Demetrious Johnson Says Anderson Silva’s Record is a Stepping Stone

Demetrious Johnson spoke on Monday (via MMAjunkie) ahead of his fight with Wilson Reis at UFC on FOX 24. Some highlights are below:

On tying Anderson Silva’s record for title defenses if he beats Reis: “Ten is just a stepping stone. The ultimate goal is eleven. It’s like Floyd Mayweather when he got to 49-0. Why would you stop there? You can easily get to 50-0 and be the only fighter to ever do it. No, I’m going past ten; my goal is to go past ten.”

On not feeling pressure: “Let’s say I go out there Saturday, and I’m not successful. I’ve far exceeded my expectations to when I got into this sport. You hear these fighters all the time, ‘I was destined to do this; it’s my destiny.’ How the (expletive) do you know what you’re destiny is? You’re only 25 years old. You don’t even have any kids. … When people talk about this destiny stuff, OK, that’s their fill…Here I am, I’ve got the belt. Like I said, I far exceeded my expectations. I’m very happy with my career, and I’m looking forward to keep on building more things to exceed my expectations.”