’re not the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.”

The head honcho argued that the Irishman never backed down from any challenge and would fight anyone. This was evident when McGregor went to 170lbs and fought Nate Diaz at UFC 196. “And I was like, okay. He goes, you know who is? I was like, who? He was like, ‘Conor McGregor… You know why? Cause he would fight anybody…”

ALSO READ: Top 10 Best Pound-for-Pound UFC Fighters of All Time (P4P All-Time Rankings)

 

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“I was like, guy just got fu**ing knocked out, what are you talking about?” Johnson said, referencing McGregor’s TKO loss to Floyd Mayweather in their 2017 boxing match. Johnson believes White was trying to negotiate with him to fight TJ Dillashaw. However, DJ couldn’t come to a financial agreement with White regarding the superfight. 

He added, “I think he was trying to negotiate, trying to get me to go up and fight TJ [Dillashaw]. And I was like, oh, just pay me a million dollars…”

Despite disagreeing, Johnson respected White’s honesty. “But I respect the fact that he told me that in my face. I’d rather somebody tell me the honest truth about me, how they feel about me in front of my face, instead of giving me flowers in front of my face [and] talk s*it behind your back.”

White’s choice of McGregor over Johnson as the pound-for-pound #1 in 2017 may not have made perfect sense, but it wasn’t entirely without merit. After all, ‘The Notorious’ was on an ungodly run between 2014 and 2016. During that stretch, McGregor shocked the world by knocking out Jose Aldo in just 13 seconds at UFC 194 to claim the featherweight title,  defeating a man who hadn’t lost in nearly a decade.

He then took a bold leap, moving up to 170 pounds to face Diaz. Although he suffered his first UFC loss, McGregor’s obsession with redemption fueled their rematch at UFC 202, where he avenged the defeat in a five-round war. Not stopping there, ‘Mystic Mac’ jumped to 155 pounds while still holding the 145-pound belt and delivered perhaps the most dominant title-fight performances ever, dismantling Eddie Alvarez to become the first fighter in UFC history to hold two belts simultaneously. The ‘McGregor Era’ was truly unmatched in terms of impact and star power.

However, when it comes strictly to dominance inside the Octagon, McGregor’s accolades pale compared to Johnson’s record-breaking 11 consecutive title defenses. Despite that, Johnson eventually lost the #1 pound-for-pound spot in 2018 to Daniel Cormier, who dethroned Stipe Miocic to become a double champion in his own right at UFC 226.