While the entire fighting community lashed out at Dana White for trading Demetrious Johnson for Ben Askren back in 2018, the former UFC and ONE Championship king claimed that it was a trade where everybody won. That’s what Johnson has been saying ever since he rose to the top at ONE Championship. Even Askren seemed to believe so, despite having only 1 win and 2 losses in UFC. 

‘Mighty Mouse’ had a conversation with Askren and of course, they talked about the 6-year-old trade. Johnson said, “Who got the better trade? Now, in my standpoint, I said, ‘Everybody won.’ I got to go to ONE Championship, make good money. You got to come to the UFC, get the opportunity to fight, see what you can do there.” Demetrious Johnson reflected on the bout between Askren and Jorge Masvidal at UFC 239, where ‘Gamebred’ ended the fight with a 5-second flying-knee KO.

“If it wasn’t for you, you know, they might not have the rise of Jorge Masvidal, without, you know, that flying knee. Even though I love what you said, you’re like, ‘Out of that flying knee, that you did the stupidest tattoo ever’ – you know, what Jorge added here”, said Johnson while pointing at his right shoulder. With Askren acknowledging Masvidal’s ‘stupid tattoo’, he also agreed with ‘DJ’ that Askren’s elevation of Jorge Masvidal gave us subsequent bouts such as Kamaru Usman vs. Jorge Masvidal I & II, and Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman I & II – both very exciting rivalries in the promotion.

On the other hand, ‘Mighty Mouse’ went on to win three back-to-back wins at ONE Championship, before facing his first and only defeat in the promotion against Adriano Moraes. Johnson continued, “Then you look at ONE Championship. They got me. I was able to fight. I get knocked out over there to show that their competition is actually legit. I come back, I beat Adriano. So, I think in all in all, everybody won.” 

According to Askren, by the time the UFC-ONE deal happened, he was already done with fighting, which explains why he couldn’t showcase the dominance that he was previously known for. Even though ‘Funky’ agreed with ‘DJ’ that it was a good trade-off, saying, “I think the most correct answer is kinda everybody won.”, the fighting community had a different opinion.  

Fight fans target Dana White as Demetrious Johnson and Ben Askren defend the UFC-ONE trade

The first thing that came to the fans’ mind was Ben Askren’s fight with Jorge Masvidal. One fight fan weighed in on how the UFC head honcho might have felt during the infamous UFC 239 moment. The comment read, “You know Dana White felt like sh– after Masvidal ko’d Ben, worst trade of all time for the UFC.” Meanwhile, another fan wrote, “The trade that made the fastest KO in UFC history. Gotta love Ben and DJ.”

Most fans asserted that it wasn’t a win-win situation for UFC and ONE Championship. A fan wrote, “UFC lost, come on now let’s be real.” One comment focused on Askren’s 1-2 UFC record and said, “Everybody won except Ben. Lol.” Another comment read, “The most unfair trade. Basically, you traded the GOAT for a special needs dude.”

Nevertheless, the fighting community stood strong in claiming that Johnson was the one who won because of the trade. Being humble about it further strengthened his place in fans’ hearts. One of the fans wrote, “I love how nice DJ is, cause ONE definitely won this trade hands down.”, while another fan differed in opinion with, “The UFC easily won that trade. But Mighty was the biggest winner out of everyone.”

Currently, both of the fighters have retired from active competition in MMA. While Askren’s UFC career wasn’t as impressive, his accolades outside the Octagon are pretty impressive. He was an Olympic wrestler and had become the welterweight champion at Bellator FC and ONE Championship before the trade. On the other hand, Johnson after having dominated the UFC and ONE Championship cages, is on a tear in the Jiu-Jitsu Gi competition scene, winning gold and silver at the IBJJF Master World and Pan Championship, as a brown and black belt.

What are your thoughts regarding the UFC-ONE deal? Do you think both the athletes found success in their then-new organizations? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.