Anthony “Rumble” Johnson has long been considered a flash in the pan. He’s a destroyer and virtually unstoppable when he’s the hammer.
But when adversity rears its ugly head, the oft-praised destroyer willingly accepts being the nail.
Bloodied and battered, Johnson sat with his chin down to his chest after the second round of his light heavyweight title fight with Daniel Cormier on Saturday night. The highly anticipated main event tilt was set to crown a new UFC champion in the vacant spot left by Jon Jones.
After dropping Cormier with a punch early in the fight, Johnson looked breathless and stunned by the third round. “Don’t give up,” his corner desperately pleaded in between rounds. But it was too late. Johnson looked visibly broken after being out-grappled by the former Olympian.
I have often referred to Johnson as a reincarnated beast from his previous version. Since moving to light heavyweight, he has looked like a completely different fighter, effortlessly torching every opponent in his path.
The hype behind Johnson was built anew, and fans quickly forgot about the young welterweight struggling to overcome adversity in earlier fights.
Cormier alluded to Johnson’s past UFC bouts leading up to the fight during an episode of UFC Tonight:
I want to tell you guys right now, at the end of the day, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson is who he is. ... Anthony’s the guy that got submitted by Josh Koscheck. Anthony’s the guy that tapped out before Vitor Belfort had a choke in. At the core of him, he is who he is. I just have to go out and find that.
It’s hard to argue with Cormier, especially after seeing what happened on Saturday night.
Johnson’s recent run had been so dominant that fans never stopped to question the intangibles. Old habits die hard. Like he did against Belfort, Koscheck and Rich Clementi, Johnson rolled over in the face of adversity and gave up a rear-naked choke to Cormier.
Maybe it’s a mental hurdle. Perhaps it’s a physical one as well. For all the praise surrounding Johnson’s otherworldly power, you also have to accept the fact that he will never have elite conditioning. Being built like a superhero comes at a price, and Johnson paid dearly against Cormier.
Perhaps the biggest question mark was Johnson’s behavior at the post-fight press conference. He looked like the most content fighter ever to lose a championship, playfully joking along with Cormier.
No one is asking a grown man to cry, but not much was felt from Johnson after coming up short in the biggest moment of his professional career.
The class shown by Johnson is rare and appreciative. We could only hope to have more role models like him to inspire young fans all over the glove. But in the face of adversity and a championship loss, there was no emotion.
We saw Jones fight back and win a title bout after having his face carved up like a Thanksgiving turkey by Alexander Gustafsson. Cormier managed to find a way to win after getting knocked down on Saturday night. Where is that same grit from Johnson?
Does it even exist?
