5 Defining Moments: Brett Johns

More than a decade into his mixed martial arts journey, Brett Johns still lacks one notable achievement: a major championship.

“The Pikey” will attempt to take another step in the right direction in the Bellator MMA bantamweight division when he locks horns with Jordan Winski as part of the Bellator 285 undercard on Friday at 3Arena in Dublin. Johns, 30, owns a 1-1 record in the Scott Coker-led organization, having signed their following a seven-bout run in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He last appeared at Bellator 275, where he disposed of Khurshed Kakhorov with punches in the third round of their Feb. 25 confrontation.

As Johns approaches his forthcoming battle with Winski at 135 pounds, a look at five of the many moments that have come to define him:

1. Gaining Separation

Johns continued to separate himself as one of the top prospects in Europe when he captured the vacant Cage Fury Fighting Championships bantamweight crown with a split decision over Jordan Desborough in the Cage Warriors 59 headliner on Sept. 14, 2013 at Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, Wales. All three cageside judges scored it 48-47: Ben Cartlidge for Desborough, Andy Sledge and David Lethaby for Johns. Desborough was the aggressor for much of the 25-minute encounter and did his share of damage. However, Johns paired repeated takedowns with asphyxiating control to curry just enough favor on the scorecards to get by. The narrow decision capped his run through a bantamweight tournament—he had outpointed David Haggstrom mere hours earlier—that was put together to fill the void left when Paul McVeigh departed the division to compete at 125 pounds.

2. Trophy Hunting

The trophy case in the Johns household grew by one more piece when he laid claim to the Titan Fighting Championship bantamweight title by submitting Walel Watson with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their Titan 33 pairing on March 20, 2015 at the Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, Alabama. Watson conceded defeat 3:06 into Round 2. Johns established his superiority late in the first period, where he took down the Team Bodyshop rep, settled in top position and battered him bloody with a burst of elbow strikes. He picked up where he left off in Round 2, as he delivered another takedown, applied effective ground-and-pound and eventually maneuvered onto Watson’s back. Johns then snaked his arms in place, snatched a standing choke and elicited the tapout.

3. A Slice of History

The Welshman put away former Bellator MMA champion Joe Soto with a calf slicer in the first round of their bantamweight showcase at “The Ultimate Fighter 26” Finale on Dec. 1, 2017 at Park Theater in Las Vegas. Johns drew the curtain 30 seconds into Round 1, becoming just the second fighter—Charles Oliveira was the first—to execute the rare submission inside the Octagon. Soto struck for an immediate takedown and regretted the move almost immediately. Johns rolled into the calf slicer, cut off avenues for escape and cranked the leg like he was tugging the lever on a slot machine. Soto did all he could to free himself but had no choice but to tap.

4. Blocked Path

Aljamain Sterling outdueled the previously unbeaten Johns to a unanimous decision in their three-round UFC Fight Night 128 bantamweight feature on April 21, 2018 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. All three members of the cageside judiciary scored it 30-27. Sterling outpaced the Welshman by significant margins in significant strikes (89-27) and total strikes (117-56), all while incorporating takedowns in the second and third rounds. The Serra-Longo Fight Team star did damage from distance, in the clinch and on the ground, as he kept Johns off-balance with well-oiled offensive skills and took another step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship pecking order at 135 pounds.

5. At a Crossroads

Former Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion Pedro Munhoz was credited with three knockdowns when he took a unanimous decision from Johns in the featured UFC 227 prelim on Aug. 4, 2018 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Scores were 30-27, 29-28 and 29-27. Munhoz trashed his counterpart’s lower extremities with kicks and had him reeling on multiple occasions with kicks to the head and body. To his credit, Johns stayed alive to see the final bell but nevertheless wound up on the wrong side of the scorecards, his ceiling at 135 pounds having been firmly established. Munhoz virtually doubled “The Pikey” in the total strikes landed department, 162-80, and also piled up more than four minutes of control time. He connected with 23 of the 32 leg kicks he unleashed, leaving Johns with a limp by which to remember him.