Jason Wilnis Interview: Composure Key vs Marcus at GLORY 40

On April 29th, GLORY’s Middleweight Champion Jason “Psycho” Wilnis (30-6-1, 8 KO) will look to defend his title against Canadian Simon “The One” Marcus (45-3-2, 24 KO) who is looking for revenge at GLORY 40 in Copenhagen.

Call it a grudge match, a blow off, or a rubber match. No matter the moniker, these two combatants will get into a ring and finish what they started in their two prior fights. Each man holds a victory over the other, with Wilnis recently shocking the kickboxing world when he rallied back in their GLORY 33 bout to pick up the win and the title.

Many observers felt Wilnis was being dominated for much of that fight, and only rallied thanks to Marcus’ ill-advised showboating and a phantom knockdown awarded by an incompetent referee near the end of the second round. The champ doesn’t see it that way. He believes he was frustrating the Canadian and the result would have been the same regardless of the referee’s error.

In the beginning of the fight he was more active and he won the first round, but that’s not winning the whole fight. It’s also a tactic to let the opponent think that he can get away with that (especially when you have a five-round fight; a three-round fight is different). In the second round, I knew I could get him. His kicks had no damage and my punching was effective. I countered him with hooks. He wanted to play in the corner and keep his hands low, which is not a good plan against me.

Whether it was a tactic or not, Wilnis was clearly trying to weather the storm in the opening rounds; but as soon as Marcus started to lose his focus, Wilnis started to pick his opponent apart. He was able to land some crisp punches that led to three knockdowns and, eventually, a referee stoppage. The 26-year-old feels that his patience, technique and forward pressure will usually win at the end of the day.

“As the fight goes on, especially in the later rounds, I have an advantage because I won’t stop coming and the opponent gets tired,” said Wilnis. “I won’t stop coming forward, throwing, and openings start appearing. That’s when I’m in my zone.”

As much as his brash opponent loves to talk trash and showboat, Wilnis never feels he needs to respond or sell a fight with a bunch of chirping.

“I’m the type of fighter that proves it in the ring and not with talking before.”

It’s that kind of stone-cold mentality that has elevated Wilnis, who didn’t take up kickboxing until he was 17, to the top of the sport. His preternatural ability was evident from the time he first put the gloves on, and kickboxing has eveloped his life ever since. But the focused Dutch killer also has a softer side outside of the ring.

“I’m just a normal guy that spends time with his friends and family, doing cool things with my little nephews, riding my bike and playing PlayStation with my friends,” said Wilnis. “Before a fight, I’m just focused, listening to music and watching movies, I love to watch the old boxing and kickboxing fights.”

You’ll be able to watch Wilnis face Marcus at GLORY 40 on Saturday, April 29th, in Copenhagen (3:30 p.m. ET). Check out the full card and see our predictions.