Demetrious Johnson says he “might never fight again” due to COVID-19 pandemic

ONE Championship star Demetrious Johnson has admitted that he may never fight again as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Johnson made the transition over to ONE from the Ultimate Fighting Championship in late 2018 with Ben Askren heading in the opposite direction, and ever since then, he’s been able to go 3-0 in the promotion – with all three of those wins coming in the 2019 Flyweight Grand Prix.

Now that he hasn’t fought for over a year after his April title shot was called off due to the pandemic, Johnson has admitted that there’s a chance he may never fight again.

“I hope we don’t see a COVID-22, knock on wood right now,” Johnson told MMA Junkie Radio. “You just never know. I mean, COVID-19, like I’m not going to lie – I was getting ready for this fight, I had my ticket booked to go out to Jakarta, and then this (explicit) just happened.

“And then to sit on the sidelines for a full year, I’m going to have to start thinking about something else because it only takes one new virus to wipe out your entire career,” Johnson added. “I thought, ‘What if I never fight again? What if I never fight again because of COVID-19?’

“I might never fight again, all that needs to happen is COVID 2022, and everything gets shut down, no live events,” Johnson continued. “COVID-19 didn’t really hit me hard. I didn’t care about fighting. I just cared about being with my wife and kids, helping them being successful in their schooling. Obviously, me staying healthy for when the time comes I can be ready to fight. But when the COVID-19 hit, I was more father-retirement mode because when else I’m I going to fight again, I don’t know.”

What do you think the future holds for Demetrious Johnson amid the coronavirus pandemic?