Johnny Walker shares plans for two-division title reign

By Tom Taylor - July 15, 2019

Johnny Walker is closing in on a title fight with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, but he believes he’s got a bit more work to do before Jones gives him the opportunity.

Johnny Walker, Jon Jones, Jimi Manuwa

“I still haven’t done much (in the UFC),” Walker told MMA Fighting recently. “But there aren’t many guys who would give me a big challenge. I don’t have to beat a top 5. People talk too much crap, man. People say I don’t have jiu-jitsu, I don’t have wrestling. They say I have to fight a wrestler. The last wrestler I fought lasted five seconds. I’m ready for him and I know I’d be a big challenge. I think he’s afraid to lose to an unknown guy.”

While Johnny Walker is focused on capturing the light heavyweight title, he’s also recently teased a fight with ferocious heavyweight knockout artist Francis Ngannou. From the sounds of it, he’s quite serious about challenging the Cameroonian-French destroyer. In fact, he’s willing to fight pretty much anybody in the UFC heavyweight division.

“I’d like to impress the fans by beating Francis Ngannou. He’s a machine,” Walker said. “He impressed so many people with his punching power, the way he finishes his fights. People is scared to fight him. I’m not scared to fight him. We have the same punching power. I did the test at the UFC Performance Institute. I was coming off a surgery and almost did the same number he did, so I have the same power or even more. I can definitely defeat him.

“I think I’ll have to fight two more times before fighting (Jones), so I’ll get things going in any division,” he added. “If they need a fight at heavyweight, I’m in. I don’t choose opponents. I’ll fight anyone. I don’t care if it’s a top 10, a top 20, a top 2. It’s just a regular human being that will get beat up the same way.”

Suffice it to say that Johnny Walker is hoping to make waves in the UFC’s two heaviest divisions. In fact, he’s hoping to capture titles in both weight classes.

“It will happen. That’s my plan,” Walker said. “I want two belts. It’s not ‘if’, it’s ‘when’. I came here to make history. This is what I do for a living. I chose to do this for a living. If I was an engineer or a Formula 1 driver I’d want to be the No. 1. I’m a fighter, and I want to be the greatest of all-time.”

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 7/15/2019.


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