Let Brett Johns' story be a warning: When street fighting, maybe avoid historical monuments

In Brett Johns’ defense, he was provoked that time he exchanged chokes and punches with another guy in the middle of the street.

But in hindsight, maybe he could’ve maybe picked a spot to stand up for himself that had a little less historical baggage.

As shown by an undefeated record that includes three UFC outings, Johns (15-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) knows a thing or two about fighting other men in a controlled, regulated environment. But back in the day, when he was solely a judo player with no MMA training, he saw himself in a situation that did not involve a bout agreement.

“There were a couple of thugs by me, and I remember walking on the street,” Johns told MMAjunkie Radio, when asked to share a street-fight story. “I mentioned I was doing judo. I’d done judo for 16 years before this point. This guy, randomly, probably about the same age as me – jumped on my back and rear-naked choked me.

“He tried to put me unconscious in the middle of the street. Just for a joke, really. And I’m not a big fan of that. I’ve never gone to sleep in my life, and I never plan to.

“Hopefully it doesn’t happen this Friday, either.”

Spoiler: It didn’t. By “this Friday,” Johns meant his recent TUF 26 Finale appointment with grappling expert Joe Soto, which took place Dec. 1. In fact, not only did Johns manage not to get choked out, but he pulled off a rare calf-slicer submission in a mere 30 seconds.

But this is now. At the time that the “thug” tried to choke him out in the street, Johns wasn’t quite as well-rounded. So let’s just say things didn’t go as smoothly for the bantamweight.

“I remember just getting really annoyed, so I pushed him,” Johns said. “I remember pushing me to a corner of a wall and beating lumps of me. Those were five or six punches he beat into me. And they all landed flush in the face. And I remember being so embarrassed that I offered him out by the – it was like a monument.

“It was a solider monument from the first World War, and I said, ‘We’ll fight down there.’ Not very respectful, I know.”

Albeit morally questionable, the maneuver was effective.

“I think he fancied his chances because he landed some punches on me,” Johns said. “But I managed to switch the situation. I held him on a rear-naked choke. I was choking him, and I let him up. I managed to catch him with a shot and put him down.

“I remember looking up – after it all finished, the guy didn’t want to carry on after that. And I looked to the sign.”

If getting busted by your parents in a situation like this is embarrassing, there has got to be a new word for what Johns experienced next.

“I realized that my great-grandfather was on that monument,” Johns said.

In light of that, Johns thinks he maybe should have taken the scuffle somewhere else. But on the other hand, there’s also the possibility that his great-grandfather would have been proud to see him stand his ground against what was ultimately a bully.

“It’s one of those things: I detest – I think everybody does, but I hate bullies,” Johns said. “I’m not a big fan of bullies.”