• Pro Fights
• • Yodsanklai Fairtex def. Gregory Choplin via KO at 2:40 of Rd. 3
  • Tiffany Van Soest def. Alexis Rufus via KO at 0:25 of Rd. 4
  • Kevin Ross def. Chris Kwiatkowski via Unanimous Decision
  • Shane Campbell def. Remy Bonnel via Unanimous Decision
  • Vivian Leung def. Kate McGray via Unanimous Decision
  • Malaipet Sasiprapa def. Vishnu Gulati via (T)KO (Leg Kicks) at 1:57 of Rd. 2
  • Jason Andrada def. Cody Moberly via KO (Elbow) at 2:35 of Rd. 1
  • Josh Shepard def. Damien Earley via Majority Decision

• Amateur Fights
• • Nick Chasteen def. Jonathan Parsons via Unanimous Decision
  • Fanny Tommasino def. Jessica Rico via Unanimous Decision
  • Jason Caldwell def. Ron Cruz via Unanimous Decision
  • Chris Martin def. Tony Berceau via Unanimous Decision

The Culinary Union I am talking about is an adversary the UFC has gone up with many times before. It is the group that is currently ensuring that the UFC stays out of New York.

However, this time around, they are leading the charge with other women's groups to try and get Quinton Jackson taken off of the UFC on Fox 6 card in Chicago.

This may not come as a shock, as Jackson is quite controversial. However, you may be thinking, "What did Jackson do this time?"

No, he didn't hump any more female reporters. And no, he didn't motorboat Karen Bryant and tell her that "Jamaican me horny," again.

Don't worry, "Rampage" simply made a video about how to rape a woman in a parking garage last year, no big deal.

Sarcasm aside, this video has drawn the ire of women's groups that are being assisted by the Culinary Union. They have demanded via letter and protest that Jackson be pulled from competition this weekend, a demand that will not be met.

• MAIN EVENT – UFC FLYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
• • John Dodson (124) VS Demetrious Johnson (125)

• FOX MAIN CARD
• • Glover Teixeira (206) VS Quinton Jackson (204)
  • Donald Cerrone (155) VS Anthony Pettis (155)
  • Ricardo Lamas (145) VS Erik Koch (145)

• FX FIGHTS
• • Matt Wiman (156) VS TJ Grant (155)
  • Hatsu Hioki (146) VS Clay Guida (146)
  • Pascal Krauss (171) VS Mike Stumpf (170)
  • Vladimir Matyushenko (205) VS Ryan Bader (205)
  • Shawn Jordan (251) VS Mike Russow (256)
  • Sean Spencer (186) VS Rafael Natal (185)

• ONLINE FIGHT
• • David Mitchell (171) VS Simeon Thoresen (171)

He won’t change either.

It’s not in his nature; it’s not who he is, even though the public perception of “who he is” underwent a major makeover back in September.

Four months ago, Johnson made history, becoming the inaugural UFC flyweight champion when he earned a unanimous decision win over Joseph Benavidez at UFC 152 in Toronto. The victory vaulted the 26-year-old Washington resident to new levels of recognition, and earned him a place in the pantheon of the sport’s elite.

Saturday night, the man known as “Mighty Mouse” will step into the cage to defend his title for the first time, squaring off with former Ultimate Fighter winner John Dodson in the main event of the UFC’s first event on FOX in 2013.

Headlining a nationally televised fight card on network TV is another new perk for Johnson, but just like everything else that has come with winning the title, the humble flyweight titleholder is taking it all in stride.

“FOX is a huge, national broadcast out to lots of people, and I love that, but for me, it doesn’t change anything,” said Johnson. “I’m going to go out there and fight. I told somebody that if I were fighting on PBS, I would still fight the same. A fight is a fight, whether the title is on the line or not. I’m ready to go out there and do my thing. Go to work.

“The belt is just a token of (something I accomplished) in my mixed martial arts career. I made history, and no one can ever take that away from me. Now I’m just looking forward to beating people.”

For some athletes, reaching the pinnacle of their profession can foster a sense of complacency. Having achieved their ultimate dream, the intensity and focus that carried them to the top of the mountain doesn’t always remain once they start to enjoy the view. The expectations, responsibilities, and opportunities that come with being a champion start to take away from time spent in the gym.

In a sport where the difference between victory and defeat can be a fraction of a second or the slightest head movement, even a momentary pause to indulge in the perks and privileges afforded to superstars and champions can have an impact.

That’s why despite his championship victory, Johnson has remained as committed as ever, driven not by the lure of the spotlight, but the full-time job he left behind not that long ago.

“I know in the back of my head that someday I might have to go back to work full-time,” admitted Johnson, who only stopped working a full-time job just prior to his bantamweight title fight with Dominick Cruz in October 2011. “My drive and motivation is to not have to go back to that, so that’s why I love to train hard and love to fight. As long as my body will hold up, I’ll fight as long as I can. I don’t have a problem training hard or taking fights. My job is to fight. As long as I can keep on doing that, and not have to go back to my old job, I would love to do that.

