Drew Dober added to his lightweight track record in the UFC at UFC 326, putting away Michael Johnson with a solid left hand.
Dober tried to get things going early with his leg kicks, though Johnson landed a strong right hand to the side of his head and clipped him again late in the first round.
Dober, however, needed just one left hand a couple of minutes into the second round to put Johnson stiff on the mat.
Drew Dober KOs Michael Johnson At UFC 326
The fight faced a lot of attention prior to the contest. Dober went from a +120 underdog to a -220 favorite in an extreme swing over the course of approximately 24 hours. FanDuel and DraftKings both locked the fight from bets in the hours leading up to UFC 326.
Dober has now scored back-to-back finishes after previously going on a stretch where he lost four of five. Dober is now 29-15 (1 NC) in his MMA career.
Johnson entered this fight on a three-fight win streak and with four wins in his previous five.
The hits keep on coming to UFC 324 — the UFC’s debut event on Paramount — in the hours leading into the fights.
Hours before they were set to duke it out on the preliminary card, the fight between Michael Johnson and Alex Perez was canceled.
The UFC announced the news at about 2 pm ET on January 24 — three hours before UFC 324’s start.
No reason was given by the promotion; however, those in the MMA betting space noted strange activity on the betting lines of this fight.
Users across social media, including X (fka Twitter) and Reddit, noted a peculiar line change on DraftKings. On Jan. 22, Johnson was listed as a +135 underdog. After money “flooded in” on the 39-year-old, however, both fighters were listed in the sportsbook the next day as a -110 pick ’em play.
Michael Johnson vs. Alexander Hernandez Off Of UFC 318; Suspicious Betting Activity Reported
Micheal Johnson has come in for some serious cash today and Hernandez odds drifting like a barge
Evan so some sites have removed prop betting and have only left the money line
There has been some speculation that Hernandez may be dealing with a hand injury; however, that has not been confirmed by any parties as of press time.
In November, the UFC came under heavy scrutiny after suspicious betting patterns were detected ahead of the Isaac Dulgarian vs. Yadier Del Valle fight at UFC Vegas 110. After Dulgarian was finished in the first round, Dulgarian was released by the UFC and investigations were launched.
New York-based MMA promoter and writer Harry Mac made more claims of suspicious betting activity, while Ariel Helwani reported on his show that a number of fighters had been approached about the idea of throwing fights. A number of fighters (joking or not) released statements on social media claiming they had been approached in the past.
The card will proceed on with 11 bouts. Cameron Smotherman was pulled from his UFC 324 matchup against Ricky Turcious yesterday after collapsing during the ceremonial weigh-ins.
Johnson has won three straight and four of his last five. He was coming into this scheduled bout off a decision win over Daniel Zellhuber at UFC 318.
Hernandez has won four straight, most recently scoring a finish of Carlos Diego Ferreira at Noche UFC 3.
Coming into this fight as the biggest underdog at +500, 39-year-old Michael Johnson showed age means experience, putting on a solid performance and defeating Daniel Zellhuber to open the UFC 318 pay-per-view main card.
Both men had their moments in the opening round with their kind of strikes — Johnson landing powerful punches upstairs, while Zellhuber landed around the body with a kick-based offense.
Zellhuber had the speedier shots in the first round and tried to carry that momentum into the second round. Johnson, however, landed a right-left combo that dropped Zellhuber. Zellhuber tried to get back in it, but this proved to be the turning point of the battle.
Johnson focused on landing at Zellhuber’s body with his strikes during the third, and he came away with the unanimous decision.
Michael Johnson Bests Daniel Zellhuber In Experience vs. Youth Striking Battle
Johnson entered tonight with four wins in his last six, most recently knocking out Ottman Azaiatar at UFC Tampa in December.
Zellhuber had won three straight but lost his most recent bout prior to tonight — dropping a split decision against Esteban Ribovics in 2024’s Fight of the Year at Noche UFC 2: UFC 306.
Michael Johnson knows firsthand the challenge of stepping into the Octagon with Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The two faced off in November 2016 at UFC 205, where Khabib submitted Johnson in the third round of their lightweight bout.
