UFC World Nostalgic With Anthony Johnson’s ‘Best Staredown Ever’ That Almost Gave Dana White a Heart-Attack

Notable MMA figure and former UFC title challenger Anthony Johnson passed away at 38 years of age. ‘Rumble’ was dealing with health issues that sidelined him for over a year. As we look back at his career, his prank on Dana White remains a happy memory for the fans.

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Anthony Johnson pranked UFC president Dana White on stage in front of a live audience back in 2015. This moment still puts a smile on the face of fans after seven years.

When Anthony Johnson and Jon Jones pranked Dana White

Jon Jones and Anthony Johnson were set to fight for the UFC light-heavyweight title at UFC 187 in 2015. ‘Rumble’ was a rising contender, and Jones was the dominant reigning champion back then. During a face-off, both athletes played a prank on White that left him reeling but shaken.

Both fighters got on the stage for a stare-down. However, things got heated up in the blink of an eye as they started pushing and shoving. A frantic White tried to keep them at bay. The light heavyweights suddenly stopped and broke into laughter, patting White to calm him down.

White realized how they had pranked him and walked off laughing. Both Jones and Johnson hugged and gave a good show of sportsman spirit to the fans. “He dam near s*** himself. His voice was so high, it was crazy, but the expression on his face was priceless,” Jones said later.

One fan responded to a clip of the incident saying “best stare down ever.”

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The fight, however, fell through and ‘Rumble’ ended up facing Daniel Cormier at UFC 187. He lost via submission and went on to lose to DC a second time in the same manner in 2017.

Anthony Johnson’s notable UFC wins

Anthony Johnson had two separate runs in the UFC. He fought under the UFC banner from 2007 to 2012 and then from 2014 to 2017. His first stint in the UFC was in the welterweight division. He quickly gained a reputation as a knockout artist with tremendous power. ‘Rumble’ fought and beat the likes of Dan Hardy during his welterweight run.

His most notable wins came during his light heavyweight run. In 2014, he beat Phil Davis via a unanimous decision at UFC 172. Johnson followed up this win with a quick finish of Antônio Nogueira at UFC on Fox 12 in the same year. He kicked off 2015 with a statement victory over UFC legend Alexander Gustafsson.

His next fight was against Jon Jones for the title at UFC 187. Since that fight fell through, he fought Daniel Cormier for the title and lost. Johnson got back to winning ways, beating Jimi Manuwa later in 2015 and Ryan Bader at the beginning of 2016. He scored a 13-second knockout victory over Glover Teixeira on the UFC 202 card.

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‘Rumble’ faced Cormier a second time in 2017 and lost again. He retired from the UFC after this loss. However, he came back to competition in 2021 and fought once in Bellator, beating Jose Augusto by knockout.