Michael Johnson var en gång i tiden topprankad i UFC:s tuffa lättviktsdivision. Nu har han bara vunnit en av sina senaste sex och gjorde nyligen sin fjäderviktsdebut – som även den slutade i förlust. I helgen gör Johnson sin andra match i fjäderviktsdivisionen mot Team Alpha Males Andre ”Touchy” Fili.
MMAnytts Damon Martin tog ett snack med Johnson inför UFC Fight Night 135: Gaethje vs. Vick i Lincoln, Nebraska som går av stapeln nu i helgen.
“It’s me not staying focused. I paid for it the last two fights,” sade Johnson. “These guys aren’t beating me by any means. I’m beating myself. It’s the perfect definition of somebody beating themselves. It’s just something I have to overcome.
“I let myself slip into spots being unfocused. So now I have to make sure I stay focused and fight the full fight. That position I got caught in, I just moved too fast and Darren Elkins is great and when somebody exposes their back to him, the rest is what happened.”
”Den mentala biten som inte riktigt stämmer”
Johnson är dock självkritisk och menar att anledningen till att han förlorar inte nödvändigtvis är att hans motståndare är bättre – utan snarare att det är något i de mentala förberedelserna inför matcherna som kan förbättras.
“It’s a mental thing. I’ll be honest and I’ll admit that,” fortsatte Johnson. “A lot of guys tend not to admit their faults or the reasons why but it’s not an excuse when I’m saying it. It’s just a statement and a fact. I lost focus and I ended up paying for it. My training camp has been great, nothing needs to change in my training.
“We’ve been doing this for some time now and we haven’t had any problems so the training has never been an issue.”
“That’s one thing that I’ve been lucky and kind of blessed with the UFC. They know the type of fighter I am and I want the toughest available guys,” sade Johnson.
“For them to give me a guy like Andre Fili, it’s incredible. It’s showing that they still have faith in me and I just need to get over some hurdles and get back on track. It’s good. Get in there and get a big win and I’m right back in the mix.
“I’ve always believed I belong in there those guys. Still in my mind, I believe I’m one of the best in the world and I’ll put my money on it against anybody on any day of the week.”