“The Menace” had taken the fight on just two weeks’ notice, a fact that added to the difficulty of facing the undefeated Dagestani fighter. Fans may remember the intense moment during the fight when Khabib was heard telling Johnson to give up, claiming he needed a title fight.
“I was like, ‘F*ck you!’” Johnson recalled during an appearance on Mike Perry’s Overdogs Podcast. “I hit him with a backhand like, ‘I’m still in it. I can’t move, but I’m in it.’ I wasn’t going to f*cking give up. He’s good.”
Reflecting on the fight, Johnson admitted that focusing solely on Nurmagomedov’s wrestling was a mistake:
“I went into that fight, his wrestling is all I thought about. His wrestling, his wrestling, his wrestling. So, I wasn’t thinking about myself, and that was the mistake. I just went in there kind of waiting for him to shoot, trying to find my motions. I was kind of crouched down, and I couldn’t really move around.”
Johnson also spoke about Khabib’s strength and dominance:
“Bro, he’s good, strong. He felt like a middleweight, and that’s a problem. I couldn’t move, but he helped me get better. I went back to the gym and started working on that. Without that fight, I wouldn’t be here.”
Nurmagomedov went on to capture the UFC lightweight title and successfully defend it three times before retiring undefeated.
As for Johnson, he recently delivered a standout performance, earning Performance of the Night honors for his knockout of Ottman Azaitar earlier this month at UFC Tampa.
UFC lightweight veteran Michael Johnson showed he has plenty left in the tank in Tampa this past weekend, so much so that he’s targeting names toward the top of the division.
The result has put Johnson back onto a win streak on MMA’s biggest stage, and despite nearing the 40 mark, he doesn’t plan on leaving life as an active fighter for a long time.
During his post-fight press conference backstage at Amalie Arena, Johnson reflected on his successful performance and looked ahead to his future.
On the topic of retirement, the 42-fight MMA veteran outlined a lengthy timeline for the remainder of his career.
“Five years (more, I want to fight),” Johnson said. “I always tell people I want to do eight to 10 more years and they look at me with this face. I’m not slowing down any time soon. As long as my body’s healthy and I can get through what I need to get through, I’m going to fight for as long as I can.
“I think Nate Diaz said it the best, and he’s turned into a good friend. He was an opponent of mine. We always keep in touch, but he made a comment that said, ‘Sh*t, I’ll fight till I’m 50. Just getting started.’ So that’s what it is. I’m just getting started,” Johnson continued. “This might be my peak. A lot of people peak at 25, 30 (years old). I might be one peaking at 38, 40.”
With that in mind, Johnson looks set to have plenty of time to tick off some of his remaining ambitions. And when it comes to advancing his late-career title aspirations and exacting revenge for a past result, “The Menace” has a perfect next opponent in mind.
“The Justin Gaethje fight – that’s the one that I want,” Johnson explained. “I think everybody would love a Gaethje-Johnson (rematch). I gave him that opportunity when he came over (from WSOF), when nobody else wanted to. So, I think he should go ahead and give that back. We need to run one ’cause I know he knows he got away with that one.”
Johnson welcomed Gaethje to the UFC back in 2017, a bout that came after the 38-year-old had battled Beneil Dariush, Nate Diaz, Dustin Poirier and Khabib Nurmagomedov in consecutive assignments. The promotional newcomer got his hand raised after finding the knockout late in round two of a fight that was widely seen as the year’s best.
Regardless, be it the former interim champion or perhaps another name inside the top 15, it would appear that Johnson has earned the chance to climb back up the ladder in 2025 following a perfect 2-0 run this year.
Michael Johnson put on a vintage performance to close out the UFC Tampa preliminary card, delivering a devastating knockout of Ottman Azaitar.
Johnson picked Azaitar apart on the feet during the opening round, putting on a strong striking display and rocking the German-Moroccan on more than one occasion.
“The Menace” then put him away brutally in the second round. As Azaitar attempted to come forward, Johnson landed a brutal, lightning quick hook that faceplanted him. He followed up with two vicious strikes before the referee was able to push him off his unconscious opponent.
