The majority of previews highlighting flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson's attempt at UFC history on Saturday were written in September during the lead-in to UFC 215 in Edmonton.
But Johnson (26-2-1), the top pound-for-pound fighter in MMA and arguably the greatest fighter already in UFC history, saw his attempt to break Anderson Silva's UFC record of 10 title defenses get postponed two days before his main event bout against Ray Borg (11-2) when the challenger withdrew due to a viral illness.
Nearly one month later Johnson, 31, will attempt to further cement his legacy once more on Saturday when he defends his 125-pound crown inside T-Mobile Center at UFC 216 in Las Vegas.
There isn't much buzz surrounding Johnson's pursuit the second time around. Some of that can be traced to the relative anonymity, at least in terms of casual fans, to his opponent. Borg, 24, only found himself so quickly in a title shot because Johnson has so convincingly cleaned out the division since becoming the inaugural flyweight champion in 2012.
Some of that can also be traced to Johnson having never been a big draw, despite his steady brilliance inside the Octagon. Saturday's return will also be playing second fiddle to the main event of Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee in their interim lightweight championship bout.
But the move from a headlining role in Edmonton to co-main status hasn't been an issue for Johnson.
"Obviously, this is Tony and Kevin Lee's time," Johnson said during Monday's UFC 216 media luncheon. "I already had my opportunity to headline UFC 215, it was taken away from me so I don't see it right or justice for me to headline UFC 216. This is their card. I'm thankful for UFC to be able to make this fight happen so soon and I'll get in on this fight card."
Johnson also doesn't hold any ill will toward Borg for pulling out of their fight last month and forcing the champion to extend training camp.
"It's unfortunate but at same time, I wanted to thank UFC for calling me and letting me know instead of finding out on the Internet," Johnson said. "There is only so much you can control and after that call, I started training again and four weeks later we are back again."
Although Borg claimed his illness had nothing to do with cutting weight, he did part ways with nutritionist Michelle Ingels of Perfecting Athletes entering the rematch.
"You can't put off the inevitable," Borg said during last week's UFC 216 media conference call. "Everyone at my camp was sick, my wife was sick. I was just banking on not catching it but it happened. There's not a whole lot you can do.
"I tried to add a nutritionist to help me out because I was getting a little bit older, the weight was getting a little bit tougher to cut. I just went back to doing the same s--- that got me to the show. I'm not working with anybody this time around just because. One thing people don't understand is it wasn't a weight issue. I was just legitimately sick. In this sense, there isn't much of a point for a nutritionist."
Pressed by media members for a diagnosis of the illness that caused him to withdraw, Borg chalked it up to the flu-like symptoms.
"The diagnosis? I don't know, I'm not a doctor," Borg said. "[The UFC doctor] told me that I had a flu virus and that was it. I was throwing up -- I had the shakes, I had the shivers -- and it wasn't like no weight-cutting type sickness. I just got the flu."
While the focus on Johnson attempting history has taken a bit of a back seat entering the rescheduled Borg fight, talk has mostly centered upon his future. Not quite ready for a full-time move back up to bantamweight, Johnson has his eyes focused on a few potential flyweight opponents he has yet to face.
High on his list is Sergio Pettis (16-2), who faces former Johnson opponent Henry Cejudo on Dec. 2 at UFC 218. He's also intrigued by Majored Bibulatov (14-0), who meets former title challenger John Moraga on Saturday's undercard.
"I think Sergio Pettis has more of style that will give Henry Cejudo fits because he has been around the block a little more," Johnson said. "It'll be a good fight. I think [the winner is next in line].
"I can't think of another athlete – maybe Magomed Bibulatov. I can't think of how many [wins] he has in a row, but we'll see what happens."
The big fish remaining at flyweight for Johnson could end up coming in the form of current bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt, who has recovered from injury and is set to make his first title defense on Nov. 4 against former belt-holder TJ Dillashaw.
Garbrandt (11-0), 26, has thrown around the idea of moving down in weight in search of the glory that could come with a victory over a legend like Johnson. His coach, Justin Buchholz of Team Alpha Male, believes he's ready as long as his body responds.
"For sure, [Cody] can do it right now," Buchholz told ESPN's "Five Rounds" podcast this week. "He's real big and strong right now and he's getting bigger so he's gotta do it right now if he does go down. For sure, [Demetrious Johnson] is a fight that we would love to have, but we'll just see about getting his body down to 125 [pounds]."
"I'm confident that can happen. That's nothing. I've seen a lot harder things than that. Cody can make that weight and keep his power and put the weight back on and go back to 135 at this point in his career, while he's young. We know the dangers of switching weight classes and whatnot with Roy Jones Jr. and you can see the stuff with B.J. Penn. We know what we're doing here. Everything's a science now."
