One of the most prominent coaches in the mixed martial arts (MMA) business, Mike Winkeljohn, was the victim of thieves who have recently been burglarizing homes in the Albuquerque, New Mexico, area.
Winkeljohn, who teams with fellow mastermind and friend Greg Jackson at the Jackson-Wink MMA academy in Albuquerque, was notified by the break-in by his wife earlier this week when she found that her car and the couple’s shed had been tampered with.
“She called me later in the day, saying that someone had gotten into our shed out in the back,” Winkeljohn told local reporters from KOAT (via Bloody Elbow). “(My friends) actually put some time and effort into dressing it up, putting some leather work into it, so I really appreciated that belt. I’d be more than happy to be the guy that catches them. In some ways, I wish I would’ve been there.”
The coach to current and former champions, like Holly Holm and Jon Jones, is also a two-time titleholder in Muay Thai. The criminals, who can be seen on surveillance footage entering the Winkeljohn property, are undoubtedly lucky that the trained striking specialist wasn’t home at the time of the break-in.
Winkeljohn was probably busy preparing “The Preacher’s Daughter” for the danger that lies ahead. Holm is scheduled to make the first defense of her women’s 135-pound belt against two-time title challenger Miesha Tate, which goes down in one month at the UFC 196 pay-per-view (PPV) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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