Despite his status as champion, Johnson views his career as only a part of his life, and he remains committed to making sure that his family will be taken care of when his time in the cage comes to an end.

“There is more to life than fighting. You need an outlet. For me, that’s my family. My wife does a good job of making me keep my mind off of the fight, and I love to spend time with her,” said Johnson, who married his long-time girlfriend Destiny last May in Hawaii.

“Even Dana White says it. At the last Fighter Summit, he said, `You guys have to save money, make sure you’re smart with your money, pay your taxes because this is only one phase of your life. There are going to be other phases of your life once you’re done fighting, and you have to be prepared for that.’”

Though he’s thinking ahead to life after fighting, Johnson’s primary focus is on making an impact in the sport while he can, a task he resumes Saturday night when he shares the cage with Dodson on FOX.

“I just think about training hard, staying healthy and always evolving and better. Five, six years down the road, I plan on still fighting and hopefully still being dominant. And after my time's done, when I'm at the end of my career, just hope that everybody looks at me as one of the best fighters in the world.

“He (Dodson) is super-athletic, and he has a great sense of style, and he likes to go out there and fight. I think it’s going to be a great fight between John and me because we both have great skill sets, and we’re just going to have to find out January 26th and see what happens.”

When asked to break down how his first title defense would play out, Johnson responded with a unique, but fitting answer, given his blue-collar, go-to-work mentality.

“I just look forward to a long night. That’s what I would tell myself when I started fighting my amateur days,” he explained. “When I fought Dominick (Cruz), when I fought Brad Pickett, when I fought my first amateur fight – I just told myself to look forward to a long night.”

Whether it ends in the first minute or after five grueling rounds, Johnson is going to be prepared. While he won’t predict when or how Saturday’s main event will go – “I’m not a man who gives predictions.” – he did have one final message to share with the fans.

“This is going to be a great fight – don’t miss it.”

Nine months ago, prior to his first fight in the UFC’s new flyweight division, the long-time Team Jackson-Winkeljohn representative unveiled his ambitious plans for world domination: three titles in three different weight classes, starting with the flyweight belt.

Like the genius half of the genetically-modified cartoon duo, Dodson was dreaming big, and he had already crafted the blueprint for how to turn his dreams into reality all laid out in his head. He’d start with the flyweight title, and work his way up, sticking around each division long enough to defend the title a couple times and solidify his standing as champion prior to moving up in weight to conquer another weight class.

Like the hyperactive, happy-go-lucky half of the greatest mouse tag team in history, the 28-year-old veteran was also just happy to finally be competing on the biggest stage in the sport, hopeful that he could entertain the masses with his rambunctious brand of fighting.

Saturday night, Dodson will get to indulge both halves of his cartoon alter-egos when he steps onto the biggest stage of his career opposite Demetrious Johnson in a battle for the UFC flyweight title live on FOX.

“Not that many people get to do it. It’s one of the things every fighter dreams about,” admitted Dodson in a deliberate, reflective manner, a departure for the man who usually speaks as quickly as he moves inside the cage. “Not only am I headlining an event – a major event – I’m headlining on national TV. People can go watch it on FOX. Shoot, I get to fight on one of the biggest stages across the globe; not just this nation – across the globe.

“I’m going to go out there with the biggest smile, dancing my way into the Octagon, and enjoying every single moment of it. I don’t know when I’m going to die, but I want to remember this moment forever.”

Getting the chance to fight for a UFC title is something Dodson wasn’t sure he was ever going to get to do in his career.

After being discussed and speculated about for some time, the flyweight division only came to life in the sport’s premier organization last March, when Johnson, Ian McCall, Joseph Benavidez, and Yasuhiro Urushitani ushered in the 125-pound ranks with the semifinal round of a four-man tournament to crown the division’s first champion.

And it was only a little more than a year earlier that the UFC adopted the featherweight and bantamweight classes as well, bringing over the 145- and 135-pound divisions from the WEC, a move that ended up giving Dodson the opening he needed to win his way onto the roster through Season 14 of The Ultimate Fighter.

“I had a lot of ups and downs in this sport,” reflected Dodson, who started his career in 2004. “Coming into the UFC, coming onto The Ultimate Fighter, I always wondered if there was going to be a light at the end of the tunnel for me. I was sitting in the dark wondering where I was going to go, what I was going to do. When the big fights were going to come through? Do I have to go up a weight class? Should I retire and get a real job?

“I never wanted to (walk away). These are my dreams, and they’ve started to come true, and that’s why I smile so much every time I’m in the Octagon, walking out, getting punched. I feel like I’m getting to fulfill my dreams.

