WATCH: Get behind the scenes of Demetrious Johnson’s emotional retirement ceremony at ONE 168 in Denver
Demetrious Johnson's retirement speech inside the Circle was an incredibly poignant and emotional moment for MMA fans around the world. What happened behind the scenes, though, carried more weight for the ONE flyweight MMA world champion.
Johnson was never shy about showing his emotions during fights, but what he revealed in his behind-the-scenes vlog gave fans a glimpse of who 'Mighty Mouse' is as a person, father, and husband.
Taking to his Mighty YouTube channel, Demetrious Johnson detailed his journey from his hometown in Seattle to Denver for ONE 168 this past weekend.
The video showed Johnson having backstage conversations with ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong, his wife Destiny, pro-wrestling legend Bill Goldberg and some of the fighters from the card at the Ball Arena.
Johnson wrote on YouTube:
"MIGHTY MOUSE RETIRES FROM MMA! 'Mighty' Demetrious Johnson announces his retirement from MMA at ONE 168 in Denver!"
Close friends, family and UFC stars such as Israel Adesanya, Sean O'Malley, Aljamain Sterling, Mike Perry, and Tyron Woodley also shared virtual messages with the MMA legend on the video.
Johnson's vlog also showed his spot on the booth when he donned the headset to commentate on the ONE 168 headliner between world champions Superlek Kiatmoo9 and Jonathan Haggerty for the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai world title.
Superlek, who entered the fight as the ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion, ultimately snatched the ONE bantamweight Muay Thai crown from Haggerty just 49 seconds into the match.
The latter parts of the video showed Johnson taking part in the post-event press conference and his final thoughts on leaving the sport of MMA.
Demetrious Johnson says he'll still compete in BJJ after retiring from MMA
Although he's officially bid goodbye to mixed martial arts, Demetrious Johnson said he'll still compete at Brazilian jiu-jitsu and carve out a path there. In his interview with ONE Championship commentator Mitch Chilson, Johnson said he'd channel his competitive drive into BJJ and potentially collect more gold in the IBJJF's Gi circuit.
He said:
"So now I'm done competing in mixed martial arts. Maybe one day you guys will see me in here grappling, do a grappling match. But right now, I'm a Gi boy. I'm a Gi boy, so I'm just going to pursue my passion for jiu-jitsu in the Gi.