Demetrious Johnson says there’s no way he’s beating a prime Shaq

Demetrious Johnson doesn’t like his chances against NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal. It’s a crossover fight that likely never crossed the minds of MMA and NBA fans, but one Redditor just had to know who would win between the two icons of their individual sports.

During a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) with the reigning ONE flyweight world champion, a fan posed the question, “Do you think you would win against a prime Shaq?” ‘Mighty Mouse’ quickly responded with a resounding “no.”

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“God no. LOL.”

Demetrious Johnson, 36, would certainly have an age advantage over the NBA Hall of Famer. Shaquille O’Neal is 51 years old, but the biggest discrepancy would be the height difference. ‘Mighty Mouse’ stands at a modest 5’3”, while Shaq stands at a staggering 7’1”.

Weight would also play a huge role. Johnson regularly competes at 135 lbs. in ONE Championship’s flyweight division. Though Shaq no longer competes, the four-time NBA champion admitted to weighing upwards of 400 lbs. during his third title run with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2002.

Of course, all of this is nothing more than fans having a little bit of fun with fantasy matchmaking. But on May 5, things will get very real for Demetrious Johnson once again as ‘Mighty Mouse’ is scheduled to defend his ONE flyweight world championship against the man he took the title from last August, Adriano Moraes. The pair will headline ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video, the promotion’s highly anticipated U.S. debut.

Emanating from the 1stBank Center in Colorado, Johnson, and Moraes will come together for the third and final time to complete the trilogy and determine once and for all who is the greatest flyweight of all time.

Amazon Prime Video subscribers in North America can catch ONE Fight Night 10 live and for free in U.S. primetime.

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