Adriano Moraes has all the respect for Demetrious Johnson
Last weekend at ONE Fight Night 10: Johnson vs. Moraes III on Prime Video, former ONE flyweight world champion Adriano Moraes competed in the mother of all trilogy bouts against Demetrious Johnson. The historic bout, which was for Johnson's ONE flyweight world title, headlined ONE's first-ever on-ground live show on US soil.
The rubber match was considered the biggest in the division's history as both fighters scored KO wins over each other as the belt exchanged hands between them. In front of a sold-out crowd at the 1stBank Center in Denver, Colorado, the two MMA gods put on a 5-round classic which Johnson won via unanimous decision.
Despite losing the third and decisive bout, Adriano Moraes was gracious of the opportunity to make history alongside a bonafide legend. 'Mikinho' went as far as thanking 'Mighy Mouse' in a post on Instagram:
"Honor to share the circle again with @mighty the trilogy is set, was a good battle, thank you!"
The first three rounds of the bout saw the two using their strengths to their advantage. Johnson used his speed and agility to pepper his opponent with strikes while Moraes used his size and reach advantage to wear down his smaller foe. With a minute left in the second round, ‘DJ’ scored the first takedown of the fight and largely turned the tide in his favor.
Rounds 3 and 4 saw Adriano Moraes desperately trying to stick to his gameplan of clinching Johnson and wearing him out with grappling, to very little success. 'Mighty Mouse' adjusted on the fly and managed to damage the Brazilian in the clinch.
Clearly ahead of the scorecards coming into the fifth round, Johnson refused to take his foot off the pedal and busted Moraes up before the final horn.
The historic ONE Fight Night 10 event replay can be viewed for free via Amazon Prime in North America.