Whittaker also said he’ll be looking for the finish against Jacare Souza, but don’t count on it being a submission.

Top-ranked UFC Pound-For-Pound fighter and Flyweight champion Demetrious „Mighty Mouse“ Johnson calls in ahead of his potential tenth straight title defense against Wilson Reis and discusses Wilson as an opponent, the possibility of a superfight with Cody Garbrandt, staying motivated, video games, and more. Before that, Middleweight contender Robert Whittaker calls in to talk about fighting Jacare Souza, dealing with Jacare’s high level jiu-jitsu, GSP’s return to the Octagon, and the state of the UFC Middleweight division, in general. Plus, Jim and Matt talk about Kelvin Gastelum being pulled from his UFC 212 fight with Anderson Silva, possible replacement opponents for The Spider, Urijah Faber going into the 2017 UFC Hall of Fame, Dana’s comments about Conor vs. Floyd, and a lot more.

Some of the highlights from Episode 86 of UFC Unfiltered include:

Robert on preparing to fight Jacare

Robert on judges’ decisions

Robert on GSP returning at Middleweight

Mighty Mouse on Wilson Reis as an opponent

Mighty Mouse on a potential superfight with Cody Garbrandt

Mighty Mouse on staying motivated

With the strawweight division still in its infancy back then and boasting a stellar reputation built through nearly a decade spent building her name on the regional circuit, Waterson’s victory instantly positioned her as one to watch in the 115-pound ranks. A few months later, she signed to fight Tecia Torres at UFC 194 on December 12 in Las Vegas, but an injury forced her off the year’s final Pay-Per-View card, delaying her sophomore appearance under the UFC banner.

It would be 371 days before Waterson returned to the cage, but she made up for her year-and-a-half on the sidelines in impressive fashion, rolling into Sacramento and running through hometown darling Paige VanZant in a little over three minutes.

“You know, I have a lot of teammates that have been through it all, the ups and the downs, so I’m able to view them as examples and just make sure that I stay grounded and all that good stuff,” Waterson said when asked about dealing with the frustrations of being sidelined. “You kind of just have to roll with the punches.

“Every fight is different, everybody’s journey is different and I strongly believe that my year-and-a-half off was needed in order for me to be the fighter that I am today. I feel great and we’re just going to build off this momentum and continue to move forward.”

Given that her main goals for this year are to earn a title shot and ultimately claim the strawweight title, a meeting with the former Ultimate Fighter finalist was a logical step in the right direction and a fight Waterson expected she would have to take at some point in her journey to the top of the 115-pound division.

“I knew I would have to fight her eventually,” she said of facing Namajunas, who enters Saturday’s bout looking to rebound from her split decision loss to Karolina Kowalkiewicz last summer. “The roster’s not that big and I was asking to fight someone in the Top 5 and she was right in that area, so I knew it was going to happen sooner rather than later.”

Making quick work of VanZant in the most-watched UFC on FOX event in recent years has put Waterson in the spotlight heading into this weekend’s clash with Namajunas, who sits two spots ahead of her in the latest edition of the UFC Fighter Rankings.

After holding court at her own media workout during UFC 208 fight week in New York, she did the same with media at a luncheon earlier this week in Los Angeles and has been featured on both People and espnW. She has become the newest “It Girl” in the Octagon over the last several months, but has no intentions of letting that unofficial title that carries added pressure derail her plans for 2017.

“If I let it, I think it would because there is a lot going on,” she said of the pressure that comes with being in the public eye in advance of her fight. “But it doesn’t change the fact that I’m fighting Rose on Saturday and it doesn’t change the fact that at the end of the day, it’s just her and me inside the Octagon. I know that I’m 100 percent prepared, I feel great, my weight is on point and I wasn’t injured from my last fight. Those are the things that matter to me the most.”

She also isn’t going to let the abundance of questions about her championship aspirations and current titleholder Joanna Jedrzejczyk cloud her focus either.

As much as sharing the cage with the Polish standout and being the one to dethrone her are items on her 2017 “to do” list, Waterson knows the first step to making those things happen is getting through Namajunas this weekend in Kansas City.

