What’s next for Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson?

What’s next for Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson?

by Connor Hutton - @ConnorHutton94

The resurgence of UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson is a story like no other, and his latest knockout victory over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC on Fox 12 opened up a whole new chapter.

However, Johnson’s current run of success follows a much more controversial career on the whole. ‘Rumble’ first entered the UFC frame back in 2007 where his debut lasted just 13 seconds, knocking out Chad Reiner, but despite a promising start in the octagon, Johnson was criticized for cutting an extreme amount of weight from his muscular body to make 170 lbs.

Concerns over the cut became more prevalent across the next four years, as Johnson missed weight twice in his following nine UFC bouts, which did however include some impressive displays, with four first round finishes for ‘Rumble’.

Early in 2012, Johnson finally made the decision Dana White and the UFC had been longing for, by moving up to middleweight in a fight against Brazilian veteran, Vitor Belfort. However, whilst it was assumed he would find it easier to make 185 lbs, he missed the cut by 11lbs, and the early submission defeat to Belfort ultimately saw him released from the UFC.

Johnson met the most challenging crossroad of his career at this point, but thankfully, he chose the right path. With a new home at WSOF and a comfortable place for his body in the light heavyweight division, Anthony Johnson transformed into the fighter he was always capable of being, stringing together a six fight winning streak, including four KO’s.

Following success in the WSOF, the UFC called time on Johnson’s two year exile from the company and threw him into deep water upon his return this past February, as he took on top ranked light heavyweight contender, Phil Davis, and despite being a near 3/1 under-dog, Johnson dominated his way to a unanimous decision victory.

Johnson’s win streak then added an eight victim with the recent knockout of Nogueira, however this has left ‘Rumble’ in somewhat uncharted waters. With the champ, Jon Jones booked to fight Daniel Cormier and previous number one contender Alexander Gustafsson sidelined by injury, the only fighters ranked higher than Johnson are Glover Teixeira and his team-mate, Rashad Evans.

Joe Silva now faces the difficult task of managing Johnson so he can build him into a potential title contender, but which way will the UFC turn? Some say Anthony shot himself in the foot with the unexpected win over Phil Davis, suggesting he started off almost too hot, as the following opponents are likely to be further down the rankings.

A likely scenario will be that Johnson is matched up with the winner of Ryan Bader and Ovince Saint Preux, this would fit the UFC’s norm of pairing together two fighters on a win streak, but on the other hand it would probably still leave Johnson one fight away from a title shot, if he was victorious that is.

Jon Jones’ most recent opponent, Glover Teixeira is without a fight, although there has been rumblings from Phil Davis regarding a possible fight with Brazilian, and reports say the pair have verbally agreed to fight, which means the door is closing on a match-up with Johnson in what would arguably be his toughest fight to date against Glover.

One more outcome, but very unlikely, is that ‘Rumble’ will take on Gustafsson in a number one contender fight, however the UFC has made it abundantly clear that Gustafsson is unquestionably next in line. Not to mention the Swedes lay-off from injury would also put Johnson on the shelve for a few months if they signed a bout agreement, but the UFC have made a habit of going back on their word so don’t be surprised to see this fight made.

If the UFC are to go with the sensible or easy option then expect the winner of Bader/Saint Preux to take on Johnson next, but if they are feeling adventurous, a fight with Teixeira could be on the horizon if the deal with Davis falls through. Either way, the light heavyweight division has a new breath of life and maybe someday sooner rather than later, Johnson will be under the spotlight of a title fight.

Anthony Rumble Johnson vs Rogerio Minotouro Nogueira set for UFC on Fox 12 in San Jose

Anthony Rumble Johnson vs Rogerio Minotouro Nogueira set for UFC on Fox 12 in San Jose 
@_Alexdillon_

Light Heavyweights Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson and Rogerio ‘Minotouro’ Nogueria will collide at UFC on Fox 12 in San Jose, California. The FOX card will take place at the SAP center on 26th July. UFC officials confirm the bout this afternoon.

After being cut from the UFC back in January 2012 following a loss to Vitor Belfort after failing to make weight, Johnson has been on a tear in different promotions such as Titan Fighting Championships, XFL and World Series of Fighting and is currently riding an impressive 7 fight win streak. In WSOF he amassed victories over recently resigned UFC heavyweight Andrei Arlovski at Heavyweight and Strikeforce/UFC vet Mike Kyle.

Johnson made his much anticipated return to the UFC last month in Baltimore at UFC 172 and gained an impressive victory over highly ranked Light Heavyweight contender Phil Davis dominating him over 3 rounds to a decision victory.

