Demetrious Johnson has one big question for the UFC: How does a guy go 20-0 with zero UFC finishes and still get a title shot, while Michael ‘Venom’ Page gets shown the door? That’s the head-scratcher ‘Mighty Mouse’ couldn’t get past.

Movsar Evloev is about to fight Alexander Volkanovski for the featherweight title at UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi on October 24. The Russian is unbeaten at 20-0 and has already picked up big wins over Lerone Murphy, Aljamain Sterling, and Arnold Allen. The catch? Not a single one of those UFC wins has come by finish.

And that becomes pretty damn interesting when you look at what just happened to MVP. The UFC recently parted ways with Page, even though the flashy striker had built a reputation for doing exactly what his nickname suggests: putting on a show. For Demetrious Johnson, the contrast is hard to ignore.

“Well, something came into my mind; you say he’s undefeated, 20-0, no finishes. How the f— is he still in the UFC?” Johnson said on his YouTube channel. “Like, I’m just saying, they just cut (Michael Venom Page).

“But when you think about it, the UFC is so gung-ho, cutting people who aren’t exciting, no knockouts, and it’s like, they just got rid of MVP, you know, he’s not knocking people out, but he’s doing some flashy s— in there.”

Demetrious Johnson wasn’t just throwing out a random comparison, either. He went straight at Movsar Evloev’s UFC record and pointed out the obvious: the guy keeps winning, but he just doesn’t finish anybody.

“Movsar Evloev does know how to win, but that’s the thing that came to mind when you say he’s undefeated with no knockouts,” Johnson added. “I’m like, how the f— is he still here? Not even a submission? Wow.”

And well, the numbers back up the point. The Russian fighter is 10-0 inside the UFC, but every single one of those wins has gone to the judges. Ten UFC fights, ten decisions, zero finishes. Still, that hasn’t stopped him from climbing all the way to the top of the featherweight division.

Now, he’s got the biggest opportunity of his career: a shot at Alexander Volkanovski’s title.

And that’s where the comparison gets even more interesting. Michael ‘Venom’ Page went 5-1 during his UFC run, but just like Movsar Evloev, all five wins came by decision.

His counter-striking, constant movement, and patient style could make for some seriously low-output fights, and that eventually became a problem with fans and apparently with the UFC matchmakers too.

Speaking to the media during a scrum ahead of the Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn boxing match, Dana White revealed that UFC matchmakers Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard did not want Page back, which is why the promotion let him go.

“Listen, at the end of the day, the matchmakers make the decisions on who stays and who goes, and they didn’t want to re-sign him,” White said.

Israel Adesanya, though, thinks there could be another piece to the puzzle. According to him, the UFC might’ve had a different reason behind not renewing MVP’s contract; they’re just not very vocal about the ‘why.’

“And he’s a grappler. Again, he’s a grappler with no finishes or no knockouts. So I think the stuff for MVP is other stuff that we’re not privy to as a public. So that’s why they have the issues,” Adesanya added.

Even Demetrious Johnson didn’t push back on this theory.

“You might be right,” he replied.

However, while Demetrious Johnson might be scratching his head over why Movsar Evloev is still around, it seems like the man standing across from him at UFC 333 isn’t buying into that criticism at all.

Alexander Volkanovski defends Movsar Evloev from the criticism

Alexander Volkanovski has a very different take on what Movsar Evloev brings to the table. According to ‘The Great,’ the undefeated Russian has had to take the long way around to finally get his title shot. In fact, the champion even admitted he felt bad for the Russian when fans started booing him during their recent media appearances.

“That’s why he’s had to take the long road to the title; he probably deserved it before now,” Volkanovski said. “I almost feel bad for the guy, but I’m weird; even when we were doing the press conference, everyone was booing him, I was feeling bad.

“The booing was meant to get into his head, but it was getting into my head more than his because I felt bad for him.”

There’s actually a little more history between Alexander Volkanovski and Movsar Evloev, which might explain why the champion seems to have so much sympathy for him.

The two have crossed paths in the gym before. The Russian revealed that they trained together several years ago, back when he was still competing at bantamweight.

“I used to be a bantamweight at that time; it was before UFC,” Evloev told Youngs. “We just had a couple of rounds, and yeah, we trained at the same gym before.”

At the end of the day, Movsar Evloev and Michael ‘Venom’ Page represent two very different sides of the UFC’s entertainment-vs-winning debate.

Demetrious Johnson is looking at the lack of finishes and asking why fighters who don’t produce much action can get pushed aside, while Alexander Volkanovski’s argument is pretty simple: Movsar Evloev keeps winning. Ten UFC fights, ten wins, and every opponent has gone the distance with him.

As for MVP, his UFC chapter may be over, but there’s already plenty of interest in what comes next. Jake Paul’s MVP MMA and David Feldman’s BKFC have both expressed interest in bringing him in.

For fans who remember the wild, knockout-hunting version of MVP from his Bellator days, his next move could give him the chance to bring that version of himself back and potentially make his post-UFC chapter a lot more exciting.