UFC 130 Results: Is Demetrious Johnson in the Title Picture Now?

The results from UFC 130 are in and although many believe that it was one of the UFC’s weaker fight cards as of late, the bantamweight bout between Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and Miguel Torres certainly lived up to the hype. So much so that it may be time for Johnson to get a shot at the UFC Bantamweight Title.

A contrast in styles showed the unique aspects of the sport of mixed martial arts as the 5’3” Johnson looked to impose his wrestling on the 5’9” Torres while staying in close to reduce the reach disadvantage.

Known for having some of the best takedown defense skills in the bantamweight division, Torres somehow seemed to know that he was going to be taken down by “Mighty Mouse” in this fight. But strangely, he looked to be okay with it. Of course, Johnson was okay with it, too.

Johnson ended up winning what will go down as a very controversial decision given the lack damage he inflicted, and the fact that he was no where near finishing the fight at any point, but a win is a win.

There’s no denying that Johnson is a worthy challenger at the winner of the scheduled Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber rematch for the UFC Bantamweight Championship.

Johnson is a unique fighter in the 135 pound division who has surprisingly good standup given his short frame. He uses a combination of footwork and nonstop pressure to throw his opponents off, while mixing in some impressive takedowns to keep them honest.

There are other fighters, namely Brian Bowles, who is likely in for a title shot before Johnson, but that’s not necessarily the case. While Bowles has some impressive victories and was the man to defeat Miguel Torres for the title back in 2009, he did get absolutely lit up by Cruz in their fight. So badly, in fact, that the fight was stopped between the second and third rounds.

Bowles came back with a victory over Damacio Page at UFC Live in March, but is the UFC really ready to promote a rematch between him and Cruz, should Cruz defeat Faber in July?

Demetrious Johnson is essentially “new blood” in the bantamweight division and with back-to-back wins over “Kid” Yamamoto and Miguel Torres, he may end up being the fighter who the UFC decides is worthy of the next title shot.

We likely won’t know the official No. 1 contender until Cruz and Faber are done fighting, but if things go Mighty Mouse’s way, he could be competing for the belt by the end of 2011.