5 Things You Might Not Know About Miles Johns

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While still a work in progress inside the cutthroat Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division, Miles Johns possesses undeniable upside.

The once-beaten Johns will put his modest two-fight winning streak on the line when he matches wits and fists with former Combate Global champion and 2017 Dana White’s Contender Series alum John Castaneda in the featured UFC Fight Night 200 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Johns, 27, sports a 3-1 record inside the Octagon. He last appeared at UFC 265, where he knocked out Anderson dos Santos in the third round of their Aug. 7 pairing.

As Johns moves ever closer to his three-round tilt with Castaneda, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He rose out of the American heartland.

Johns was born on March 30, 1994 in Newton, Kansas—a city of some 19,000 people that rests roughly 30 miles north of Wichita. He shares a hometown with former Detroit Tigers and Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Tony Clark, who currently serves as the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association.

2. Consistency spurs his success.

“Chapo” made his professional mixed martial arts debut at the age of 20 on July 12, 2014, when he put away Tyler Pacheco with punches in the second round of their encounter under the 24/7 Entertainment banner. Johns has recorded at least one victory every year since.

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3. Proven commodities form his inner circle.

Johns operates out of the Fortis MMA camp in Dallas, where he sharpens his skills under revered coach Sayif Saud and trains alongside Alex Morono, Damon Jackson, Ryan Spann, Diego Ferreira, Geoff Neal and a host of other accomplished mixed martial artists.

4. He summited the regional mountain.

The Fortis MMA rep remains one of only five men who have captured the undisputed Legacy Fighting Alliance bantamweight crown. The others: Leandro Higo, Ricky Simon, Zviad Lazishvili and Richard Palencia. Johns captured the 135-pound title with a five-round split decision over Adrian Yanez in the LFA 55 headliner on Nov. 30, 2018 and vacated a little less than seven months later to sign with the UFC.

5. He put a safety net in place.

Johns is a registered nurse, having graduated from nursing school at Brookhaven College in Farmers Branch, Texas, in 2018. The average annual salary for an RN in the state of Texas is north of $70,000.