Anthony Johnson (fighter) facts for kids

Anthony Kewoa Johnson (March 6, 1984 – November 13, 2022) was an American mixed martial artist. He was famous for fighting in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He also fought for Bellator MMA. Anthony Johnson competed in many different weight classes, including welterweight, middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight.

He was known by his nickname, Rumble. This name came from his powerful punches that could knock out opponents. He was even ranked as one of the best light heavyweight fighters in the world. In 2011, he had a small acting part as a fighter in the movie Warrior.

Early Life and Wrestling

Anthony Kewoa Johnson was born in Dublin, Georgia. His grandparents raised him from a young age. Growing up, his heroes were his grandfather and the famous football player Walter Payton.

He went to West Laurens High School. Later, he attended Lassen College in Susanville, California. He earned a wrestling scholarship there and became a national wrestling champion in junior college. After college, a friend suggested he try mixed martial arts because of his wrestling skills. Anthony started fighting at age 20.

Mixed Martial Arts Career

Anthony Johnson had an exciting career in mixed martial arts. He was known for his powerful strikes and exciting fights.

Fighting in the UFC

Anthony Johnson started his UFC journey at UFC Fight Night 10. He won his first fight very quickly, knocking out Chad Reiner in just thirteen seconds. He took this fight with very little notice, stepping in for another injured fighter.

After this quick win, he faced Rich Clementi at UFC 76. He lost this fight by a submission move called a rear-naked choke. But he quickly bounced back!

Johnson then fought Tom Speer at UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Lauzon. He won that fight by knockout early in the first round.

He had a memorable fight against Kevin Burns at UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Irvin. During the fight, Johnson was poked in the eyes several times. In the third round, another eye poke made him unable to continue. The referee stopped the fight, and Burns was declared the winner. Johnson fought Burns again at The Ultimate Fighter 8 Finale. This time, Johnson won by knocking Burns out with a head kick. This knockout earned him a "Knockout of The Night" bonus.

Johnson continued his winning streak against Luigi Fioravanti at UFC Fight Night: Lauzon vs. Stephens. He won by technical knockout in the first round.

He was supposed to fight Matt Brown, but a knee injury made him pull out. Instead, he fought Yoshiyuki Yoshida at UFC 104. Johnson was a bit too heavy for this fight, so he had to give up some of his prize money. Still, he knocked out Yoshida very quickly, in just 41 seconds.

Johnson then faced Josh Koscheck at UFC 106. Both fighters earned "Fight of the Night" honors for their exciting match. Koscheck won this fight by submission.

After another knee injury, Johnson thought about moving to a heavier weight class. He usually had to lose a lot of weight to make the welterweight limit.

Johnson returned to the UFC in 2011. He fought Dan Hardy at UFC Fight Night 24. Johnson used his wrestling skills to control the fight and won by a unanimous decision. He even dropped Hardy with a head kick in the first round!

He was scheduled to fight Nate Marquardt, but an injury forced him out again. Johnson then fought Charlie Brenneman at UFC on Versus 6. He won this fight with a first-round knockout, earning another "Knockout of the Night" award.

For his next fight, Johnson tried to move up to middleweight to fight Vitor Belfort at UFC 142. However, he struggled with his weight again and was too heavy for the fight. He lost to Belfort by submission in the first round. After this, Johnson was released from the UFC.

Fighting Outside the UFC

After leaving the UFC, Johnson fought in other promotions. He fought David Branch at Titan Fighting Championships 22. Again, Johnson missed the weight limit for this fight. Despite this, he won the fight by a unanimous decision.

He then made his light heavyweight debut at Titan Fighting Championships 24. He won this fight quickly, by TKO in the second round. Johnson also fought Jake Rosholt at Xtreme Fight Night 9, winning by TKO with a head kick.

Johnson then joined the World Series of Fighting. He fought D.J. Linderman at WSOF 1 and won by knockout in the first round. He even fought at heavyweight against Andrei Arlovski at WSOF 2, winning by unanimous decision.

