No Limits for Tim Johnson

Tim Johnson can be best described as an anytime, anyone, anywhere kind of guy. It resulted in his qualifying for the 2024 Professional Fighters League playoffs, as he stopped Danilo Marques with first-round punches in a late-notice assignment in June. Though he eventually fell short of a million-dollar payday in a semifinal loss to Denis Goltsov, the experience offered Johnson a renewed sense of purpose.

Next on the docket for the 39-year-old Xtreme Couture rep: a showdown with former Bellator MMA titleholder Vadim Nemkov in the PFL Champions Series 1 co-main event on Saturday at Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The assignment fits with Johnson’s mode of operation.

“Less than two weeks ago is when I signed,” he told Sherdog.com. “I didn’t have a home. I was a free agent. Nothing has changed for me since the playoffs last year. I got three little girls at home. I got a family. I didn’t have a contract with anybody, so I was trucking.”

Johnson spent considerable time with the Ultimate Fighting Championship and more than held his own there—he compiled a 4-3 record with the promotion between April 4, 2015 and Feb. 3, 2018—but points to his extended run in Bellator as the experience that benefited him most. The PFL purchased the company in late 2023 and made the decision recently to shutter its doors.

“Business is business,” Johnson said. “I don’t really air things out, whether they’re good or bad, but it’s sad to see Bellator be done. A lot of fighters would say being in the UFC is the highlight of their career, but I was there, did that dance. Bellator allowed me to actually grow into the fighter that I am. They gave me a lot of opportunities, I didn’t always capitalize on them, but they gave me the opportunities. They turned me into the MMA fighter I am today.”

A similar situation could await him in the PFL. Johnson sees a real need for an alternative to the UFC, one his current employer provides.

“MMA fans are weird,” he said. “Anything outside of the UFC for 80% of the fanbase is just a joke to them. They want to see them fail. They don’t want to see fighters get paid. They’re so weird. There is a finite amount of promotions in the world where fighters get to go to. The more organizations the better. I don’t know what’s so wrong with that concept.”

In taking on Nemkov at the PFL’s first event of the year, Johnson could set himself up for a lucrative campaign. The fact that he trains at the same camp as PFL Super Fights heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou would not necessarily preclude them from being matched against one another in the future. Johnson prefers to leave those decisions to the PFL.

“That whole scenario has not even entered my head yet,” he said. “I was focused on entering the tournament after this fight. You know, I’ll leave that for when it comes. I still see Francis. We still get along. We’ve been training partners for a very long time, so I’ll just leave that for down the road.”