UFC on Versus 6 Preview - Demetrious Johnson

Demetrious Johnson may be the shortest fighter in the UFC at five feet three inches, but his heart makes up for what he lacks in stature.
Johnson, a former WEC fighter, made his UFC debut against Japanese phenom, Norifumi Yamamoto in a relatively young bantamweight division. Johnson earned the win over Yamamoto through his superior conditioning, and his sheer will to win. Johnson worked tirelessly on the ground to control the pace of the fight and frustrated Yamamoto. Johnson solidified himself as a force within the division with a unanimous nod over the favorite.
After such a big win, it was arranged for Johnson to fight up-and-coming Brazilian, Ranan Barão. He caught a stroke of luck when former WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres’ opponent, Brad Pickett was forced off of the same card. Johnson stepped in to fight Torres, and put on the defining moment of his career.
Johnson’s superior heart was the deciding factor in a fight of two possible future title contenders. He used his superior wrestling to control the taller Torres. Johnson was picking apart Torres with his boxing, when early in the second round, he checked a leg kick and his fibula snapped in two. Johnson played off the injury so the fight was not called, and allowed Torres to put him to the mat. Once there, Johnson worked off of his back, and executed sweeps and reversals when they were available. The judges thought he did enough, even with the broken leg to earn the unanimous victory.
In his fight for the title at UFC Live 6, versus Dominick Cruz, he will need a lot more than just heart and determination to wrest the bantamweight title from Cruz’s waist. Cruz, even though he stands five feet eight inches, incredibly, he only has a two-inch reach advantage. The height difference won’t play much of a factor in the fight, but Cruz’s takedown defense will. In his most recent title defense, against Urijah Faber, he was only taken down once, and he stuffed 4 of Faber’s takedowns. His career takedown defense is an astounding 83 percent.
Johnson has shown improved striking skills, but they aren’t on the level of “The Dominator” just yet. If Johnson can get inside Cruz’s guard, he still isn’t safe. Shortly after his UFC 132 title defense, he was awarded his BJJ blue belt, under Lloyd Irvin, Jr. If Johnson decides to be content and strike from within Cruz’s guard, he will find himself waking up from a triangle choke. Johnson will have to try and play this one safe, but doing so will result in Dominick Cruz retaining his title with a unanimous decision.