However, his 42-fight resume is also peppered with high-profile victories over Edson Barboza, Tony Ferguson and Dustin Poirier, whom he knocked out in September 2016.

Michael Johnson’s ability to beat anyone on his day has made him a favorite with fans, and with Colby Covington, the headliner of the event where they both fought on Saturday night.

Michael Johnson sleeps Ottman Azaitar

A video of the interaction between Covington and Johnson went viral leading up to UFC Tampa.

It shows the two men exchanging pleasantries before “Chaos” walks away and tells the camera that Johnson is his favorite fighter after knocking out Poirier.

Covington said: “Michael Johnson is a legend. He’s my favorite fighter, he knocked Dustin Poirier out cold.”

Johnson floored Poirier with a big right hand in the fight and he used the same punch to score a faceplant knockout win over Ottman Azaitar in his 30th^Th UFC fight.

The sickening shot earned Covington’s favorite fighter a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus – but the former interim welterweight champion failed to get the job done in the main event.

Covington suffered a doctor’s stoppage defeat in the third round after a cut opened by Joaquin Buckley was deemed so bad that the fight could not continue. UFC boss Dana White disagreed with the stoppage and insisted the fight would have been allowed to go ahead if it had taken place in Las Vegas.

Michael Johnson scored points in the UFC feud

Covington wasn’t the only one using Johnson to take a shot at Poirier this week. Michael Chandler also reminded “The Diamond” of his famous debut defeat at lightweight.

“Iron Mike” took to Twitter after seeing Johnson defeat Azaitar. Chandler initially focused on praising his friend, tweeting, “My man @Menace155 has the best right hook in the world. Across MMA. The guy still has it!”

He added, alongside footage of the UFC Tampa KO: “Best right hook in UFC history. #changemymind.”

It was his third tweet that showed he was still ready to take a swipe at his old rival Poirier. The 38-year-old shared a video of Johnson knocking out Poirier with the caption: “Best right hook in UFC HISTORY. Never forget that.”

Poirier choked Chandler when they fought at UFC 281 in November 2022. The former interim lightweight champion was quick to remind him of this when responding to the attempted troll on social media.

Poirier wrote: “Remember when I hit you a**? You’re 2-4 in UFC Muscle Milk Mike.”

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