5. Demetrious Johnson
UFC Flyweight Champion, 2012-2018Sherdog's greatest flyweight ever finishes a slightly surprising fifth, though only a few points separate him from third place. Personally, I had him No. 2, the same rank I gave him on Sherdog's pound-for-pound greatest list. Johnson was a nearly perfect fighter in every way, especially his cardio, the greatest in the sport's history, and his fight IQ and mental preparation, certainly among the very best as well. He consistently made great decisions throughout a fight, even very deep into the final stanza. Additionally, he had phenomenal grappling, an outstanding mix of wrestling and BJJ, and excellent striking, especially his kicks, as well as his tireless and technical movement.
Beginning with a split decision over Joseph Benavidez to ascend to the flyweight throne in 2012 until a split decision loss to Henry Cejudo in 2018, Johnson recorded incredible 11 title defenses, a UFC record. Moreover, none were remotely close. That includes viciously knocking out Benavidez in the first round in their rematch, twice defeating the very dangerous and skilled John Dodson, achieving late fifth round submissions over John Moraga, Ray Borg and Kyoji Horiguchi—the last a second before fight ended—earlier submissions over Wilson Reis and Chris Cariaso, five round beatings of Ali Bagautinov and Tim Elliott, and a quick knockout of Henry Cejudo in their first encounter. Despite Johnson likely being slightly past his prime for the Cejudo rematch and his great opponent turning in the fight of his life, it's still an open question who should have won, so evenly matched were the duo. A lot of fans don't appreciate Johnson's greatness since he fought in the relatively neglected and overlooked flyweight division, and that's a crying shame.
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