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The rematch between UFC flyweight champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and John “The Magician” Dodson is on. And while the fight is still on September 5th, the Vegas gods have spoken.
Dominant Mouse
Since becoming the inaugural UFC flyweight champion, Demetrious Johnson has been nearly untouchable on top of the heap. Mighty Mouse has opened as at least a 3-1 favorite in each of his first four title defenses. For his rematch with Dodson, Johnson has opened as a very solid 4-1 favorite with the challenger an underdog at +310.
Listed as the #3 pound for pound fighter in Mixed Martial Arts, Johnson has gone 8-0-1 since losing to Dominick Cruz in 2011 when he challenged for the bantamweight title. Dodson is among those 8 victims when the two met in January of 2013 in Johnson’s first title defense. Dodson won the first two rounds but Mighty Mouse rallied to win the final three rounds to win by unanimous decision. But before a rematch was set, Dodson has since suffered several injuries while Johnson has become a dominant mouse.
Looking for Magic
After suffering a knee injury that forced him out of action for over a year, Dodson returned at UFC 187 to score a unanimous decision win over Zack Makovsky. In all, he’s won three in a row since losing to Mighty Mouse but after looking rusty against Makovsky, it is pretty clear that Dodson is still looking for his old Magic to come back.
The rematch with Mighty Mouse is one that Dodson has been salivating about because he was one round away from dethroning Demetrious Johnson. Since the Dodson fight, no one has ever come close to beating Mighty Mouse who has stopped four of his last five opponents. In his most recent bout at UFC 186, Johnson submitted Kyoji Horiguchi with one second left in the final round to record the latest submission in UFC history.
Who Takes This?
The last time they met, the odds also opened at 3-1 but the lines closed with Johnson at -245. Dodson believes that he beat Johnson the first time around and thinks that he will knock him out this time. That is easier said than done however because Johnson is probably the most complete fighter in his weight class. He packs power in his punches and has also submitted 9 opponents. On the other hand, Dodson is more of a striker with only 2 submissions in his resume.
So while Johnson should win by decision again in their rematch, the fight should be exciting because of the pace that these two men put. Expect an all-out action fight like in their first encounter, but look for Mighty Mouse to come out on top once again on September 5.