“Rose is a completely different fighter than Joanna is – the only similarity might be somewhat that both of them are rangy fighters – so there is no point in me trying to focus on Joanna,” she said. “I have a task ahead of me and if I don’t get past that task, I can’t get to the top of the mountain, so my goal at this point is focusing on Rose and she’s not somebody to look past by any means. I know I have my hands full with her.”

Besides, turning in another standout effort on Saturday could potentially put her in line for a title shot later this year, which would allow her to cross off one of the goals she set for herself heading into the 2017 campaign, and that’s what this is all about for Waterson.

That, and becoming a ninja.

“We put in so much hard work at the gym that nobody gets to see – 8-10 weeks of hard training, three or four training sessions a day with no rest, not being able to go home and crack a beer and get away from the training sessions

“It’s all a build-up and it’s not just the 8-10 weeks that I was training for this fight, but it’s the 10 years that I’ve been fighting professionally, the 20 years that I’ve been doing martial arts, my entire life of hoping and wishing that I could one day be a ninja. That’s what we all wish for is to be able to accomplish our goals and check those boxes off our checklist.”

Not only does FOX’s Fight Night Kansas City offer a title fight, the main card provides direct title implications in multiple fights and may be the most loaded non Pay-Per-View card the UFC has ever put together.

The top of the card features Demetrious Johnson’s attempt at a historic 10th consecutive title defense against Wilson Reis. But with Johnson’s constant construction of the flyweight division, some might say the battle for the 125-pound belt isn’t even the No. 1 fight to look forward to.

The winner of the co-main event between Rose Namajunas and Michelle Waterson will be put in an interesting title conversation, as will whoever comes out on top between Jacare Souza and Robert Whittaker.

These are the Reasons to Watch Fight Night Kansas City.

1. History in the making

The UFC’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter has an opportunity to tie a record of the sport’s greatest legend. If Johnson defeats Reis on Saturday, it will mark his 10th consecutive title defense, which ties Anderson Silva’s run that lasted about five years. ‘Mighty Mouse’ hasn’t lost since 2011 and has held reign in the UFC’s flyweight division since 2012.

He’s likely already in the conversation as an all-time great, but a win Saturday adds an undeniable feat to his resume.

2. Can Reis get the fight to the ground?

Johnson has the most takedowns in the history of the division (48) but it’s his opponent who may be the bigger threat on the ground. Reis averages 6.43 takedowns per 15 minutes in the Octagon, the highest in the division’s history. In his current three-fight win streak, Reis has taken down his opponent 18 times.

Of course, we all know what happened the last time Johnson faced a renown grappler: he finished Olympian wrestler Henry Cejudo in round 1 at UFC 197.

Get ready for Fight Night Kansas City: Fight card | Cheat Sheet | Fighters on the rise this weekend | Watch Road to the Octagon: Johnson vs Reis, Namajunas vs Waterson, Souza vs Whittaker | Watch free fights: Johnson vs Cejudo | Reis vs Sandoval | Be there! Get your tix here

3. Almost to the belt

Rose Namajunas’ run at the belt was put on pause when she lost to Karolina Kowalkiewicz at UFC 201. A win over Michelle Waterson on Saturday would put her right back in the mix. Waterson returned to the Octagon in December and dominated Paige VanZant. And now the winner of Namajunas-Waterson appears to be in a title eliminator bout.

Both have the resumes to be the next title challenger and neither have fought champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. But is that an advantage? Jedrzejczyk’s last two opponents – Claudia Gadelha and Kowalkiewicz – square off at UFC 212 and both took Jedrzejczyk the distance in what were epic title fights.

Can the winner of Kanas City’s matchup pass the winner of UFC 212’s?

4. Can Souza or Whittaker pass Romero?

The middleweight division is the UFC’s most crowded. Not only is it loaded with high-profile fighters, but they’re all riding big win streaks. Champion Michael Bisping will fight Georges St-Pierre next and Yoel Romero is assumed to be the challenger in waiting. And don’t forget about Gegard Mousasi, who just finished Chris Weidman at UFC 210 for his 7th win in eight fights.

