Demetrious Johnson, the talented bantamweight that now has the opportunity to be the first flyweight champion in the UFC, has signed a landmark bout agreement with ZUFFA for a ‘sudden death’ round for his fight with Ian McCall at UFC on FX 2. The agreement stipulates that if, after 3 rounds, the judges are undecided on a winner, the fight will go to a 4th round, also called “sudden death.” In a recent interview with TapouT Radio, Mighty Mouse detailed the particulars.
“I don’t know if anybody has said anything about it, and this is the first time I’m mentioning it, is that we (McCall and himself) had to sign for a ‘sudden death’ bout. If it goes to three rounds, and the judges can’t decide who the winner is, then we’ll do a fourth round.”
When asked if this new agreement was specific to his fight, or if it was universal for the entire card, Johnson had this to say,
“I’m assuming that it’s for me and Ian McCall. I can’t say if it’s going to be for Joseph (Benavides) and Yasuhiro (Urushitani), because I’m not gonna say that the UFC made those guys sign, too. I’m telling you, specifically, that I signed a contract for an extra round on the bout agreement. I’m not gonna say that they did. I’m assuming, in my unprofessional opinion, that they did as well.”
Whether this addendum is designed for the introduction of the flyweight division and accompanying tourney, or if it’s something the UFC is instituting for overseas and domestic cards in general, the concept is a good one. For all those times we, as fans, have said ‘One more round!’, this could be the game changer. Hopefully, we get some clarity on the permanence, or lack thereof, for this new twist.
“I don’t know if anybody has said anything about it, and this is the first time I’m mentioning it, is that we (McCall and himself) had to sign for a ‘sudden death’ bout. If it goes to three rounds, and the judges can’t decide who the winner is, then we’ll do a fourth round.”
When asked if this new agreement was specific to his fight, or if it was universal for the entire card, Johnson had this to say,
“I’m assuming that it’s for me and Ian McCall. I can’t say if it’s going to be for Joseph (Benavides) and Yasuhiro (Urushitani), because I’m not gonna say that the UFC made those guys sign, too. I’m telling you, specifically, that I signed a contract for an extra round on the bout agreement. I’m not gonna say that they did. I’m assuming, in my unprofessional opinion, that they did as well.”
Whether this addendum is designed for the introduction of the flyweight division and accompanying tourney, or if it’s something the UFC is instituting for overseas and domestic cards in general, the concept is a good one. For all those times we, as fans, have said ‘One more round!’, this could be the game changer. Hopefully, we get some clarity on the permanence, or lack thereof, for this new twist.
