Stress-free Anthony Johnson ahead of UFC 210: 'I usually don't let people survive a second time'

Back in 2015, Anthony Johnson had been preparing for then-UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones when his involvement in a hit-and-run had him stripped of the title and removed from their UFC 187 battle.

Johnson kept his May 23 appointment and his shot at the belt. But with Jones out, “Rumble” would have to beat Daniel Cormier to earn it.

That, we now know, didn’t happen. Instead, Cormier (18-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) went on to submit Johnson (22-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) in the third round to take home the 205-pound crown. Although the outcome was positive, Cormier has said that, given he was able to get the job done on a three-week camp, he expects an even better outcome now that he’s had 12 weeks to prepare for their UFC 210 rematch.

Johnson has taken note. And while he won’t badmouth or take “nothing away” from the champ, the challenger would like to point out he was also affected by the changes back then.

And also, like Cormier, Johnson is fully prepared this time.

“He deserves to be a grinder,” Johnson told MMAjunkie ahead of Saturday’s pay-per-view main event at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.  “That’s just who he is. But that shouldn’t have affected me the way that it did. But it’s a big difference when you’re preparing for one person and all of a sudden you’re preparing for somebody else at the last second. It changes up everything. Your body isn’t used to certain things. That’s the whole point of training.

“He started saying, ‘Oh, he still had a full camp.’ Yeah, I had a full camp. But I wasn’t ready for you. But this time I will be, so be ready. Be ready because, mentally and physically, you ain’t fighting the same person. And I know I’m not fighting the same person, so, guess what: I trained 10 times as hard as you think I did.”

Johnson’s confidence is not exactly unwarranted. Since the setback to Cormier, he’s gone back to his devastating ways, racking up three “Performance of the Night” bonuses for the consecutive knockouts of Jimi Manuwa, Ryan Bader and, more recently, Glover Teixeira.

The momentum, Johnson says, is the reflection of simple determination. And, as successful as he’s been in his recent outings, he assures this camp has been the best one yet.

“I’m just focused, and I’m just determined to win,” Johnson said. “I missed the title the first time, so now I’m more determined than ever to get it. I’m happy, I’m healthy, I’m focused – stress-free.

“Everything is going so well for me right now. I’m in such a good place, and this is the best camp I’ve had, honestly ever. I have never felt the way I feel right now about anything. I’m just excited and ready to fight.”

Where does this current state of bliss come from?

“From not having a girlfriend,” Johnson said with a laugh. “That’s what it’s called. Overall, everybody’s been so supportive, and the energy has been great. Right now, I’m just in a good place – everybody’s positive, we’ve been working together.

“Nobody’s been, ‘You can’t do this, you can’t do that.’ Everybody’s been putting their head together and making it work like it should.”

‘Daniel is his own cheerleader’

While he was ultimately outworked in his first encounter with Cormier, Johnson had a big moment when, in the first round, one of his thunderous punches sent Cormier to the canvas. Johnson never felt like it was over in that moment. But he does hope for a different outcome should his hand land this time around.

“I dropped him, and I was like, ‘I got him,'” Johnson said. “But I was far from thinking the fight was over. Hopefully, if I hit him again that way, we’ll see if he can survive. He survived the first one. I usually don’t let people survive a second time.”

Another moment that would become a focal point of that encounter was when coach Henry Hooft repeatedly yelled “Don’t give up!” from Johnson’s corner – an interaction that Cormier would later assess as further proof of what he felt was a tendency by Johnson to relent when things get tough.

Hooft’s words, Johnson explained, were nothing more than encouragement. And he isn’t particularly fazed by Cormier’s interpretation of them.

“Of course, anybody in that situation or that position is always going to tell their fighter ‘Don’t give up,'” Johnson said. “You want to keep fighting. Sometimes you’re in a position where you have no choice but to give up – hell, you need to give up, or you get choked out and passed out.  It doesn’t mean that you’re weak mentally, or physically, it’s just,’keep trying, do your best, don’t give up.’ That’s just words of encouragement. That’s not saying, ‘Don’t give up, because you’re weak.’ Nothing like that.

“With Daniel saying that – Daniel is his own cheerleader. He’s his biggest cheerleader, and that’s fine. Daniel can believe what he wants to believe and say what he wants to say. He’s his biggest cheerleader and his worst promoter.”

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