Former UFC champion Demetrious Johnson always finds a way to challenge himself in his career. This time around, he competed at the IBJJF Masters World Championship. The event marked Johnson’s debut as a black belter, and the 38-year-old delivered a staggering performance. Johnson previously secured gold at the IBJJF World Championships as a brown belt, but this time, the stakes were a little higher.

‘Mighty Mouse’ constantly updated videos of his training session on his YouTube channel and looked in sublime form before the event. The former champion impressively started his campaign and won his first three fights. However, Tomoya Yanagisawa ended his dream run in the fourth match of the day. Yanagisawa put pressure on his opponent from the very beginning and was able to lock in an armbar early. However, Johnson was able to carve his way out of it and started to control the fight.

The Japanese fighter proved too much for the former champion and submitted him. Johnson took to his YouTube channel to share his honest opinion on the fight and seemed saddened by the loss. This was the first time ‘Mighty Mouse’ competed against black belt fighters in Jiu-Jitsu but never looked out of place. The fans took notice of the video, and the flyweight kingpin received mixed reactions from the fans.

Lock-in Jiu-Jitsu took to their X account to share a clip of the fight with a caption that read, “Demetrious Johnson is Submitted in His 4th Match at the 2024 IBJJF World Masters. “Mighty Mouse” Put Up an Impressive Performance Making His Black Belt Debut.” The online fans, just like most occasions, gave mixed reactions on the whole. Let us take a look at what they had to say.

Losing to Tomoya Yanagisawa draws mixed reactions from the fans on X

Demetrious Johnson has found a new love in grappling after staying away from the action in the MMA. But his dream run ended in the recently concluded IBJJF World Championship event. His opponent, Tomoya Yanagisawa, showed massive respect for Johnson and tweeted, “Thank you for the fight, DJ. Your takedowns were scary. Oss.” But somehow, the fans don’t quite feel he performed well in the tournament.

Johnson, in his last event, entered the competition as a brown belt and won the gold medal. This time, he lost to a black belt, and one user commented, “Bro is washed.” While one user criticized the former UFC champion, another one appreciated the 38-year-old for his effort and commented, “A man who tries.”

The current ONE Flyweight Champion has defeated some of the finest athletes in the sport during his time at UFC and ONE Championship. However, his latest loss has forced many to believe that he might just not be good at this level, “This ain’t brown belts you can bully.” One user credited the Japanese grappler for winning the fight and appreciated in his manner, “White boy summer.” 

Gi and no-gi are two different variations of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which has a massive difference in terms of clothes worn and the technique used. One of the fans pointed out exactly why No-Gi is better and commented, “This is why No-Gi is better lol can’t get away with some b..t like this.”

Seeing Demetrious Johnson tap is one of the rare sights for any of his fans out there. However, one of the users wanted to know why he tapped out and commented, “What was the submission?” Johnson generally competes in the flyweight division in ONE Championship and the UFC. However, this time round, he competed in open weight, and one of his fans asked the exact question, “Open class?”

The 38-year-old is now all set to make a comeback from his loss. ‘Mighty Mouse’ is one of the legends of the sport, but one bad performance doesn’t define his career. He has not announced his retirement from MMA but has found a particular liking towards Jiu-Jitsu. How highly do you rate Johnson as a grappler? Let us know about it in the comments below.