His fight against Mike Kyle was first scheduled for WSOF 5 but was delayed due to an injury. They eventually fought at WSOF 8. Johnson won by knockout in the first round.

Return to the UFC

In 2014, Anthony Johnson signed a new contract to return to the UFC. He decided to stay in the light heavyweight division. His first fight back was against Phil Davis at UFC 172. Even though many people thought he would lose, Johnson won by unanimous decision. He stopped all of Davis's attempts to take him down and controlled the fight.

Johnson then faced Antônio Rogério Nogueira at UFC on Fox 12. He won this fight by knockout in just 44 seconds, earning a "Performance of the Night" bonus.

Temporary Suspension and Comeback

In late 2014, Johnson was temporarily suspended by the UFC while they looked into a personal matter. After the case was closed, the UFC allowed him to fight again.

Johnson's next big fight was against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC on Fox 14. The winner of this fight would get a chance to fight for the UFC title. Johnson won by TKO in the first round, becoming the first fighter to stop Gustafsson with strikes. This win also earned him another "Performance of the Night" bonus.

Johnson was set to fight Jon Jones for the UFC Light Heavyweight title at UFC 187. However, Jones was removed from the fight. So, Johnson fought Daniel Cormier for the vacant title instead. Johnson knocked Cormier down early in the first round, but Cormier eventually won the fight by submission in the third round.

Johnson then fought Jimi Manuwa at UFC 191. After controlling the first round, Johnson won by knockout early in the second round.

His next opponent was Ryan Bader at UFC on Fox 18. Bader tried to take Johnson down, but Johnson defended well and won by knockout. This was his fourth "Performance of the Night" bonus.

Johnson was supposed to fight Glover Teixeira at UFC on Fox 20, but the fight was moved to UFC 202. Johnson defeated Teixeira by knockout in just 13 seconds, earning his fifth "Performance of the Night" bonus.

A rematch with champion Daniel Cormier was planned for UFC 206, but Cormier got injured. The fight was rescheduled for UFC 210. In this fight, Johnson tried to use his wrestling more, which tired him out. He lost the fight to Cormier by submission in the second round. After this fight, Anthony Johnson announced he was retiring from the UFC and combat sports.

In 2017, Johnson joined a new gym called Combat Sports after his previous team, Blackzilians, closed down. In 2019, he announced he would return to fighting, planning to compete at heavyweight. He officially entered the testing pool in 2020, making him eligible to fight again in 2021.

Fighting in Bellator MMA

In December 2020, Anthony Johnson signed a new contract with Bellator MMA. In February 2021, he was announced as a participant in the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament.

He was scheduled to fight Yoel Romero in the quarterfinals, but Romero had to pull out. Jose Augusto stepped in as his replacement. Johnson survived being knocked down in the first round and came back to win by knockout in the second round.

Johnson was then set to face the champion, Vadim Nemkov, in the semifinals. However, Johnson had to withdraw from the tournament due to an illness. He hoped to return to fighting in 2022.

Personal Life and Passing

After his fighting career, Anthony Johnson started a company that sold CBD oil. In early 2019, he also became the head of fighter relations for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.

Anthony Johnson passed away on November 13, 2022. He died from a rare blood disease called Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and a type of cancer called non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Championships and Achievements

Anthony Johnson achieved several honors during his career:

Amateur Wrestling

• National Junior College Athletic Association
  • Junior College National Champion (174 lbs) – for Lassen Community College (2004)

Mixed Martial Arts

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Josh Koscheck
  • Knockout of the Night (Two times) vs. Kevin Burns and Charlie Brenneman
  • Performance of the Night (Five times) vs. Antônio Rogério Nogueira, Alexander Gustafsson, Jimi Manuwa, Ryan Bader and Glover Teixeira

Mixed Martial Arts Record

Pay-per-view Bouts

Anthony Johnson was part of two major pay-per-view events in the UFC:

See Also

In Spanish: Anthony Johnson (peleador) para niños

• List of male mixed martial artists