UFC President Dana White claims that while Johnson achieved a lot in the UFC, one thing he couldn’t get was love and respect from the fans.
“Yeah, I mean if you look at it,” White said to TMZ Sports. “The kid broke the record for most title defenses. And I feel like he never really got the love and respect that he deserved from the fans. And I don’t know if he was always thrilled being here. So, hopefully he’s a lot happier where he’s headed now. You know, his longtime trainer and coach is an executive over there, so maybe he’ll be happier over there, yeah.”
Johnson was the promotion’s first ever flyweight champion and still holds the record for most consecutive title defenses in the UFC. The fighter has also suffered just two defeats under the UFC banner, with those coming to former UFC Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz and current UFC Flyweight Champion Henry Cejudo.
The former flyweight champion now moves onto a career at One Championship and a change in weight class, as he recently announced a move up a division to bantamweight.
