Jeremy Johnson P.S MMA interview on Shamrock FC 378

The Jeremy Johnson P.S MMA interview put Jeremy Holloway against undefeated submission specialist Austin Spangler at the center of Shamrock FC 378. Johnson also told P.S MMA how he became a longtime Shamrock Fighting Championships commentator and why he thinks Scott Coker and a potential Netflix audience could change the options available to MMA fighters.

What did Jeremy Johnson say about Shamrock FC 378?

Jeremy Johnson picked Bellator MMA veteran Jeremy Holloway against undefeated Austin Spangler as the standout fight on Shamrock FC 378. He described Spangler as a submission specialist and Holloway as a crafty veteran. Johnson expected roughly 14 MMA and kickboxing fights, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Central, with the card available on MILLIONS.

Jeremy Holloway against Austin Spangler

Holloway had fought for Bellator MMA a couple of times, Johnson said, and had also competed in bare-knuckle fights. He believed Holloway had fought at both 145 and 155 pounds in Bellator; their Shamrock matchup was set for 145 pounds. For Johnson, the contrast between Holloway’s experience and Spangler’s submissions made it the main event to watch.

Logan Blow, Jose and Triago, and the Kansas City venue

In the co-main event, undefeated Logan Blow was set to face Jose and Triago. Johnson said Jose had a following for videos made through his work with 1st Phorm and posted on Instagram, but emphasized that he was also a former college wrestler and a capable fighter.

Johnson said Shamrock Fighting Championships stages its fights at the Ameristar Casino event center in the Kansas City area. He described a venue built for a large television production and said the card could also be watched through Swerve Combat on Amazon Prime Video and Fubo. He expected about 14 fights in all, including a couple of kickboxing bouts in the cage.

How did Jeremy Johnson begin his MMA commentary career with Shamrock Fighting Championships?

Jeremy Johnson moved into Shamrock Fighting Championships commentary after years of training, coaching, cornering fighters and working as a cutman. He wanted to handle play-by-play in the style of Mike Goldberg. After a lunch with Shamrock president Jesse Finney, he received the call to try it and has worked with the promotion for almost 15 years.

From childhood training to the corner

Johnson started combat sports as a child with Okinawan karate and Japanese jiu-jitsu. As an adult, he continued through judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, MMA and kickboxing. He later coached at a gym connected to Matt Hughes’s former coaching setup at the Hit Squad and began cornering fighters before becoming a cutman.

A lunch with Jesse Finney

When Shamrock asked what role he wanted, Johnson chose play-by-play rather than color commentary. He recalled Finney asking him after their lunch whether he was ready to be the promotion’s Mike Goldberg. Johnson said he was. Explaining what followed, he offered the interview’s clearest measure of his commitment:

“I have never missed a shamrock FC event since”

He said the upcoming show was Shamrock FC 378. The promotion once used event names, but its staff went back through past fights to establish a numbered sequence. Johnson sees his job as keeping a broadcast moving while experienced co-hosts provide technical analysis; he named Bellator veteran and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Adam Meredith among his commentary partners.

Which Shamrock Fighting Championships fighters did Jeremy Johnson see reach the UFC?

Jeremy Johnson described Shamrock Fighting Championships as a place where prospects build experience before larger promotions. He named Joaquin Buckley, Sean Woodson, Neil Magny and Evan Elder among fighters who competed there before reaching the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Johnson said the promotion continues to bring in developing fighters from the Midwest.

Shamrock alumni and visiting coaches

Buckley fought for Shamrock repeatedly, according to Johnson. He also recalled calling fights involving other athletes who later drew attention beyond the promotion, including Christian Edwards and Dustin Lampros. Coaches Greg Jackson and Mike Winkeljohn have come to Shamrock events to corner their own fighters, he added.

Johnson’s work beyond Shamrock

His work across the sport includes cutman assignments for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship and Invicta Fighting Championships, as well as past Bellator shows and kickboxing commentary. Johnson said he did media work for World Series of Fighting, the predecessor to the Professional Fighters League, and interviewed fighters including Justin Gaethje while working with ESPN radio in St. Louis.

Johnson has attended several UFC events and worked on media row, but said he had not yet been to a Professional Fighters League event under that name. He singled out Johnny Eblen as a favorite PFL fighter because he called Eblen’s first professional fights at Shamrock before Eblen moved on to Bellator and PFL.

Why does Jeremy Johnson avoid predicting MMA fights?

Jeremy Johnson avoids picking winners because he considers impartiality part of a commentator’s job, even when he is discussing an event he will not call. He is willing to examine a matchup, but said a public prediction could complicate his relationships with fighters he knows through his work.

Johnson used Johnny Eblen as an example: if he publicly doubted Eblen’s chances, the fighter might hear about it and call him. That possibility informs his approach across promotions, not just at Shamrock. He can explain what makes a fight interesting without committing to a winner beforehand.

For Shamrock FC 378, Johnson said he would call the fights alongside his Kansas City co-host Bobby. The broadcast also has to account for commercials and later television airings, although he said it does not have a fixed ending time. Recalling older Bellator broadcasts, he noted that some fights left off television took place after the main event.

What did Jeremy Johnson say about Scott Coker’s new promotion?

Jeremy Johnson is eager to see what Scott Coker builds next. He called Coker one of MMA’s strongest business figures and said he appeared to be assembling a good team. Johnson also credited Coker’s treatment of fighters during his Bellator MMA tenure, while making no claim that he knew who would sign with the new promotion.

His view comes partly from conversations around Bellator. Johnson said he heard fighters who had moved there from the UFC speak favorably about the change, and he attributed much of that impression to Coker. He did not offer names, terms or details of any prospective signings.

Johnson was also interested in what the promotion might look like, not merely who might join it. When P.S MMA raised tournament matchmaking associated with Coker’s past promotions, Johnson agreed that Coker had been a major figure in the sport. For now, he said he had heard no rumors about the new venture’s roster.

What did Jeremy Johnson say about PFL and Netflix?

Jeremy Johnson thinks Netflix could give MMA a larger audience and offer fighters another meaningful outlet. Discussing the Professional Fighters League, he said its existing talent has sometimes been hard to follow because viewers may lose track of when its events are happening. He viewed wider distribution as an opportunity, not a guaranteed solution.

Johnson pointed to public interest in Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano as evidence that familiar names can draw people who do not normally discuss MMA into the conversation. He thought the reach of Netflix could help generate that kind of attention again and said more competition between outlets would benefit the sport.

His specific frustration with PFL was its schedule’s visibility. Even while receiving media notices, Johnson said, he sometimes forgot when events or particular fighters were due to appear. He believed the promotion had talent with the potential to become bigger stars if audiences could follow its events more easily.

Johnson also welcomed discussion of more money for fighters, while acknowledging that any new venture’s staying power remained to be seen. His position was straightforward: more places to stage and show MMA are good for fighters and viewers, but he wanted to see how the plans developed.

Who is Jeremy Johnson?

Jeremy Johnson is a television analyst for MMA and boxing and a professional cutman. He hosts the MMA Bourbon Society and That MMA Show podcasts.