Chimaev D'Arce'd a Hall of Famer Who Weighs 60 Pounds Less. The Hall of Famer Survived.

Demetrious Johnson retired from competition. Got inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. Flew to California. And then — because Mighty Mouse has never had a functioning self-preservation instinct — decided to grapple the undefeated UFC middleweight champion who outweighs him by 60 pounds.

It went about how you'd expect. And also not at all how you'd expect.

Video surfaced last week, filmed by Bear Degidio from the Jaxxon Podcast, of Johnson and Khamzat Chimaev rolling at Chimaev's California training camp. Borz is preparing for his first title defense against Sean Strickland at UFC 328 on May 9. What started as a casual sparring session escalated into a full submission grappling exchange, because of course it did. Two elite competitors in a room together is just a grappling match with extra steps.

Johnson immediately ended up on his back. Not a surprise when you're 5'3" and your training partner walks around at 200 pounds. But what happened next was pure Mighty Mouse. Working from half guard, Johnson used every scramble in his encyclopedia to prevent Chimaev from flattening him out. Chimaev — whose D'Arce choke has put away two UFC opponents (John Phillips on Fight Island, Kevin Holland in 2:13 at UFC 279) — eventually threaded the choke deep on Johnson's neck.

It looked done. Looked like a wrap. You could hear Degidio on camera yelling "don't submit" and "fight." Johnson's response, muffled under 200 pounds of Chechen wrestling pressure: "I am."

He spun through the choke. Didn't tap.

A 125-pound Hall of Famer. Retired. Just survived a fully locked D'Arce choke from a man who uses that exact submission to end UFC fights in under three minutes. Against opponents who weigh 185 pounds.

Johnson's reaction afterward was peak DJ. Speaking on the Jaxxon Podcast, he didn't claim a moral victory. Didn't spin it. Just said what everyone already knew:

"He's so fucking strong and big, man. Sometimes I forget I'm 5'3", but I have the heart of a fucking giant. I'm like, 'I can fight with him.' Yeah, it didn't work out that way. That man is a machine."

Then, without a trace of irony: "I am not worthy to be on that team. Everyone on that team is undefeated. Every single one of them."

That's the most DJ thing ever said. The greatest flyweight in combat sports history — a man who defended the UFC title 11 consecutive times — calling himself unworthy. After surviving a choke that finishes middleweights.

Here's the part nobody's talking about: this is a window into Chimaev's ground game ahead of the Strickland fight. That D'Arce transition from half guard was smooth, fast, automatic. Chimaev doesn't think about it. He feels the neck, he threads the arm, he squeezes. Strickland's team should be watching this clip on repeat. Not because DJ's defense translates to 185 — it doesn't. Because the setup is mechanical. Practiced. Inevitable.

And Mighty Mouse? The man just went through Chimaev's signature submission at a 60-pound deficit and walked away talking about how the other guy is a machine.

Hall of Fame energy. Literally.

This article was written with AI assistance. Sources linked inline.

Sources

• Chimaev overpowers Demetrious Johnson in submission match with 60lb advantage
• Khamzat Chimaev And Demetrious Johnson's Grappling Exchange
• Demetrious Johnson: 'Man Is a Machine' after training with Chimaev
• Ariel Helwani shares DJ's reaction via Jaxxon Podcast
• Demetrious Johnson joins 2026 UFC Hall of Fame

This post was generated by AI. Sources are linked above. Follow @bjj-problems on YouTube for the weekly video digest.