Henry Cejudo has an idea.
It’s an idea Cejudo came by honestly, after spending just shy of three minutes in the Octagon with Demetrious Johnson on Saturday at UFC 197.
Almost all of those 169 seconds looked painful for the former Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling, and at the end of them, Cejudo found himself curled up on the canvas as the referee stepped in to save him from the UFC flyweight champ.
In his own words at the post-fight press conference, the experience left Cejudo “humbled.”
It also left him with a suggestion—that perhaps Johnson should chase greener financial pastures at bantamweight.
“I’m actually curious to see him fight at 135 and fight for the championship,” Cejudo said. “I want to see how good Demetrious Johnson really is and how far he could take it.”
Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge.
We all see what you’re doing here, Henry. You’re not fooling anybody.
Nah, just playing.
In all seriousness, Cejudo handled his loss to Johnson—which was his first professional defeat and snapped a four-fight tear inside the Octagon—like a real pro. He was gracious and honest in defeat, showcasing the class no doubt honed through years as a world-class grappler.
But Cejudo’s words also add more weight to an idea that has been gaining traction lately in the public discourse: that Johnson should indeed abandon his kingdom at 125 pounds in pursuit of a superfight with 135-pound champion Dominick Cruz.
And when Cejudo casually floats this idea, it’s easy to imagine the rest of the flyweight division enthusiastically nodding along behind the scenes.
There’s just one problem.
Johnson himself isn’t having it.
Hopping up in weight to try to avenge his 2011 loss to Cruz would no doubt be the most lucrative option for Johnson right now. But from his position ensconced at 125 pounds—where he is as safely embedded as any champion in the UFC—he’s closing in on perhaps a more significant milestone.
Johnson needs just two more wins to tie Anderson Silva’s record of 10 consecutive UFC title defenses. In the absence of any truly Ruthian numbers in MMA, it must be considered among the sport’s most hallowed historical marks.
For Johnson, it sounds like that pursuit of history takes precedence over almost everything else.
"I've never shied away from that fight with Cruz,” Johnson said at the UFC 197 post-fight presser. “[But] my biggest goal right now is to break that title defense [streak] of Anderson Silva, and I believe I can do it."
In fact, he’s the only person close.
Once upon a time, both Georges St-Pierre and Jon Jones were on the verge of matching Silva’s streak. St-Pierre had run his time with the welterweight title to nine successful defenses before he relinquished the belt at the end of 2013. Jones had amassed eight defenses of his light heavyweight crown before the UFC stripped him of it in the wake of a hit-and-run accident in April 2015.
St-Pierre still hasn’t returned to active duty from his indefinite hiatus. Each day that passes makes it seem as though his break from the sport will become permanent. The UFC reinstated Jones a few months ago, and on Saturday, he made his successful return to the cage with a drubbing of an overmatched Ovince Saint Preux.
Even if Jones regains the 205-pound championship when he renews his feud with Daniel Cormier later this year, his run of consecutive title defenses will have to start again at zero. Likewise, rumors of St-Pierre’s return constantly swirl, but he too would begin from scratch if and when he deems himself ready to reappear.
Aside from those two, the only other UFC champions close to equaling Silva—Jose Aldo (seven title defenses) and Ronda Rousey (six)—both lost their titles via crushing knockouts in late 2015.
That leaves Johnson standing as far and away the UFC’s longest-reigning champion and the only one with an imminent chance to break the record. After him, the next-closest current titlists are 170-pound champ Robbie Lawler and strawweight queen Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Right now, Lawler and Jedrzejczyk have two title defenses apiece.
So you can see why this opportunity might be attractive to Johnson. Despite the fact he’s been as dominant as any UFC champ in history since winning the title in September 2012, he’s failed to distinguish himself with fans and among the list of the Octagon’s all-time greats. Or, perhaps more accurately, fans have failed to distinguish him.
When I spoke to him prior to his title defense against John Dodson at UFC 191, Johnson mentioned the importance of this accomplishment. As a champion who is not likely to be truly appreciated in his own time, he understands he’s building a legacy for the future.
“[Someday] people will look at my history,” he told me at the time, sounding a little defiant about the lack of respect he gets from some observers. “That will never be taken away from me.”
In the respect department, he has arguably made important strides in recent days.
Johnson’s victory over Cejudo was one of five stoppages in his last seven victories. It was also flat-out ridiculous in its impressiveness. He beat the former Olympic wrestler largely in the clinch, a position that should have been advantageous for Cejudo.
After weathering one takedown, Johnson battered his opponent with knees to the head and midsection, stunned him with an elbow and finished him with strikes on the ground. In terms of sheer brilliance, it ranks right up there with his master class over Dodson in their last fight and his first-round KO of Joseph Benavidez in December 2013.
Surpassing Silva, however, would give Johnson a historical benchmark with which to highlight his greatness.
For years, Silva was considered the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world and the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. It seemed as though the dominance he displayed and the numbers he put up might never be equaled.
Lately, however, his career has slipped into mediocrity—and even dishonor—after a pair of losses to Chris Weidman and then a positive steroid test in the wake of his win over Nick Diaz on Jan. 31, 2015.
Johnson’s victory over Cejudo should rightly give him the edge over Jones as the current consensus No. 1 pound-for-pound. Where he will ultimately wind up historically will take awhile longer to accurately determine.
If he can meet or break Silva’s record—perhaps with a win over No. 3 Jussier Formiga and then a potential rematch against someone like Benavidez—any arguments against him being one of the very best ever start to seem pretty hollow.
That's great news for a man as obviously smart and self-aware as Johnson.
It's good news for fans, who could get to see Johnson make history before he even turns 31 years old.
It's bad news for the rest of the UFC's flyweights, who will have to wait for their chance at glory until Johnson is ready for a bigger challenge.
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