UFC: Demetrious Johnson bids to defend his flyweight crown in Las Vegas

UFC welterweight and commentator Dan Hardy looks ahead to this weekend's event as Johnson is presented with the latest challenger to his title

Johnson has defended his belt eight times since 2012 (Getty)

The flyweight division has been in lockdown since its introduction to the UFC in 2012. The winner of the four-man tournament to determine the first ever UFC flyweight champion, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, still holds the title today. In the last four years he has defended the belt eight times, and looked more and more impressive in each outing. He outclasses the opposition in such a way that he is widely considered the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet. This presents the UFC with a problem, as he has beaten everyone that fought their way to a title shot.

The solution was to look outside of the UFC, scouting the smaller leagues for 16 champions to bring together in a new eight-man tournament, on a new season of The Ultimate Fighter, the UFC’s reality talent finding show.

The unique twist here is that the coaches for the two opposing teams are UFC flyweights Joe Benavidez, who has shared the Octagon twice with the reigning champion, and Henry Cejudo, Johnson’s last opponent, who was stopped in the first round at UFC 197 in April. The two former challengers are also bitter rivals and will face each other for the first time in the co-main event, this weekend in Las Vegas.

The first pick of Team Benavidez, Tim Elliot, was one of only three fighters to have already stepped into the Octagon, out of the 16 recruited for the tournament. After rolling through Charlie Alaniz and Matt Schnell in the first round, submitting them both with neck attacks, he was well on his way to a UFC return. He then battled season team mate, Eric Shelton, for two rounds to take the majority decision. The final hurdle was Japanese standout and Shooto champion, Hiromasa Ogikubo. It was another gritty affair, but yet again Elliott prevailed, securing the trophy; a Harley Davidson motorcycle for himself and his father; and the title shot against Demetrious Johnson.

It is undoubtedly the biggest stage he has ever fought on. In the headlining bout, he will return to the UFC and immediately face the champion of his division. If he is to topple the flyweight king it could be a bigger upset than when Matt Serra knocked out Georges St Pierre, way back at UFC 69 in 2007. Serra earned his shot in a similar fashion to Elliot, by winning the ‘Comebacks’ season of The Ultimate Fighter. It just goes to show that MMA is anything but predictable and with heart, determination and the right mindset, any contender can step in and turn the rankings upside down. Tim Elliott has all of the skills and experience he needs to take the fight to Johnson and has bettered four opponents on the way to earning this opportunity for himself.

Johnson in the Octagon against Ian McCall (Getty)

Whether he is successful in his attempt or not, the co-main event winner will likely be demanding their own shot, but neither is looking past this weekend’s bout. Cejudo is a brash and confident young man, with the best wrestling credentials in the UFC. An Olympic gold medallist at the 2008 Beijing Games in freestyle wrestling, Cejudo fought his way to a UFC title shot with 10 consecutive victories. In doing so he has demonstrated a very disciplined striking game in each of his fights and has been proven too strong and powerful for every opponent he’s met, except “Mighty Mouse”.

This will be his first fight back since that unsuccessful title shot back in April and takes on the only other man ranked above him, in Joe Benavidez. Cejudo made it clear that he wanted the bout and the trash talk between the two during filming of The Ultimate Fighter has made this a highly-anticipated tilt. Benavidez lost to Johnson back in 2012, in the final of the tournament held to crown the first ever flyweight champion. He took out three top contenders in the following year to earn a second title shot but yet again Johnson had his number.

Henry Cejudo in action against Dustin Kimura (Getty)

There is still no doubt that he is the second best in the world, unless you ask Henry Cejudo, that is. On this weekend’s card these two feuding flyweights will settle their differences, or at least earn that next shot at the UFC gold. Then they will be paying close attention to the main event, to see if it’s a new champion or an old foe holding the strap when the dust settles. The rest of the fights on the card pit many former and future contenders against each other. With over 80 fights between them, veterans Jake Ellenberger and Jorge Masvidal will try to make some noise in a loud welterweight division.

Two former challengers to the female bantamweight title will look to gather some momentum on their way back to the top, as Sara McMann and Alexis Davis square off in what promises to be an intriguing bout between two versatile fighters. And the final contest on the preliminary card sees flyweight standout and featherweight hopeful, Gray Maynard, take on footlock wizard, Ryan Hall. Will the flyweight division get blown wide open, or does Mighty Mouse reign supreme and keep a firm grip of his UFC gold? Tune in for that and a lot more, at the Tournament of Champions Finale.

Watch The Ultimate Fighter: A Tournament of Champions Finale live on BT Sport 2 from 1am GMT on Sunday 4th December, or catch the Early Prelims exclusively on UFC Fight Pass from 12am.