The next UFC lightweight title fight appears to have already been locked in after what happened at UFC 317.
Ilia Topuria faced off with Paddy Pimblett inside the Octagon after becoming the new UFC lightweight champion.
Following Topuria’s knockout win over Charles Oliveira, several top lightweights were shown on the broadcast, including Pimblett.
Justin Gaethje, whose retirement claim was responded to by Dana White, and Arman Tsarukyan were both shown to be in attendance before ‘The Baddy’ made his way into the cage.
One of the greatest of all time, who recently claimed that the UFC isn’t a sport, wasn’t thrilled when giving his initial reactions to everything that played out on Saturday night.
- READ MORE: ‘Looks scared’… Paddy Pimblett’s live reaction to Ilia Topuria’s ruthless UFC 317 KO divides fans
Demetrious Johnson doubles down on claims that the UFC is a reality TV show after Arman Tsarukyan is skipped over
During a recent interview on The Ariel Helwani Show, Demetrious Johnson spoke about how his perception of the UFC has changed.
The former UFC flyweight champion now breaks down fights and interviews athletes via his YouTube channel, which he claims has made him realize that the UFC is more of a reality TV show than a sport.
Johnson’s recent comments, in his opinion, were supported by the ending of UFC 317 where Ilia Topuria and Paddy Pimblett set up what could be a huge lightweight title fight in the near future.
‘Mighty Mouse’ made it clear that he believes Arman Tsarukyan should be next as the #1-ranked contender in the lightweight division.
Dana White revealed ahead of the event that Tsarukyan successfully weighing in as the backup fighter wouldn’t secure him the next title shot, even if it was a step in the right direction for him.
“This is what I’m talking about guys,” Johnson said. This is why I say it’s a reality TV show. It’s like, obviously Arman Tsarukyan is the number one contender. He’s ranked number one… But, they’re forcing this fight with Paddy Pimblett vs Ilia Topuria just because it’s probably going to sell more but I think the rightful person who should be getting a next title shot at lightweight is Arman Tsarukyan.”
Demetrious Johnson says the UFC should abolish the rankings entirely if they don’t matter
After recording his initial reaction to UFC 317, Demetrious Johnson elaborated on his comments regarding the lightweight title picture later in the video.
He said that while he’s not against an Ilia Topuria vs Paddy Pimblett fight, he believes that the UFC should get rid of the rankings if they’re not going to abide by them.
‘Mighty Mouse’ simply believes that Arman Tsarukyan, who withdrew from his lightweight title fight at UFC 311 due to an injury, should be next, rather than the UFC deciding which fight the fans want to see.
“I’m not mad about that but I want people to start earning their truthful spot. What’s the point of having rankings when they’re not going to abide by the number one contender. Let’s just get rid of all the rankings and do a poll of what the fans want to see and let’s just run the event like that.”