UFC Legend Trashes NBA Star James Johnson: "Is He Out Of His F****** Mind?"

The UFC Hall of Famer got brutally honest with Johnson.

Fernando Quiles Jr. | Oct 3, 2023

UFC Legend Trashes NBA Star James Johnson: "Is He Out Of His F****** Mind?" /

When an NBA star expressed his belief that he could defeat a current UFC champion, it amused many within the MMA community.

Back in September, NBA forward James Johnson took to the "Rookie Life" podcast and claimed that with one year of MMA training, he could beat UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Johnson insisted that the only thing he'd need to work on is his grappling. He even claimed to have more experience in the standup game over "Bones."

As one would expect, the MMA community has had a good laugh at the expense of Johnson. Johnson supposedly has experience with kickboxing and MMA matches, but no footage has ever surfaced of Johnson fighting in a proper sanctioned bout.

Johnson's comments have drawn the attention of former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. "DC" took to his YouTube channel to put James Johnson on blast.

"Can you just decide that you can be the heavyweight champion of the world? Is he out of his f****** mind? In a mixed martial arts fight wrestling, it was hard for me to take him down," Cormier said.

Cormier isn't the only notable UFC Hall of Famer who has chimed in. In a video posted on his YouTube page, Michael Bisping said that Johnson's take on a potential fight against Jon Jones is "stupid."

Jones has bigger fish to fry than worrying about an NBA player calling him out for a fight. He will be putting the UFC Heavyweight Championship on the line when he meets Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 on November 11. The action will be held inside Madison Square Garden in New York City.

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Published Oct 3, 2023

FERNANDO QUILES JR.

Fernando has over a decade of combat sports news writing experience. He currently covers MMA, boxing, and pro wrestling. Fernando joined MMA Knockout as the Lead Writer/Editor when it was founded in 2023.