By Alun Rhys Chivers
Mixed martial arts fighter Brett Johns added his name to the history books earlier this month.
The Pontarddulais product beat American Joe Soto in just 30 seconds in Las Vegas with a move which was last successfully executed to finish a fight in 2012 (when Charles Oliveira beat Eric Wisely).
There was no better stage for Johns to create history with the move known as the ‘calf slicer’ than the Ultimate Fighter Championship finale. It earned him an eye-watering $50,000 bonus for the best move of the night. Johns is now undefeated in 15 fights.
“To be honest, it doesn’t really feel like it’s happened,” Johns told me upon his return to Wales. “30 seconds, that’s all it was. Everything just kind of fell into place. I felt great ahead of the fight. The weigh-in was OK, not brilliant but it was OK. I just felt good about the fight.”
‘OK’ and ‘good’ are understatements given Johns’ execution of the now famous ‘calf slicer’ move which has taken the internet by storm in recent weeks. “I thought it would take the full 15 minutes [to win],” admits Johns.
“It was one of those fights that just depend on how it all goes. I thought it was going to be a 15 minute battle. I’m not going to say that 30 seconds wasn’t good though. I’m very happy with my performance.”
A move that could shatter a knee…
Johns’ description of the calf slicer certainly isn’t for the faint hearted. It relies, says Johns, upon leg strength, which he has in abundance. And it was a well-rehearsed move, admits the Welsh speaker who trains in Fforestfach in Swansea.
“It’s a leg lock. Up at Fforestfach, I do a lot of things with the legs, such as foot locks. The calf slicer is a leg lock. It’s one of my favourites. I just like the move. I was very lucky to get the finish with the calf slicer. I’m really happy to get the bonus for doing it as well. It’s quite a dangerous submission, it could shatter the knee.”
Johns enthuses that a fighter must move quickly to avoid an opponent when he’s on a mission to get the submission to close down a fight.
“It’s difficult because, when you’re grappling, the legs go everywhere. To get pressure on the leg to keep it still and go for it is very difficult. But I did it from the take-down, and was lucky that his leg just happened to be there at that time.”
What next?
Following his latest victory, Johns is keen to return to the O2 in London, the location of one of his biggest disappointments to date. He was due to fight Ian Entwistle as his hero Brad Pickett brought down the curtain on his career. But it wasn’t to be as his opponent pulled the plug at the very last minute.
“That chance was taken away from me,” reflects Johns. “I was really disappointed about that. But now I have the chance to fight in London, I’m going to grab it with both hands.” And maybe, just maybe, with a calf or two as well…