Street Arts
Where in the UK are you from?
I was born in Leicester.
Were you always a tough lad or did it come with time?
I think some of it is in my blood. My granddad faked his birth certificate at 14 and joined the paratroopers in World War 2. He was a fighting man. My dad is also a tough guy and used to study kung fu. It did also take time to come out. In the early days training was so mentally tough that my coach Erik Paulson would beat me down until I cried. Each time I would say to myself I wasn't coming back the next day but I did. I didn't want to be a quitter.
What martial arts do you practice?
I study various elements of MMA. Kickboxing, Wrestling and JiuJitsu but MMA has almost become an art in itself now. The key is practicing how the arts transition together.
You won the welterweight title on Gladiator Challenge and got selected for the Ultimate Fighter,
what did it mean to you on a personal level when hearing of your selection?
I almost couldn't believe it. For years I dreamed of being in the UFC but there was always part of me that doubted it would happen.
Have you always been so mild mannered or is is something that came with learning martial arts?
My parents say then when I was young I was wild. As young as three they said when their policeman friend came over I would spit on him and kick him in the shins. Martial arts certainly gave me some discipline.
Your American opponent on the Ultimate Fighter final showed a complete lack of respect for your skills during the TV show. We're sure the whole of England was hoping you knocked him out but how did it feel to completely embarrass him?
It was great to beat Demarques so convincingly. That fight is definitely the highlight of my career.
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LSD Magazine Interviews UFC's James 'Lightning' Wilks (Issue 6)
Where in the UK are you from?
I was born in Leicester.
Were you always a tough lad or did it come with time?
I think some of it is in my blood. My granddad faked his birth certificate at 14 and joined the paratroopers in World War 2. He was a fighting man. My dad is also a tough guy and used to study kung fu. It did also take time to come out. In the early days training was so mentally tough that my coach Erik Paulson would beat me down until I cried. Each time I would say to myself I wasn't coming back the next day but I did. I didn't want to be a quitter.
What martial arts do you practice?
I study various elements of MMA. Kickboxing, Wrestling and JiuJitsu but MMA has almost become an art in itself now. The key is practicing how the arts transition together.
You won the welterweight title on Gladiator Challenge and got selected for the Ultimate Fighter,
what did it mean to you on a personal level when hearing of your selection?
I almost couldn't believe it. For years I dreamed of being in the UFC but there was always part of me that doubted it would happen.
Have you always been so mild mannered or is is something that came with learning martial arts?
My parents say then when I was young I was wild. As young as three they said when their policeman friend came over I would spit on him and kick him in the shins. Martial arts certainly gave me some discipline.
Your American opponent on the Ultimate Fighter final showed a complete lack of respect for your skills during the TV show. We're sure the whole of England was hoping you knocked him out but how did it feel to completely embarrass him?
It was great to beat Demarques so convincingly. That fight is definitely the highlight of my career.
READ THE FULL INTERVIEW IN LATEST EDITION OF LSD MAGAZINE (ISSUE 6)
Open publication - Free publishing - More urban art
LSD (London Street-Art Design) MAGAZINE
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Street Arts
Ananda nahu, The Correspondents, Solo One, Soulflux, The Orb + Youth, Jerm IX, 69 DB, Raymond Salvatore Harmon, Rennie Pilgrem, The Yes Men, Resto, Chaz, Neurodriver, Lokey, Elate, Dhear One, Page 51, Umek, Karma, K-Guy, Richard A Webster, William Parry, Andy C, Jesus Greus, Push Pony, Dominic Spreadlove, AK - 47, Mr Sofalumpkins, Mat Banbury, MikkiM, David Corden, Ian Milne, Punch Music, Hudson Zuma
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Is heisting a piece of art a work of art in itself? Those are the blurred lines prankster, mischief maker, artist, jump-suited nutter and all round shadowy doer of mayhem AK 47 is out to cross, then reverse and cross over again. Infallibly controversial,...
- Lsd Magazine Interviews Belgian Street Artist Resto (issue 6)
Belgian artist Resto has been taking the flatland's by storm with his gargantuan dreamscape of lovingly warped, modern mythic wonder. Rippling with vibrant colour, he dances through styles from letters to questionably attired giants and has become...
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Slamming deep into the LSD mix rides the one, the only, Executioner, Mr Andy C. From his early years carving old skool hardcore classics out of a tape machine and an electric current of lifelong inspiration, Andy has systematically revolutionised drum...
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As his extraordinarily complex pieces burst and ripple with texture, tortured shape, organic brilliance and an intangible bridge between the sublimely spiritual and 2000 AD on acid, Solo One is busy building extraordinarily strong graff in the community...
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You've been an active street artist since 2004, tell us a little about your first pieces... JERM stenciled onto a Purolator sticker I stole from work was first, the next day at work I called in a fake flood to Purolator and they replaced dozens...
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