“I actually stayed because of coaching,” continued the 15-5 flyweight title challenger. “Coaching everyone else kept me motivated to fight myself. It helped me stay in the game when all those guys are telling me how much they want to see me fight, and understanding what I was going through. Helping those other fighters learn and get better, they were the ones encouraging me to stay in the game, and keep looking for fights.”

That’s part of what makes Saturday night in Chicago so special for Dodson.

Along with “The Magician,” this weekend’s fight card for the UFC’s return to FOX features several other members of the Jackson-Winkeljohn fight team Dodson has been an integral part of for his entire career.

“It makes it so much better for me because I get to enjoy it with my team,” said Dodson, who will follow teammates Shawn Jordan, Clay Guida, and Donald Cerrone into the cage on Saturday night. A fifth member of the team, middleweight Buddy Roberts, was scheduled to compete, but was forced out of his bout with Michael Kuiper due to an illness. “The people that have been helping me grow as a fighter are going to be there – my teammates, my coaches, my family – and they’re all going to be supporting me, and watching me go out there. That’s all I care about.”

It might be what he cares most about heading into tomorrow night’s meeting with Johnson, but it’s not really all the charismatic contender cares about.

Dodson also cares deeply about exciting the crowd and giving them their money’s worth when he takes to the cage. Thus far, the flyweights have received a rather frosty reception, with Johnson and Benavidez fighting for a place in the history books to a soundtrack of boos in Toronto, while Dodson and Jussier “Formiga” da Silva received a similar response when they fought a month later in Minneapolis.

“It’s heartbreaking to tell you the truth,” Dodson said of the competing with a chorus of boos echoing throughout the arena. “To always hear them booing makes you want to try and step up, do something impressive so they can start cheering. You always want the fans on your side throughout the fight – it gives you that extra motivation, that extra boost when you’re down and out.

““With Formiga, he’s a tough opponent, and I was trying to take it technical, but apparently the fans don’t like it when you think. They want you to give them mayhem and carnage all the time.”

Dodson eventually delivered carnage, stopping the highly respected Brazilian newcomer with a flurry of punishment late in the second round to vault himself into position opposite Johnson.

It’s a fight that Dodson has been eying for the last year, and not solely because a win would bring him the first of the three titles he ambitiously hopes to acquire over his career.

He and “Mighty Mouse” are viewed as two of the fastest competitors in the UFC, and a bout between the two has the potential to be a frenetic blend of kicks and punches, takedowns and scrambles; technique and precision mixed with calculated risk-taking, all delivered at 100 miles per hour.

“We’re going to be moving so fast that you have no room for error,” assessed Dodson. “It’s going to come down to who comes out on top in those scrambles. Who cuts better corners? Who can make the tighter punches? Who can have a shorter distance on their takedowns? Who can pick them up faster? Who can hit his reversal or sweep? Who can attack first off a break?

“Those are all going to be things that are major, major factors in this fight because Demetrious is so technically sound he can keep people in a slow pace when he’s moving backwards so that they drop their guard, and then he attacks. We’ll see if I can capitalize on that or if he can capitalize on something I’m going to do.

“I know he’s going to use everything in his arsenal and try to really push for those takedowns. His level changes are among the best in the game, so knowing that I have to compete with such a strong wrestler, I have to be able to be ready for that, and prepare for me scrambles. I had to go back to basics with my own wrestling – doing sprawls, getting back my speed, having fast shots, and fast defense – just so I can compete with this dude. I want to make sure we have a good fight and I can match him in every area to the point where I have no disadvantages in any area, and it can be a straight-up brawl.

“I’m going to hit him as many times as I can, and one of those is going to put him down. I’m either going to hit him with a body shot or one to the face – probably a combination of both. Maybe I’ll hit him with a “Dragon Punch” like in Dragon Ball Z.”

For the animated flyweight challenger, emerging from the cage victorious on Saturday night would be validation of his persistence, and a realization of one his dreams.

Winning UFC gold is a life-changing experience and a career-defining moment, but as much as Dodson will revel in the excitement if he defeats Johnson, it’s not going to change his long-term plans.

“To tell you the truth – I would probably be the happiest man in the world at that time. It probably wouldn’t really hit me until two weeks later that I’m the actual champion, but at that point in time, it would be one of those life-changing events. It’d be like winning the lottery, and not the little lottery where you win $7 million – the one where you win $746 million.”

Dodson releases a rapid-fire laugh, and then unveils more of his blueprint for dominating the UFC’s three lightest weight classes.

“If I do win the title, I want to defend it a couple times so I can solidify my championship status. You’re not a real champion until you defend the belt. I want to do that in each weight class. If I can do that at 125, I would like to go up, win that belt, defend it a couple times, and go back down to ’25, defend that again, and then go up to 145.”

In other words, as much as waking up with the flyweight championship in his possession on Sunday morning will be something he’ll never forget, come Sunday night – and every night after that – the plan remains the same: try to take over the world.

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