Souza or Whittaker would have to put on an epic performance in Kansas City to move past Romero. But Bisping vs GSP still isn’t scheduled and if Romero decides to wait that out, it’s possible Souza or Whittaker could continue improving their resumes to go for Romero’s spot in the meantime.

But it is important to point out that this weekend’s bout will mark the one-year anniversary of his TKO of Rafael Viana in the RFA promotion, a victory that saw him impress UFC President Dana White enough that he signed the “Brown Bear” to a contract. It’s been a whirlwind ever since, but one Clark is embracing.

“It’s been a great year,” he said. “I got signed to the UFC and we’re still fighting, so everything has been moving well. I’m going on three fights within the year in the UFC, and I’m real excited.”

As one of the fighters brought to the Octagon by way of White’s “Lookin’ for a Fight” series, Clark knew that the UFC boss was in attendance and scouting when he stepped in to face Viana. Just five fights into his career, Clark could have folded under the pressure, but he was loving it.

“It wasn’t really an option to lose,” he said. “I really didn’t think about losing. It was, ‘Okay, I’m gonna win this fight and get signed to the UFC.’ It was an RFA title fight as well, and a title fight’s a title fight, no matter what promotion, so I was hyped for that. And then having Dana in the crowd and it was in my hometown as well, so a lot of people came out. There was a lot of pressure, but it was good pressure and a great feeling, and I knew I wanted to keep that feeling going under the big lights and keep advancing.”

Clark would get his shot to advance three months later, only to lose in his hometown to Alex Nicholson via first round knockout. It was a crushing blow to a prospect with high hopes for his career.

“I lost my debut, and it makes you question everything,” he admits. “Okay, I just got knocked out in the first round, do I have what it takes to be in the UFC? But then I had some time, I reflected on it and got back in and trained harder, and I said this is what I’m meant to do.”

With the pressure (there goes that P word again) on, he finished up 2016 with his first Octagon win, a hard-fought decision victory over Josh Stansbury in December. Finally, Clark had arrived.

“I went in there and fought a good fight against Stansbury and it was a good moment,” he said. “But it was a short lived victory – you just keep training and keep getting better. It wasn’t my best performance, and hopefully I’ll put on a better performance this time and get a knockout and let people know who I am and earn that respect.”

Clark’s talent level is at a point where yes, there will be more spectacular performances in the future, but it was important to go three hard rounds and show that he can win a dogfight at the highest level of the sport.

“It shows your character,” Clark agrees. “I took some hits in that fight and people didn’t think I could take a hit after that fight at 185 (against Nicholson). So it showed a little bit of my character, and I could go with anybody for 15 minutes, but now that I’ve proved that, it’s time to touch him up a little bit and show people what I can do. I want a finish.”

The always exciting Collier won’t be hard to find for Clark, making this a potential barnburner. But with Collier making his first UFC trip to the light heavyweight division, there’s always a question of what happens when those 20 pounds are added on. Clark, who lost to Nicholson in a middleweight bout, knows how both halves live.

“I’m not really sure what he expects, but I know he’s not ready for the speed and the pressure,” he said, and with a win, his march will continue in a positive manner. At this point in a prospect’s career, it’s all about those incremental steps, and there’s no talk of titles or big paydays yet. Having said that, it’s even more impressive that Clark is teaming up with Reeve’s Tees to produce a t-shirt that will raise money and create awareness about Down syndrome.

“My friend and part of my management team, Kevin Kroger, his youngest son Camden has Down syndrome, so it’s close to me,” Clark said. “I know Camden and I met a lot of people with Down syndrome, and it’s one of those things that I think is really important to raise awareness about. With the platform that I have, it’s a great thing to be a part of. If I can help someone just by fighting and using my platform, that would be great to raise money and raise awareness.”

It’s a prime example of the class of the 27-year-old, who knows that these days, athletes can be painted in a bad light and not exactly carry themselves as role models. As a father himself, Clark wants to walk a different road.

