James Wilks pelting of DaMarques Johnson concludes UK domination of TUF 9
by Jesse Holland on Jun 21, 2009 3:59 AM EDT
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"I saw the Sportsbooks yesterday, I think my friends were trying to keep them away from me. I was the underdog and not the favorite but that didn't really affect me at all. I just thought, 'They don't know what I've been doing in training, they haven't seen enough of me really to judge my skill level.' So I really didn't take that into account at all I was just focused on the fight. I remember I heard 'thirty seconds left' and I wasn't able to sink the choke, he had his chin down. By the time I trapped his arm with my leg I felt confident I'd be able to finish it -- if there was enough time. I think there was only six seconds left or four seconds left or something. It was pretty crazy. I really didn't know [I had it] until he tapped."
The Ultimate Fighter 9 welterweight winner James Wilks sounds off in the post fight press conference about playing spoiler in his underdog role coming into the June 20 live finale against heavily-favored DaMarques Johnson. Wilks was completely dominant on the ground and on his feet and left many observers (including yours truly) feeling a bit hustled after a competent but hardly spectacular run through the Spike TV reality show. In any case, if Wilks continues to perform like he did on Saturday, he's going to find success in the UFC sooner rather than later. Time will tell.
(Photo courtesy of Tracy Lee via Yahoo Sports)
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it was an inpressive win. he got lucky imo tho
by amazing product on Jun 21, 2009 5:34 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Forget where these guys are from, I just enjoyed seeing Johnson getting a beating and chocked to fuck, the guy is a dickhead. Wilks looked great.
by paniczoo on Jun 21, 2009 9:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I had money on both Wilks and Ross so the night went well for me!
Wilks skill set reminds me a lot of George Sitiropolous.
I think a great fight would be Wilks vs. Sitiropolous Mirror images of each other!
by JOhn G on Jun 22, 2009 9:00 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I cannot stand Wilks! He has been living in Newport Beach, CA for the last few years and then finds out TUF is UK vs US and he is a Brit again? Then he’s a finalist he is opening a gym in Laguna for the free pub? The dude should have been fighting for the US not UK. I can’t what to see this guy get pummeled by Swick.
by mmamac on Jun 21, 2009 10:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
So because he has been living in the states for a few years he should forget he was ever British and fight on the US team. Why?. If it was an American who had been living in the UK for a few years and he decided to fight for the UK team and he had won it, you would have been calling him a traitor and all the names under the sun, and hope that he would also get pummled by Swick. Stop being bitter.
by Ade on Jun 21, 2009 11:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Yeah good call, Adebisi.
mmamac, maybe if Wilks was already saying ‘mom’ instead of ‘mum’ your point would have more significance. But he still seems very much British to me.
by Johnny Farnham on Jun 21, 2009 12:31 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Let me guess you are a Marcus Davis fan???? LOL
by the spyder on Jun 21, 2009 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Don’t know if others noticed, but for both guys being exactly the same height and weight, Wilks appeared quite a bit bigger and was definitely stronger? I realize people carry weight differently and Johnson is very lean, but Wilks looked like a man fighting a boy in the strength dept.
by CL on Jun 21, 2009 11:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Who cares where the guys lives and mentions opening a gym? It’s only his fighting that counts and he put it on Demarcus in convincing fashion winning the show. Great start to a UFC career.
by sudnvictory on Jun 22, 2009 6:51 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
No such thing as a lucky win (unless the judges score the fight strangely), and this was as one-sided as you can get. Wilks completely destroyed Damarques and it was great to see him shut that guy up, great to see a guy who didn’t chase after the cameras win TUF. Awesome season for the UK, British MMA couldn’t have been represented any better.
by David W-S on Jun 21, 2009 12:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Lucky??? did you not watch the fight. That is one of the stupidest comments I have ever read on this site. He rocked him with strikes, he took him down and he choked his funky ass out. This fight was as one sided as the GSP destruction of BJ………..LUCKY LOLOLOLOL, nice comment. Maybe you should try watching the fights before making really stupid comments.
by the spyder on Jun 21, 2009 12:49 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
he absolutely dominated the fight, how the hell is that ‘lucky’?
by RJ on Jun 21, 2009 1:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
it was an impressive win. he got lucky imo tho
by amazing product on Jun 21, 2009 5:36 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
how did he get lucky? he dominated the entire fight.
