Michael Johnson was taken off guard by Marc Diakiese’s post-fight reaction.
Saturday, Johnson (22-18 MMA, 13-14 UFC) defeated Diakiese (16-6 MMA, 7-6 UFC) in a unanimous decision on the preliminary card of UFC on ESPN 42. The longtime fighter thought he won comfortably and was confused to see Diakiese react surprised to the judges’ call.
“I looked at him, and listen, bro: Don’t (get offended). I’ve been getting robbed my whole career. You didn’t get robbed – trust me,” Johnson told reporters at the UFC on ESPN 42 post-fight press conference (via Bro Bible).
“I don’t know why he thought he did a lot. I don’t really think he hit me with much. He hit me in the back of the head a few times when I was ducking down. His kicks were getting blocked. He’s missing a lot. He’s a very spazzy guy and very explosive, so I had to be careful tonight.”
Diakiese had plenty to say in the build -up to the fight, which somewhat bothered Johsnon. But at the end of the day, Johnson doesn’t take any of the talk personal.
“Whatever you need to do to talk yourself into fighting, that’s all good for me,” Johnson said. “He asked for this fight and I obliged. He got what he asked for. He’s a very tough opponent, but there are levels, and I think it showed tonight. He still has a lot to grow. He’ll learn a lot from this.”
The decision put Johnson back on the win column after a controversial split decision loss to Jamie Mullarkey in July.