“It’s very important, especially with this generation,” he said. “A lot of kids are doing stuff for the wrong reasons. There’s nothing wrong with playing the villain like some of the fighters do, but I’ve chosen to be the hero and give these kids someone to look up to and set a good example. There’s no reason not to help other people. It goes back to my parents – that’s just the way I was raised.”

Singapore – UFC® makes its highly anticipated return to Singapore on Saturday, June 17 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium with a dynamic bantamweight bout between former champion Holly Holm and No.10 Bethe Correia headlining the card. Tickets to UFC FIGHT NIGHT® SINGAPORE: HOLM vs. CORREIA go on sale Today at 10 a.m. SGT via Sports Hub Tix.

Decorated kickboxer and former bantamweight champion Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm (10-3-0, fighting out of Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA) will face aggressive Brazilian striker Bethe “Pitbull” Correia (10-2-1, fighting out of Campina Grande, Paraiba Brazil) in a five-round bantamweight showdown. Holm shot to fame when she dethroned dominant mixed martial arts legend “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey. The ‘kick heard around the world’ at UFC 193 was watched by a crowd of over 56,000 and made Holm an instant household name. After winning an impressive 10 straight fights with seven knockout finishes through 2015, Holm will look to bring back the heat in Singapore.

Meanwhile, Correia, a veteran who fell to Rousey when she challenged for the title in August 2015, returns to the Octagon® following a majority draw against Marion Reneau in March. A well rounded fighter who is absolutely not afraid to stand and trade, Correia’s bout against Jessamyn Duke ended with a significant strike differential of over 100 to 55.

For the latest card information or current fight news, please visit UFC.com. All bouts are subject to change.

Tickets for UFC FIGHT NIGHT® SINGAPORE: HOLM vs. CORREIA will go on sale Thursday, April 13 at 10 a.m. and are priced at S$378, S$248, S$128, S$98, and S$58 (prices do not include applicable service charges and fees). Tickets will be available for purchase online at www.sportshubtix.sg, the Sports Hub Tix Box Office, Sports Hub Tix Outlets at all SingPost locations, and by calling Sports Hub Tix Hotline at +65 3158 7888.  Early bird promotions will be available from April 13-27.

Follow us on Facebook (UFC Asia), Twitter and Instagram (@ufc), and use our official hashtag: #UFCSINGAPORE

In a time when prospects pontificate about their championship destiny before first setting foot in the Octagon and champions speak of chasing a second title before they’ve even defended their own belt once, Johnson is an anomaly. He’s a competitor focused solely on perfecting his craft and piling up victories, content to chase history without much fanfare while paying no mind to those who fail to recognize his greatness and the difficulty of accomplishing what he is.

“I just try to stay focused and not let things get in the way of my vision,” Johnson said when asked how he’s avoided the hiccups and hurdles that have prevented all but three fighters – Anderson Silva, Jon Jones and Georges St-Pierre – from amassing as many consecutive victories inside the Octagon as he has heading into Saturday’s main event showdown with Wilson Reis.

“You have people calling me out, people saying there is no talent in the division and all that stuff, but I don’t focus on that stuff or getting everybody to say, ‘What he’s doing is awesome.’ I’m focused on my ultimate goal, which is to be the best fighter in the world.”

It wouldn’t take long to gather enough evidence to support a case for Johnson having already reached his ultimate goal, as he returns to the FOX airwaves as the one and only champion in UFC flyweight division history. He’s the winner of 11 consecutive bouts overall, including nine straight successful title defenses, and stationed at No. 1 in the pound-for-pound rankings.

At the very least, he’s in the conversation and maybe even the clubhouse leader, with everyone else needing to have a pretty strong argument in order to potentially usurp his position as the best in the sport today.

However, suggesting such a thing to Johnson would be a fool’s errand, as the constant quest for perfection and the hunger to seek out ways to improve that have been the hallmarks of the 30-year-old champion’s ascension remain the driving force in his dominant career.

Johnson has previously used the analogy of a superstar chef in the kitchen of his or her restaurant, tinkering with the menu, seeking out new flavor combinations when asked to describe his between-fight work in the gym with Matt Hume and Brad Kertson, whom he referred to as the head chef and sous chef, respectively.

