Khamzat Chimaev is one of the most physically imposing fighters on the entire UFC roster, and former flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson found that out the hard way during a recent training session.
While Chimaev’s size and strength advantage was pretty obvious, Johnson is one of the greatest fighters of all-time, who has more recently transitioned to a grappling career where he’s scored some impressive wins since retiring from MMA. Johnson may go down as one of the most skilled fighters in history
but he was fighting an uphill battle going against somebody like Chimaev.
“Did Arman [Tsarukyan] tell you I was good?” Johnson said to Chimaev as they squared off. “Arman tell you I was strong?”
Of course, Arman Tsarukyan is one of the top lightweights in the world but he also competes at 155 pounds, which is a far cry from Chimaev as UFC middleweight champion at 185 pounds.
“Maybe [strong] for him, yeah,” Chimaev said with a smile.
It didn’t take long for Chimaev to put Johnson in a bad position as he snatched a front headlock that already looked painful enough but then he transitioned to a D’arce choke. A moment later, Johnson was tapping out with onlookers shouting “47 seconds!” to let “Mighty Mouse” know exactly how long he lasted.
Of course, Johnson getting tapped by somebody who easily looks double his size isn’t all that surprising.
That’s why Johnson did his best for as long as he could but it was likely only a matter of time before Chimaev found a submission.
“You guys are like ‘man, why did he pull guard?’” Johnson said. “Do you think I’m going to shoot a f*cking takedown on Khamzat Chimaev?”
Following his retirement from MMA, Johnson was just recently announced as the latest member of the UFC Hall of Fame class of 2026. As for Chimaev, he’s a month away from defending his middleweight title for the first time when he faces Sean Strickland in the UFC 328 main event on May 9.
