Justin Willis (martial artist)

Justin Willis (born July 19, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist competing in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2012, he has formerly competed for the World Series of Fighting and the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Justin Willis
BornJustin Willis
(1987-07-19) July 19, 1987
East Palo Alto, California, United States
Other namesBig Pretty
NationalityAmerican
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight265 lb (120 kg; 18.9 st)
DivisionHeavyweight
Reach79 in (201 cm)[1]
StanceSouthpaw
Fighting out ofSan Jose, California, United States
TeamAmerican Kickboxing Academy
Years active2012–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total10
Wins8
By knockout4
By decision4
Losses2
By knockout1
By decision1
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Background

Born and raised in California, Willis played football through high school and the collegiate level as a lineman at San Jose State University, graduating with a degree in sociology. At the collegiate level, Willis was All-Conference.[2]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Willis made his amateur debut in 2009, a second-round loss, before competing again as an amateur bout on the Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Noons 2 against Steve Dickey. Willis won via unanimous decision . After going professional in 2012, he amassed a record of 4–1 before being signed by the UFC.[3]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Willis made his promotional debut on July 16, 2017, against James Mulheron at UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Ponzinibbio. He won via unanimous decision.[4]

He then faced Allen Crowder at UFC 218 on December 2, 2017[5] and won via knockout in the first round.[6]

He faced Chase Sherman on April 21, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 128[7] and won by unanimous decision.[8]

He faced Mark Hunt on December 2, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 142[9] and won by unanimous decision.[10]

Willis faced Curtis Blaydes on March 23, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 148.[11] Blaydes continually took Willis down and controlled him and also scored a knockdown in the second round. Willis lost the fight via unanimous decision.[12] Willis spent a good amount of the pre-fight press time taunting Blaydes, who responded in kind in his post-fight interview, referring to Willis as "Big Titty".[13]

On May 24, 2019, it was reported that Willis was released from UFC.[14][15]

Professional Fighters League

On February 11, 2020, news surfaced that Willis had signed with the PFL and was expected to compete in the PFL 2021 heavyweight season.[16]

Willis was expected to make his debut against Denis Goltsov at PFL 3 on May 6, 2021, but was removed from the fight prior to weigh-ins.[17]

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
10 matches 8 wins 2 losses
By knockout 4 1
By decision 4 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 8–2 Curtis Blaydes Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Pettis March 23, 2019 3 5:00 Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Win 8–1 Mark Hunt Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Tuivasa December 2, 2018 3 5:00 Adelaide, Australia
Win 7–1 Chase Sherman Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Barboza vs. Lee April 21, 2018 3 5:00 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 6–1 Allen Crowder KO (punch) UFC 218 December 2, 2017 1 2:33 Detroit, Michigan, United States
Win 5–1 James Mulheron Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Ponzinibbio July 16, 2017 3 5:00 Glasgow, Scotland
Win 4–1 Julian Coutinho TKO (punches) WSOF 31 June 17, 2016 2 0:30 Mashantucket, Connecticut, United States
Win 3–1 Rizvan Kuniev Decision (unanimous) Inoki Genome Fight 4 August 29, 2015 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan Openweight bout.
Win 2–1 Yusuke Kawaguchi TKO (punches) Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye 2014 December 31, 2014 1 0:43 Tokyo, Japan Openweight bout.
Win 1–1 James Kirby TKO (punches) Global Knockout: The Return June 14, 2014 1 N/A Jackson, California, United States
Loss 0–1 Henry Solis TKO (elbows) ROF 43: Bad Blood June 2, 2012 2 4:32 Broomfield, Colorado, United States

[18]

See also

References
  1. "Justin Willis". www.pflmma.com. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  2. "Justin Willis - Official UFC® Profile". www.ufc.com.
  3. Sherdog.com. "Justin". Sherdog. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
  4. "UFC Fight Night 113 results: Justin Willis outworks fellow newcomer James Mulheron". MMAjunkie. 2017-07-16. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
  5. "Contender Series' Allen Crowder to Debut vs Justin Willis at UFC 218 - MMA Today". MMA Today. 2017-09-28. Archived from the original on 2017-09-30. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
  6. "UFC 218 results: Justin Willis levels Allen Crowder for first-round knockout". MMAjunkie. 2017-12-02. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
  7. Mike Bohn (2018-03-15). "Chase Sherman vs. Justin Willis booked for UFC Fight Night 128 in Atlantic City". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  8. "UFC Fight Night 128 results: Justin Willis outlasts Chase Sherman in sometime-slugfest". MMAjunkie. 2018-04-22. Retrieved 2018-04-22.
  9. "Report | Mark Hunt to take on Justin Willis at UFC Adelaide in last fight on UFC deal | BJPenn.com". | BJPenn.com. 2018-09-25. Retrieved 2018-09-26.
  10. "UFC Adelaide results: Justin Willis earns methodical victory over Mark Hunt". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
  11. Jesse Holland (2019-01-16). "Curtis Blaydes vs Justin Willis on tap for UFC Nashville". mmamania.com. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
  12. "UFC Nashville results: Curtis Blaydes shuts down Justin Willis in one-sided affair". MMA Junkie. 2019-03-24. Retrieved 2019-03-24.
  13. "After one-sided Nashville loss, Justin Willis responds to Curtis Blaydes' 'Big Titty' diss".
  14. Sherdog.com. "UFC Heavyweight Justin Willis Released". Sherdog. Retrieved 2019-05-25.
  15. "Justin Willis disputes being released from UFC contract, vows August return". MMA Junkie. 2019-05-24. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  16. Danny Segura (February 11, 2020). "Former UFC heavyweight Justin Willis signs with PFL". mmajunkie.com.
  17. Brand, Jeremy. "PFL 3 Features Fabricio Werdum vs. Renan Ferreira Main Event". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  18. Sherdog.com. "Justin". Sherdog. Retrieved 2018-09-26.
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