Sherdog’s Top 10: MMA Dream Matches

Brian KnappJul 26, 2017

1. Demetrious Johnson vs. Cody Garbrandt


A man without peer at 125 pounds, Johnson has begun to run out of viable challenges as the UFC flyweight champion. “Mighty Mouse” will shoot for a record-setting 11th consecutive title defense when he takes on Ray Borg at UFC 215 in Edmonton, Alberta, where the Matt Hume protégé figures to be a prohibitive favorite. Johnson’s historic reign includes victories over John Dodson (twice), Joseph Benavidez, Kyoji Horiguchi and Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo. He last appeared at UFC on Fox 24, where he toyed with Wilson Reis before submitting the longtime Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt with a third-round armbar. Garbrandt has risen to the top of the bantamweight charts in a hurry. Back-to-back-to-back knockouts of Augusto Mendes, Takeya Mizugaki and Thomas Almeida propelled the Uhrichsville, Ohio, native into a title fight with Dominick Cruz at UFC 207. There, the unbeaten Garbrandt outclassed “The Dominator” for the better part of five rounds, a unanimous decision bringing with it the bantamweight belt.