Johnson (photo) will be the next challenger for the belt. Photo: Reproduction
after winning Alexander Gustafson at UFC on FOX 14 and guarantee his right to fight for the light heavyweight belt, Anthony Johnson has already changed his target to the current champion of the category, Jon Jones. And the challenger promises that he will do everything he can to bring new challenges to the belt holder, who has already defended his title eight times.
See too
“I'm going to be the guy with the hardest punch he's ever faced. He's faced a lot of quality people, but I hope to do things that no one has done against him. Alexander was the hardest fight he had, but I hope it will be much worse”, said the American, in a press conference after the event.
The huge audience present at the Tele2 Arena stadium, in Stockholm (Sweden), seemed incredulous when they saw Johnson knock out Gustafsson in the first round. The feeling was also shared by the fighter himself: “It didn’t seem real. I had just beaten the guy who, in my opinion, won Jon Jones, so I'm in shock. No one had stopped Alexander like that, so I was speechless,” he said.
Johnson's path to victory began with a counterattack, in which the American responded to a front kick from the Swede with a well-aimed punch. “I heard his corner telling him to do a front kick, and I'm a kickboxer. I know how to counteract that, and that’s what I did,” he explained.
Despite his happiness with the victory, Johnson showed solidarity with Gustafsson, who cried profusely in the Octagon after the defeat. “Alex had a goal. I felt sad when I saw him crying and I know what it's like to have a goal and not get there. I've felt this pain before, so I felt bad. I didn't end your dream, but today I interrupted it. I'm sure he'll come back ten times stronger.”
Johnson even took the opportunity to criticize Jones for provocation made on Twitter right after the fight ended. “The world is a bad place in my opinion. This is because when someone is on the ground, someone always comes and wants to step on you so that you stay down there,” she said.
Comments