It was announced earlier this week that the winner of season 24 of The Ultimate Fighter will win a shot at the UFC flyweight title. Interestingly, the announcement was as much of a shock to reigning champ Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson as it was to the rest of the MMA world.
“That’s crazy. That’s super weird,” Johnson said of the announcement during a live Twitch stream. “So the winner would face the champion. Joseph (Benavidez) should enter the contest.”
“That’s super crazy. That’s super odd,” he added. “That’s kind of f**ked up for all the other guys that have been in the division for a long time. I have to read that again, that’s very odd. I’m confused a little bit, very confused.”
Although the UFC’s 125lb division has been criticized for being relatively thin regarding title contenders, Johnson still feels there is enough talent there already that a relative unknown jumping the queue by winning a reality show is somewhat unfair.
“So what about the current flyweight contenders? No matter how amazing they perform, they’re not getting the shot.”
Mighty Mouse is currently scheduled to defend his title against Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo at UFC 197 on April 23rd.
The next season of TUF, TUF 23, premieres on Fox Sports 1 on April 20th.