another case of personal opinions of fighters clouding reason, lodgic and common sense again? sigh
by UK_Chris on Jun 21, 2009 11:17 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I want you to explain to everyone here what was lucky about this win? This is the stupist comment ever, please explain your opinion Im curious to hear your reason
by Spyder on Jun 21, 2009 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
how embarassing, I’m sure we have better talent out there somewhere
by ja434650 on Jun 21, 2009 6:40 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Wilks was awesome.. Serious contender material right there..
by johan-lofgren on Jun 21, 2009 8:13 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
omg i won some serious money on wilks!!!!
i had a feeling it would be closer than every 1 made it out to be…. a lot of people had johnson winning…. i just though i’d bet on the under dog and i had a rare win (hardly ever win on the under dog)
by ufcaddict on Jun 21, 2009 8:46 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
hahahahaha HAHAHAHAHAHA now mma will grow more in uk and it won’t be long till thier is a british champ this is merely the beginning of brits in the ufc 5 n 0 on ufc 99 won tuf 9 in both classes i no the yanks could of had a better team but so could the brits you can expect more decent fighters coming out of the uk from now.
by brits are coming on Jun 21, 2009 8:56 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Ya.
I read Dana didn’t like the country VS Country thing at all, and Spike forced it. I am sure they thought that the American’s would dominate and they could market that for several more seasons of US vs the World…..
I bet Dana’s glad that party’s over.
by Jas on Jun 21, 2009 9:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I swear they got the biggest bunch of whiny chumps they could find for the US team. Not a one of them was worth cheering for. I’d say a brit has just as much of a chance as anyone to get a title but I wouldn’t use TUF 9 as an indicator of that.
by Rawrr on Jun 21, 2009 3:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Fighting a diluted American talent pool. Already used up better fighters on other nine ultimate fighters. Bispings your best fighter and he is not even top ten in his division.
by Jay on Jun 21, 2009 9:28 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
You’re insane. Michael Bisping is definitely in the top 10 in the UFC. Give him some credit.
by Adam T. on Jun 21, 2009 10:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I agree with this completely. I think that the U.S. reps. seemed to be very unexperienced vs an England squad that had a lot more experience. You could tell after the first two episode fight-ins that we were going to get dominated. Johnson was the only fighter on the show that impressed me, however. I think that the problem was that Johnson was the same fighter who was on the show. Wilks, though, has improved a lot since the show. He was dominating Johnson standing and on the ground. I actually think this was a conspiracy to build up the U.K.’s and try to give more credibility to their fighters. Maybe next time the it can be the U.K. vs. a boys Junior high wrestling team.
by PEZ on Jun 21, 2009 10:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Well said. Now we can look forward to this can having all the smoke in the world blown up his ass, just like Bizzzzbing, and have him on every UK show for the next five years. Happy Days!
by attakdog on Jun 21, 2009 10:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Wish they’d just feed Bisping to Sylva already. Doesn’t matter how good the US or the UK are when there are Brazilians in the mix :P
by Rawrr on Jun 21, 2009 3:57 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Sylva is the Mr Boring of MMA sorry to burst yer bubble.
by Steve on Jun 22, 2009 9:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I agree. I don’t want to take anything away from the UK team because they obviously have some very talented fighters, but if you put them up against a majority of the US fighters from the previous seasons, I think the US would have dominated. I think there might have been an agenda behind giving the UK the upper hand.
by Jared on Jun 21, 2009 11:30 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You cant even say that, Americans are brutal, you guys can not lose with any grace at all. Now you are trying to compare these guys with past guys, phhhhhh what a joke. Team USA got schooled throughout the season and if it were not for bad conditioning by the Brits probably would have won all of there fights. Two of them gased and lost late in the fight that they dominated early. JUST LOSE AND GO AWAY!!!!!!
by the spyder on Jun 21, 2009 12:46 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
An impressive win.
Give the guy his due.
Lester lost again – wasnt televised though? did he lose more teeth??
by ben on Jun 21, 2009 10:00 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Typical yanks bitching about there loss, last week most of you were saying that the uk was shit for mma, and now we come over and beat you at your own sport in your own back yard priceless.
johnson was the best on team u.s and wilks walked through him
WAR Uk MMA
by vinrex7 on Jun 21, 2009 10:09 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
“Beat you at your own sport”???? Uneducated comment.
It was MMA not baseball. Since when has MMA been an American sport?
This proves sh!t pal!
by attakdog on Jun 21, 2009 10:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I have to agree, all Ive heard off most (not all, but most) americans either throughout the series or after is moan moan moan bitch bitch bitch excuse excuse excuse.
come on guys, swallow your pride, dont be sore losers, and give those guys some credit.
by UK_Chris on Jun 21, 2009 11:22 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
1) “Typical yanks bitching” Dude why don’t you call out who was talking crap instead of lumping us all together. Or are you still sour about 1776? lol. It was pretty obvious from the beginning that this TUF was marketed towards the British.
