Johnson (pictured) hopes to face Bader and Gustafsson in the coming months. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
Anthony Johnson He has been enjoying a great moment in his career since returning to the UFC. This year, the light heavyweight achieved good victories over Phil Davis e Rogério Minotouro, which placed it in a prominent position in the official ranking of the category.
Therefore, “Rumble” dreams big and is already envisioning his next two fights inside the Octagon. His intention is to measure forces with Ryan bader later this year, so that we can then face Alexander Gustafson at the beginning of 2015, in a fight that could qualify the winner to compete for the weight belt.
“I hope to be able to fight at the end of October against Ryan bader and face Gus on the card that will have Jon Jones [against Daniel Cormier, on January 3]. That's my idea. People want me to start challenging people, and I've never done that before. But I always wanted to face Ryan bader, because I always thought he was a tough fighter,” said Johnson, in an interview with the official UFC website.
If the plans actually happen, Johnson foresees an exciting fight against Gustafsson. “It would be a good fight. Gus is taller than me, but I think we have the same wingspan. So, it will be interesting. Gus likes to move around a lot and I like to chase people and see what they have to offer. It would be a huge fight. I definitely want to give the fans what they want to see.”
Johnson also ruled out facing his training partner Rashad evans, who is two positions ahead of him in the rankings (third, against Johnson's fifth). “That’s just not going to happen. With me, things will be like this. [If they propose the fight] I say I'll move up to heavyweight and fight there. I could fight at both light heavyweight and heavyweight. But I wouldn't fight him, ever. We face each other every day in the gym, so it doesn’t make sense for you to go that route and face a brother,” he clarified.
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