“We’ve got some new recipes that we’re always looking to try and see how it works,” he said of the non-stop experimenting and innovating that takes place at AMC Pankration in the months between appearances in the cage. “It’s always evolving.

“When a chef gets to open his restaurant and he’s got his main dishes and he’s been serving those dishes for a long time, he comes out with something new and creative, making sure his restaurant is always evolving and not going with the flow. So trying to be the perfect fighter is always going to be about evolving. I might throw some stuff off the menu this time, but bring some different dishes back another time. It’s always going to be evolving.”

Where the analogy breaks down, however, is in Johnson’s complete lack of interest in courting praise and the opinions of the masses.

While the culinary champions on Chef’s Table often speak about chasing Michelin stars, restaurant rankings and the approval of the hard-to-please critics, the UFC flyweight champion continues to approach his career with a workmanlike attitude, resolute in his knowledge that you can’t please everyone and that seeking out acceptance isn’t worth the time.

“People are always going to put certain labels on certain things, whether they want to hear it, understand it or like it or agree with it or not agree with it,” he said. “If I spent my whole career getting people to try to like me and get everybody to accept what I’m doing is the hardest thing in the world, then I’m not focusing on what the true thing is and that’s being the best mixed martial artist that I can be and pushing myself to the limit.”

One of the few things he does think about is the record he could equal with a victory this weekend in Kansas City and setting the new standard of excellence in the UFC.

Johnson has remained steadfast in his desire to match and then top Silva’s record for consecutive successful title defenses before entertaining thoughts of moving to bantamweight or engaging in cross-divisional battles.

Now on the cusp of equaling the mark he’s held out as a goal for himself since beating Kyoji Horiguchi at UFC 186, “Mighty Mouse” is excited about the possibilities the future holds.

“I’m still young – I’m 30 – and if I can get to 15 (consecutive successful title defenses), why not?” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s about setting the highest standard and making the most money you possibly can.

“I believe that if I stay in the flyweight division and I keep beating people over and over and over again, I’ll be able to retire in like three years. If I have to go up to 135, fighting bigger dudes, taking way more damage – if I’m going to be doing all that stuff – I have options at that point.

“When I get to 11 – if I get to 11 – I have options where I get to decide what I want to do and that’s always good to have.”

Before he can get to the point of having options, he has to get through Reis this weekend on FOX, which he intends to do with the same blue-collar, “punch the clock” approach that has carried him to the top of the flyweight division and the brink of making history in the Octagon.

“It’s the same old DJ; I’m just going to work every day. I’m going to go in there on Saturday – I got called into work – so I’m going to go in there, handle business, clean up shop and then go home and continue getting better and staying with that humble mindset.”

Fans who follow UFC on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram can access pre-sale tickets today, April 12, by using the promo code UFCSINGAPORE.

UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: SINGAPORE will also feature the following confirmed bouts:

–    Former lightweight kingpin Rafael Dos Anjos, (25-9-0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) regarded as one of the pound for pound best lightweight fighters on the planet, will make his welterweight debut in a thrilling match-up against Belgian veteran Tarec Saffiedine (16-6-0, fighting out of Brussels, Belgium). The last time Belgium’s first UFC fighter fought in Singapore, he walked away with a Fight of the Night bonus

For the latest card information or current fight news, please visit UFC.com. All bouts are subject to change. More bouts will be confirmed as they become available.

Tickets for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: SINGAPORE will go on sale Wednesday, April 13 at 10 a.m. and are priced at S$378, S$248, S$128, S$98, and S$58 (prices do not include applicable service charges and fees). Tickets will be available for purchase online at www.sportshubtix.sg, the Sports Hub Tix Box Office, Sports Hub Tix Outlets at all SingPost locations, and by calling Sports Hub Tix Hotline at +65 3158 7888.  Early bird promotions will be available from April 13-27.
 
Follow us on Facebook (UFC Asia), Twitter and Instagram (@ufc), and use our official hashtag: #UFCSINGAPORE