Daniel Zellhuber expects a big win at UFC 318.
Dustin Poirier vs. Max Holloway 3, rightfully so, has drawn most of the attention of the MMA community heading into Saturday’s UFC 318, given it’s the main event and Poirier’s farewell from the sport. But down below, in the opening bout of the UFC 318 (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+) pay-per-view card, there’s another lightweight matchup that’s heating up.
Mexican prospect Daniel Zellhuber takes on one of the three men to ever knock out Poirier, UFC veteran Michael Johnson. This matchup wasn’t just a fun booking from the UFC matchmakers, it was a fight Zellhuber picked himself.
“I began to bother Michael Johnson, making fun of him here and there, calling him old, and it worked,” Zellhuber told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “I got his attention. He blocked me on Instagram, which I thought was very funny. After he blocked me on Instagram, it got even funnier.”
After taking some online shots from Zellhuber (15-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC), Johnson (23-19 MMA, 15-15 UFC) confronted “Golden Boy” while he was working the Spanish broadcast for UFC Fight Night 256 in May. The two traded verbal jabs, and then Johnson went his own way.
“That day on the broadcast, he came up to me. I had been bothering him, and looking for that fight before I got injured for Mexico,” Zellhuber said. “He didn’t want to fight with me. He kept turning it down, turning down, and turning it down, like throwing a tantrum. He has like 30 years in this game and can’t take a joke online. That’s wild.
“He blocked me on Instagram, threw a fit, and finally that day he thought it was a good idea to confront me. That day I was working, so it’s not like I could do anything. We had words for each other, nothing that crossed any lines. I’d never take things too far. So we had a few words and a few weeks later, I got the word I was fighting him. I think he still has me blocked on Instagram.”
Zellhuber really likes the matchup against Johnson, hence the callout. He’s happy the fight was able to come together for UFC 318 and sees Johnson as a step towards his ultimate goal – the UFC lightweight title.
“I’ve prepared very well, and we did an extensive study of all his fights,” Zellhuber said. “I’ve noticed he hasn’t really improved, and I mean, why would he? He’s 40 years old. He’s in the UFC because he goes out there, fights hard, gives somewhat of a show, and he serves as a stepping stone for young fighters like myself. In the end, that’s what this is. He’s just one more step in my career.”
As far as the fight itself, Zellhuber doesn’t expect a war like the one he was in last September against Esteban Ribovics, which won MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Year. He believes he will put away Johnson.
“He needs to make the most out of this opportunity because after I knock him out on Saturday, he’s not going to get another call to fight on a pay-per-view.”
