John “Doomsday” Howard wants back in. The former UFC welterweight has done everything in his power to prove he deserves another chance in the promotion. On Friday night, he fought again and won again. It was his fifth straight knockout win and his sixth straight victory overall.
Howard made short work of his opponent Chris Woodall, defeating him in 2:14 of the CES 17 main event in Lincoln, R.I. And afterward, to demonstrate just how much he wants another opportunity in the big-time, he made a very unusual, unorthodox offer.
“I might piss some people off, but I want to fight for the [Ultimate Fighting Championships],” he said. “I’ll fight for free on the Boston card.”
Howard (20-7) fights out of Boston, the site of an upcoming, August UFC event.
His run with the UFC lasted just over two years. Competing as a welterweight, his tenure got off to a great start when he won his first four, including knockout wins over Dennis Hallman and Daniel Roberts. But then he ran into trouble. First a TKO stoppage at the hands of Jake Ellenberger, then decision losses to Thiago Alves and Matt Brown. And just like that, he was gone.
Since leaving, Howard, who is just 5-foot-7, has competed at middleweight, and hasn’t had any performance issues at the higher weight class.
The UFC tends to feature a few local fighters on each event, but the Boston show, UFC on FOX Sports 1, appears to be full, with 12 fights already agreed upon for the Aug. 17 TD Garden date. But as many fighters have learned over the years, when it comes to getting the ear of Joe Silva or Dana White, it never hurts to publicly ask for what you want.