2) This isn’t our sport.
3) I wouldn’t say Wilks walked through him, but Wilks was impressive. Congrats.
War THEIR not THERE
by notatroll on Jun 21, 2009 11:30 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The UK team did great and would have done fine no matter who they were fighting, but anyone who uses the teams on this show to fully represent US MMA or UK MMA is a friggin’ moron. Grats to UK fans and here’s hoping they never do this stupid country vs country BS again because next year the UK could get a sub par team and the US could get a bunch of studs and then we’d have moronic US guys on here talking about how terrible UK MMA is.
by Rawrr on Jun 21, 2009 4:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Was a nice showing with the brits this season. As for Bisping Ill give him his credit if he can make it past Henderson.
by rydinlow on Jun 21, 2009 11:20 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
you americans like to forget england is smaller than california and mma is just starting to kick off here plus you wrestle in school do you think you would have so many mma stars if america was a tiny island that barely new about mma? your belt holders are dwindling all the time and if cock chestner didnt out weight every opponent by 60 pounds you wouldn’t have an american heavyweight champ for much longer too. Because carwin aint as good as you all think either he got rocked by gonzaga before he got lucky and jason dent fought 2 solid opponents in the ufc before tuf 9 has his own gym and you where gobling johnson ballax sayin how good he was. fedor gsp A.silva machida are the best mma fighters in the world how many are yanks and you suppose to have the biggest talent pool the most the best n biggest mma gyms alot of the immediate top contenders aren’t yanks shogun alves damian maia soon vitor belfort maybe bisping and whats your excuse and like dana always says they haven’t scratched the surface. Soon their will be fighters coming from all over europe you only held so many belts because its always being just americans with the odd brazilian you gota be in it to win it.
by HIT U WI SOME knowledge on Jun 21, 2009 12:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Cock Chestner – that’s awesome! As for the rest, well said. I don’t know why my fellow Americans get all national, when in fact, the greatest nationality of fighters in the world is clearly Brazilan.
by BigRedOne on Jun 21, 2009 12:28 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If Brock didn’t outweigh every opponent by 60 pounds, blah blah blah . . .
Carwin got lucky with his punch blah blah blah . . .
What other excuses do you want to make?
Carwin has finished every opponent he’s faced. The last four being by KO. That’s hardly a case for being lucky.
Give credit where it’s due.
However, your points about the size of England in comparison and the development of MMA are fair, and you’ve obviously been provoked by the large number of arrogant Americans who pay out on the Brits.
by Johnny Farnham on Jun 21, 2009 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
first off i’m canadian, so i have no loyalty to either nation. secondly as a canadian i think it’s terrible that you forgot GSP in your best mma fighters ;) but to say that the US wouldn’t have the heavyweight champion is well… not that smart, i agree brock won’t be, but mir will be, next in line you have cain (american), carwin (i think he’s the real deal), then couture (american), nog and dos santos (both Brazilian, and dos santos is a long stretch we’ll see how he does against mcully and his wrestling) so 5 (six if mcully shows up well) americans and 2 brazilians seems pretty saturated with americans (and fedor as of now will not fight in the UFC). next you can’t just put maia and bisping up without mentioning their oppenents marquardt and henderson. I believe Hendo should win the fight, and if marquardt plays it smart should as well (although i think demian will pull it off)but i’m not going to just leave the other two out (i mentioned mcully for christ’s sake). Now continuing on: LHW top contenders. Forrest (i don’t mention A silva cause he won’t fight machida… so for now he’s out of the picture), Rashad, Rampage, shogun and machida. there are others who are below them but it’s a crap shoot till they all fight. but once again the top guys are mainly american with brazilians as well. Now you can’t forget that there have been previous tuf seasons with lightweights and welterweights (mainly from the US) and many more americans in those divisions in the ufc already, so the US talent pool is lessened more than other countries.
