Nashville heavyweight Mike Johnson will return to MMA action this weekend when he faces Clarksville’s Paul Faye at Johnathan Ivey’s Cage Fighting Championships at the MidTN Expo in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Pro MMA Now caught up with the big man to learn more about his MMA journey and get his thoughts on the matchup.

Thanks for talking with us Mike, how has training been going for your upcoming fight? 

You’re welcome, thanks for having me. And training has been going very well so far, training hard so the fight will go smoothly.

You’re fighting Paul Faye on this card, I understand he’s a training partner of a guy you beat at the first show. How did this fight come together and has there been some bad blood between you two? 

As far as bad blood, not that I know of. I don’t focus on things like that anyway, just training and getting things ready so I can do my part and put on a good show.

How much do you know about Paul’s skill level and what is your assessment of him?

Paul is a very skilled fighter from my assessment and it should be a very good fight and a challenging one at that.

Where do you train and who are some of the coaches/training partners helping you get ready for this fight? 

I train at The Academy of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Goodlettsville, Tenn. Jason Matherley, Chuck Locke and Kevin Collier are my coaches and I have several training partners all of which I’m very grateful to have.

How do you see the fight playing out when you visualize it?

When I visualize the fight, I try to think of all the situations that could happen and how I can react to them but with this fight I’m just going to give it my all and lay it all on the line.

How did you get started in MMA and do you have a sports background? 

MMA and fighting is something I’ve always had a deep passion for, although I’m just getting started, I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. And the only sports I participated in growing up was high school football.

What are your goals in the sport?

My goal in this sport is to one day hold a few belts and make it far enough to fight for Bellator.

What’s life like for you outside of fighting?

Outside of fighting I’m just a normal guy, I go to work and enjoy time with my family and friends.

Thanks for your time Mike, any final words for the fans?

Thanks for having me, as for the fans all I can say is I hope you all enjoy the show and continue to support us fighters we are here to entertain, so therefore wouldn’t be a show without the fans.

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