LAS VEGAS – Michael Johnson beat Darrius Flowers with a unanimous decision Saturday on the main card at UFC Fight Night 236 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Johnson, who has alternated wins and losses his past six fights dating back three years.
Darrius Flowers vs. Michael Johnson
Result: Michael Johnson def. Darrius Flowers via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Updated records: Johnson (22-19 MMA, 14-15 UFC), Flowers (12-7-1 MMA, 0-2 UFC)
Key stats: Johnson landed four takedowns and had more than six minutes of total control time.
Johnson on the fight's key moment
“I’ve been in his position before coming into the UFC fighting guys that have been around, and I’m not necessarily knowing where his head is, but when I was in that position, my head was to think, ‘I’m going to make a name off this guy.’ I’m going to fight a complete fight. He’s dangerous. He’s very strong. I just had to play vintage MJ – get back to my wrestling and make sure I got out with a win.”
Johnson on blocking Flowers on social media
“I told him, ‘Don’t worry – I’ll unblock you.’ … He’s the first one I’ve fought that I saw that followed me and that we kind of kept in touch on social media. You can call (blocking him) a little bit of bullsh*t, mental warfare, whatever. But he was my enemy, so he didn’t need to be watching my story, and I guess it got to him a little bit. But fight’s over – I’ll unblock him now. So we’re good.”
Johnson on what he wants next
“(I want) as many (fights) as possible. I’ve got three more left on my contract. I’d like to finish all three of them this year and look to get a new contract and get as close as I can to the top of the division.
“I’m still in a hunt to be the best in the world. I’m still holding on to that dream of becoming a world champion, no matter when I get it done. The most important thing for me is to get it done. So if I’ve got to start back to the bottom and fight these new guys, so be it. I’m in a great position: I’m healthy, I have a great team behind me, a great mindset and I’m going to keep on working toward it. ”
To hear more from Johnson, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 236.