All i’m trying to say is give credit where credit is due, and that is to the US and Brazil, i can’t wait for a deeper talent pool from every country, but for now i will settle for gsp and cote. Also if you’re going to make arguments don’t leave out key people cause then your argument seems weaker because it shows an obvious bias. ps i decided i had already rambled enough to add the other divisions/expand more on the middleweights
by mmeh on Jun 21, 2009 1:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
whoa..long winded..but yeah..americans tend to be blind when it comes to giving credit, or they take credit when it is not due..places like canada don’t teach wrestling in school..(least not where i am from)and further more..there is a lack of places to train and fight..being that our country is so big and spread out..i know that i am impressed that there is top fighters coming outta here..and they tend to be from out east at that..
by sarah on Jun 22, 2009 1:12 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Johnson had no business being in the octagon last night. He was schooled, tooled and totally pwned by Wilks. Quite disappointing really, but good for Wilks – he was clearly on a different level. Didn’t Johnson’s 14-6 mma record prior to this fight give some of you a clue that he’s not all that? I may be an American, but I say good for the Brits…
by BigRedOne on Jun 21, 2009 12:21 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
What an absolute destruction of Demarcus, I loved this fight. He really bugged me throughout TUF, he is not nearly as tough as he thinks he is and after all the BS that he talked about James I loved to see him just put it to him. Bigredone good point Demarcus did not even deserve to be in there with Wilks, to differant level of fighters there with Wilks being on a way higher level. That was embarrassing!!!!
by the spyder on Jun 21, 2009 12:42 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
demarcus reminds me of diaz. under powered compared to others in his division but durable and dangerous submissions.
by chris on Jun 21, 2009 1:32 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
most fights carwin has won he has being rocked before he won neil wain rocked carwin so carwin had to take him down and then battered wain. But wain belongs in a pub beating up the landlord and gonzaga rocked carwin and got him to the ground i no carwin got up and k oood gonzaga with his massive power but mir could sub him and whats he gona do to cock lezber if he gets rocked because he carnt take lezber down. Records dont really matter its about who you fought alot of fighters in hwd are not that well rounded so they not gona be able to cope with cock chestner size or power i can only see frank mur subing him and if he fails to he gona get a right beating ever since lezber turned up it seems like alot of hw fighters belong at to 205. I feel sorry for carwin because cock chestner just a bigger faster version but the fight would be just like the good old days the all or nothin days there back
by HIT U WI SOME knowledge on Jun 21, 2009 2:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
So satisfying seeing Johnson getting choked out. What a tool that guy is!
by Nick on Jun 21, 2009 5:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
im irish so not part of the u.k before people say…..
Wilks totally controlled this fight and has improved immensly since the show which is impressive. people may argue it was a weaker field for the u.s but that does not take away from the composure and impressive boxing and submission skills shown by Wilks. look at this fight objectively, as two fighters not two countries!!
by irishlilpete on Jun 21, 2009 6:38 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
It was so great seeing the smacktalking thug Demarques lose BADLY.
I nearly got an orgásm watching it :)
by Green Inferno on Jun 21, 2009 6:38 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Wow… The Americans sucked serious D**K this series!
by Jake on Jun 21, 2009 7:16 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
As a mature person who has been in the ‘trade’ for some 30 years i have enjoyed this series alot! Demarques Johnson was in my opinion the best US fighter in the series, my money was actually on him winning the final as i though he was that good! Frank Lester…what a machine that guy is, he is going to have a great future. But i have to say that the UK guys were better overall. The Demarques vs James fight was amazing in the fact how James totally annihilated Demarques and all credit to him. But also although Demarques and James did not get on what a great sport Demarques was handing the award to James at the end…great sportsmanship. I’ll finish by saying that it was an amazing series and as a UK citizen i’m very very proud of my fellow country men, as should any Americans be of their guys.
by Worting on Jun 21, 2009 7:43 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Frank Lester is the next Josh Haynes.
He’ll get a couple of fights because he’s a tough guy who’s happy to take a beating – and that sells, for a while – and get himself a solid losing record. The he’ll bounce around for a few years in small promotions until the damage catches up to him and he’s out of the game, a 30 year old guy in a 45 year old body…
by MattNY on Jun 21, 2009 8:47 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
My comment was unbiased seeing I’m not American. British fighters just aren’t all that impressive. Maybe they’ll catch up to real fighting nations someday.
by Jay on Jun 21, 2009 11:29 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Your a typical American, ignorant and close minded!!!!
by Spyder on Jun 22, 2009 1:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Oh and I haven’t seen any rankings with Bisping in their top 10. Maybe I’m wrong, but the dude hasn’t beat a top fighter yet.
by Jay on Jun 21, 2009 11:31 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Demarcus looked great in his fight to get on the show but then average after that. It’s always bothersome to see guys talk smack and then not back it up and so like a lot of you I was pleased to see him get owned by Wilks. With that said, Demarcus did grab the trophy from one of the ring girls after the fight and hand it to Wilks which I think was a show of good sportsmanship so maybe he’ll learn from this and have a future in the sport.