It’s been quite a different story for Rogerio Minotouro Nogueria in recent times. Having not fought since a Unanimous Decision victory over Rashad Evans on Feb 8 2013 and before that he last fought in 2011, Nogueria has remained sidelined due to injury. He was originally scheduled to fight Alexander Gustaffson at UFC Fight Night London back in March but was forced to pull out due to a back injury more or less straight after the bout was announced.

A scalp over long time Light Heavyweight contender Rashad Evans in his last outing in the UFC looked promising for Nogueria before his injury and he will hope to bring that momentum into this fight with Rumble Johnson who is full of confidence and will be looking to defeat Nogueria as he looks at getting closer to a shot at Jon Jones 205lb title.

This bout promises to have fireworks as Johnson is on a tear and seemingly heading towards being a top contender in the Light Heavyweight division and Nogueria is more or less fighting to stay relevant in the top 10 of the division. A win for either fighter really puts the division on notice.

Stay tuned to KingdomMMA.co.uk in the coming weeks for more fight card news regarding UFC on Fox 12.

Should The UFC Give Rumble Johnson Another Chance?

Should The UFC Give Rumble Johnson Another Chance?
by Sam Heard - @samheard_ 

World Series of Fighting

Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson (16-4) made short work of Mike Kyle last Saturday at WSOF 8, dispatching the veteran by 1st round KO to create a rumble in the MMA community. The cause of this commotion? The fact that the in-form Blackzillian is now a free-agent, eligible to potentially be resigned by the UFC.

Anthony Johnson is a fighter whose career – filled with devastating highlight-reel knockouts – has been overshadowed by his inability to find a division he is effective in whilst still being able to make weight. Johnson’s skill already earned him a spot in MMA’s top-tier promotion; primarily fighting at Welterweight before moving up to Middleweight (where he was still incapable of meeting the 185-lbs weight requirement). His decent 7-4 UFC record would normally be more than enough to warrant keeping him signed, but Johnson’s inability to consistently make weight meant he was cut after suffering an understandable loss to Vitor Belfort. He then attempted to fight David Branch at Middleweight for Titan Fighting Championship and once again failed to make weight.

Johnson’s quest to find his best fighting weight – which has seen the 6’2 brute go from Welterweight to Heavyweight – may finally be at an end. Since settling at Light Heavyweight, Johnson has stringed together an impressive six wins – four of them coming via impressive knockouts. It is this brilliant form combined with his not having missed weight since the David Branch fight which means he is now a very viable option for the UFC.

So, should the UFC give Rumble another chance?

In my opinion, yes. Though he certainly messed the UFC around before, he is now settled as a Light Heavyweight; two weight classes above the Welterweight division he struggled to meet the requirements of back during his first UFC run. Moreover, the UFC’s Light Heavyweight division is in desperate need of a rejuvenated talented pool. Unlike any of the other UFC divisions, the average age of Light Heavyweight fighters is well on the wrong side of 30 (no thanks to Hendo). Introducing younger fighters is essential for the long term health of the division. It is very difficult to make a case that Dana and the gang shouldn’t sign Johnson.

If the UFC do choose to give Johnson a second run, who would be a good candidate to welcome him back? Phil Davis has recently been tweeting about wanting a fight, though I cannot see the UFC giving Johnson such a high level opponent to begin with. I personally would’ve loved to have seen him fight Jimi Manuwa in what would essentially be a feast of high-level kickboxing, though clearly Manuwa literally has bigger fish to fry with his fight against the towering Alexander Gustafsson.

Rumble Johnson’s future may be unclear at the moment but there can be no denying that his recent performances – both in preparation for a fight and in the cage itself – will certainly have strengthened his case for getting back into the UFC.

WSOF a Force To Be Reckoned With?

WSOF 2 Review
 By Tommy Strong - @stong_tea

The World Series of Fighting kicked off with its second event last night. With a solid first event and with some very positive reviews and feedback from MMA fans, people were eagerly anticipating the arrival of WSOF2.. 

With the main event being held Atlantic City between two ex UFC fighters:

Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson v Andrei 'The Pit Bull' Arlovski 

Anthony Johnson once a Welterweight contender in the UFC before being cut for failing to make the weight on numerous occasions, now finds himself fighting at heavyweight, weighing in at a staggering 230.5 pounds - A huge step up from the 170 pounds of the Welterweight division he once fought at.

Johnson and Arlovski came out swinging for the fences looking for an early KO, with each man landing his share of decent shots early in their encounter.
Johnson started getting the better of the striking exchanges and landing the heavier blows, at the end of the first round Johnson came very close to finishing Andrei off only to be saved by the clock. Johnson actually thought the ref had stepped in to stop the fight and walked around the cage with his hands raised, only to realise seconds later the ref had called an end to the round.

