UFC Exclusive: Charles Johnson Told He’s Not Ready for Ranking: ‘It Lit a Fire’

Charles Johnson wants to show the world what he can do against ranked competition. Though, it looks like the UFC Flyweight has more work to do to get there.

After dropping three fights in a row, the 33 year-old Johnson is regaining his momentum at 125lbs, bouncing Azat Maksum from the ranks of the undefeated earlier this year before nearly stopping Jake Hadley on the way to his second-straight win at UFC St. Louis.

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"I'm happy about it. I think it was a great night for everyone involved," Johnson, the St. Louis native, recently told MMA Knockout. "For me, it's just a reminder that, all that preparation and all that work and everything I put into that camp, I gotta maintain what I'm doing. I feel great. And it was a high, it was a good moment, and it's a reminder of the lows of the low moments I've had. So I just try to stay level with everything and focus on the next moment to create."

With the win, things started to look up for Johnson, who recently signed a new contract with the UFC. The flyweight prospect would ask for a ranked opponent, interested in contenders like Tim Elliott, Matt Schnell and Sumudaerji for his next fight. However, the UFC isn't keen on giving him the opportunity just yet.

"Right now, man, I'm being told I'm not ready for a ranking, regardless of how everyone else feels, regardless how the fans feel, regardless of what's happened. I've been told that I'm not ready for a ranking, regardless of the fact that I fought the number one contender [Muhammad Mokaev] to a decision in the past, regardless that I fought these ranked guys and they're ranked now, I'm being told that I'm not ready for a ranking. It's on me to go out here and show that I am.

"It looks like they're gonna make me out to fight one more person before I get an opportunity to get into the rankings. I don't agree with it, but at the end of the day, I don't have any power in that, any say in that matter. So all I can do is use what little power I do have, and when I step in the cage, what little control I do have. That's the only time I can control anything in the world when then cage door shuts. So that's what I'm focused on. I'm focused on becoming a world champion, and I'm going to work my ass off for the next time I step in there cause it lit a fire under me."

"I'm pretty f****** upset if I'm being frank," Johnson voiced his frustration. "I know what I'm worth and I don't feel like I'm being valued that much within the promotion as what I am. And so it's for me to show once again, people, someone who doesn't believe that I'm ready for something that I know I am.... After I win my next one, it'll be a three fight win streak. And then hopefully we'll get that number that we've been seeking."

As for Johnson's next fight, the former LFA Flyweight Champion wanted to return as quickly as UFC 303 on June 29th but it didn't pan out with Johnson being offered a fight on Aug. 10 instead. The timing didn't work out for Johnson and now he'll likely wait until the fall for his return.

A ranking in the UFC Flyweight division isn't the only thing Johnson has been chasing since making his debut in 2022. Johnson is on the road to gold, eyeing the coveted championship long before he made it to the gates of the Octagon.

While the unranked contender still has a ways to go for a title fight, Johnson believes the flyweight division is much different than the other weight classes in the UFC and thinks that showed with how #10 ranked Steve Erceg almost dethroned the champion Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 301 in May.

"I think unranked guys can fight Pantoja today and give him a run for his money," Johnson continued. "Even not me, you know, like Azat [Maksum] he'll give a tough fight to Pantoja today. I think flyweight is one of those special weight classes where everybody's f****** good and it's a very small, very small gap between what you need to do to win a fight and lose a fight. That's kind of what was shown with the Erceg fight. You can come in, be unranked, fight a guy, number 10 guy, then, then win a decision and then get another finish and get pulled right into a title fight, right? So, I think that anything can happen in this weight class. I don't put anything past anyone and I think that it's just about getting finishes.

"They wanna see guys get finishes and put on exciting fights. I think the only thing that separated me from the those things is getting finishes. It's kind of hard when I'm fighting a lot of wet blankets and guys that's not fighting me back, that's holding on and stall positions. But, it's on me to keep getting better and try to make it larger in the gap with those guys."

A style that's better equipped for five rounds than the standard three, Johnson says, "If these fights had no time limit, I would never lose," and knows exactly what he'll do against the champ Pantoja, should he make it to title contention and the Brazilian stands the test of time.

What would winning a UFC world title mean to "The Pride of St. Louis"? That's a question better saved for later but Charles Johnson spoke to significance of accomplishing such a dream.

"I'm real emotional when it comes to that 'cause I work real hard," Johnson said of the UFC Championship. "I feel like I'm not being afforded the opportunities that other guys are and it sucks. But I'm also, I have to own my losses and I have to own what I have done. So, I just need to focus on the next thing. I'm just so f****** excited. I'm not angry, but I am pissed off and I'm ready for the next thing and I'm always ready to fight.

"I just hate that I have to wait 'cause I know how I'm feeling right now. I know I can finish a lot of guys in this division. I know I'll beat most of these guys in division on most nights. I'm excited about just being able to continue getting better, man, and get back in there and winning a belt one day. I already know I will, man. It is just like, it's on my heart. I know it. Everything I've ever put my mind to, I've done athletically, I've accomplished. So, right now, it's just a matter of time for me."

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