Wilks looked great and I especially loved how he secured Johnson’s one arm with his leg while sinking in the RNC….ala BJ Penn vs Jens Pulver.
No surprise he was on Henderson’s team for the show. Just like Dan, he tapped with 8 secs left in a round while in a RNC. God, I hate that…..
by sudnvictory on Jun 22, 2009 12:15 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
When you’re being choked like that 8 seconds is a long time.
by Johnny Farnham on Jun 22, 2009 12:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Yeah, I realize that and certainly never being in that position it’s easy for me to say but I just think guys sometimes lose awareness of the time left in the round and I wonder if afterwards they think about it and wonder if they had fought the choke attempt a little harder maybe they could have gotten out of the round.
by sudnvictory on Jun 22, 2009 6:58 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
As I read through this thread and many others, I am AMAZED at how much f’n attention deficit exists by a lot of y’all. To those who actually posted comments about the Wilks-Johnson fight, thank you. To the rest of you that can’t seem to stay on topic, WTF?
by sudnvictory on Jun 22, 2009 7:08 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Amazing fight!! WOW was it satisfying to see DaMarques on the ground getting choked out. After spending the entire season watching him act tough, and put on that embarassingly awkward smile and arrogant attitude, nothing was more awesome than to see him get demolished in every aspect of the game. Wilks absolutly dominated him, plain and simple, and I look forward to seeing his future fights. DaMarques on the other hand, will hopefully be a bit more humble after getting raped on national tv.
by MMAFan on Jun 22, 2009 9:35 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
mmeh i didn’t forget gsp and jay you are clearly american if not where you from? if its not brazil i think you should shut your face mate and apart from gsp canada isnt even as good as the uk who else they got. The crow jason mcginger patrick cote and jason doomed day who are all coming off losses no doubt more talent will come from canada soon since they love mma and have great fans. And jay read a book you whore uk is a real fighting nation thats why you speak our language nob rash we invented the rules for boxing loads of great boxers come from uk. Put it like this which country the size of the uk has achieved what the uk has nooooooooobody the sun never used to set on the british empire and i suppose we achieved that because we are a bunch of pussys problem is everyone is to rapped up in football and rugby no one knows about mma if you americans or canadians dont know what rugby is look it up its a real mans sport and alot of nation’s play it
by HIT U WI SOME knowledge on Jun 22, 2009 10:11 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Number of champions from the UK = 0
Number of champions from Canada = 1
Population of UK = 60 million
Population of Canada = 30 million
By your logic Canada is the most dominant force in MMA
by Jimbob on Jun 22, 2009 10:41 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Rugby is boring as shit!!! England sucks at it anyways!! Go South Africa!! I’m not South African either, but they are the two time defending champions incase you were wondering. You sure are a bunch of pussies now!! Not tough to fight gun to hand combat! Being war mongering whores doesn’t mean you are great fighters! Hi I’m Britiah and no longer significant on the world stage. America can we please ride on your coattails, to still seem important!
by Jay on Jun 22, 2009 11:51 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Personally, I never thought DaMarques was overly cocky (and I’m Canadian, for those of you who are counting). He just seemed confident and was willing to speak frankly during the face time on the show. I must admit I was just FLOORED by how well Wilks did in this fight. He beat DaMarques in every discipline. I am a bit confused as to why Wilks didn’t show more of this talent during the show. I believe he was a BJJ blackbelt from before the show, but just chose to do standup during the show.
by Joshshmenge on Jun 22, 2009 12:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Yeah it’s amazing the transformation some of these guys make after being on the show. Guys like Tim Credeur and Ben Saunders who weren’t that impressive to me on the show, now look like legitimate fighters. I’m guessing the training and focus gets a whole lot better once they land a contract and join a professional training team.
I agree Wilks looked really good and his RNC trapping the arm was a pretty impressive finish.
by sudnvictory on Jun 22, 2009 10:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Did yall not watch the fight closely. Yes, Damarques got killed but he showed tremendous heart getting out of the leg compression and the Omaplata.
As for Bisping he needs to figure out how to shut his mouth and i hope Hendo dominates him
by Cody on Jun 24, 2009 10:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The fight was extremely one sided for wilks but damarques showed heart. He got slipped out the leg compression and the omaplata which looked in tight. Give the guy some credit. Wilks did dominate him thought.
As for Bisping… the man needs to learn how to shut his mouth i couldnt care for him. Hope Hendo smashes his face in.
by USA on Jun 24, 2009 10:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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