It was becoming obvious in the 2nd round to that Johnson's cardio was starting to fade. Changing his tactics from the striking and high head kicks to grappling with Arlovski and trying to take him down, much to the  disapproval of his corner!!  

Going into the 3rd round Johnson had 2 rounds in the bank. Will little energy left the natural heavyweight in Arlovski knew he had to take advantage of his fatigue and finish Johnson.  

Arlovski lands a few body shots but couldn't stop Johnson clinching and stalling for time. Neither fighter managed to take the round decisive but Arlovski edges it. 

From a very promising start to the fight, it somewhat petered out in the later rounds. 

The fight goes to the score cards and all judges score the fight the same 29/28 in favour of Johnson.

After the fight Johnson commented that the heavyweights are to big for him, prompting that a return back down to Light-heavyweight is likely to be his next destination. 

Marlon Moraes def. Tyson Nam (Bantamweight)

With Tyson Nam coming into the fight on a 4 fight winning streak and a knock out victory in his last fight ove the Bellator Bantamweight champion Eduardo Dantas in 1 round. Moraes enters the bout coming off a split decision win over Miguel Torres.

Moraes wasted no time finding his range with some leg kicks and a combination of strikes to put Tyson Nam on the back foot whilst Tyson was trying to find that one single knockout punch to end the fight. Moaraes was pressing the action and wouldn't let Nam settle into his stride. 

Moaraes was having great success switching his fighting style from kicks, combinations and take downs, until he lands a high head kick that grazes the top of Nam's head and drops him to the floor giving Moares the chance to finish the fight with a flurry of punches before Kevin Peterson stops the fight! 

David Branch def. Paulo Filho (Middleweight)

Branch put in a very dominant performance by beating Paulo Filho  30/27 , 30/27 30/26  on the judges score cards. 

The score cards don't really reflect the fight, it could've been 30-24 - Branch dictated the fight, striking and take down whenever he felt the need to do so. The only criticism you could aim at Branch was he didn't get the finish over Filho.

This wasn't one of Filho's finest nights, and will want to forget about this fight in a hurry!!

Josh Burkman def. Aaron Simpson (Welterweight)

Josh started very brightly , catching Simpson early on land a 1/2 combination in which Simpson responded by using his wrestling skills to clinch with Burkman up against the cage looking to take Burkman down. 

Burkman showed great clinching and take down defence up against the cage and Simpson seemed to have run out of ideas. Once the fight got back to the centre of the cage Burkman made the most of his opportunity and landed a combination of strikes to unbalance Simpson - rocking him, and up against the cage lands a final knee to the face prompting Dan Miragliotta to put a stop to the fight in the 1st round.

Josh Burkman now gets the opportunity of  fighting Jon Fitch at WSOF 3 .

Justin Gaethje def. Gesias Cavalcante (Lightweight)

Undefeated Justin Garthje got the chance to prove himself against veteran Gesias Cavalcante. 

Right from the off this was looked like it was going to be an entertaining fight whilst it lasted. 

Garthje came out from the bell throwing a leg kick which was countered by Cavalcante with a left & right then attempted a take down which Garthje stuffed and kept the fight standing! 

From there, the better and more accurate striking came from Garthje who started to land with perfect timing including vicious knees up against the cage. His work started to pay off when he opened up Cavalcante's forehead with what looked like an elbow. 

With the ref calling in the doctor to have a look at the cut it was deemed to severe to carry on. With 2.27 of round 1 the contest was over.  Handing Garthje his 8th straight victory with only 1 fight going the distance!

Prelim fight card results:

Danillo Villefort def. Kris McCray via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Rick Glenn def. Alexandre Pimentel via KO (strikes) – Round 3, 

Waylon Lowe def. Cameron Dollar via KO (punch) – Round 1, 

Richard Patishnock def. Igor Gracie via TKO (injury) – Round 1, 

Ozzy Dugulubgov def. Chris Wade via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Brenson Hansen def. Tom Marcellino via TKO (flying knee) – Round 2, 

Bill Algeo def. Frank Buenafuente via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 

Overal Verdict:

Whilst the fights on the card were very entertaining, it was outside of the ring that I felt WSOF struggled to impress. Bas Rutten & Todd Harris were the pairing that failed to connect most on Saturday night.

Play by play commentary is without doubt a very hard job to master and connect with the viewing public, but I felt the connection just wasn't there and at times cringeworthy. 
I don't want to give both of them a hard time seeing as its only their second show working together . But there were too many errors from play to play commentary/interviews to getting names mixed up. 

Hopefully this will be worked upon by the next event in March! 

I score the card overall a solid 7.5/10.