Josh Koscheck and Javier Mendez didn’t exactly have an amicable parting earlier this year.
Koscheck trained at Mendez’ American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose ever since leaving college. After he made a few (million) bucks in the UFC, he even opened a pair of AKA-affiliated gyms in Fresno. Things were going so well, or at least they seemed to be. AKA and its legion of members always stress that they’re something like a family, and from my own personal experiences during visits to the gym over the years, I can confirm that to be true.
But not every family is a picture of serenity. Problems develop between siblings or children and their parents. Sometimes it’s repairable, but sometimes you just have to go your separate ways. That’s what happened between Mendez and Koscheck, and it was an ugly ending to a long-term relationship.
Koscheck told vague bits of his side of the story earlier this year. He gave his AKA gyms a new name and told folks that he never wanted to step foot back in San Jose. Then he blamed the entire thing on Mendez. Once he’d gotten that out of his system, I figured the whole thing was over.
Boy, was I wrong.
In a clip from the new AKA reality show Fight Factory, Koscheck is seen having the following discussion with former teammate Jon Fitch:
Koscheck: “I hope the gym burns … to the ground. Is that bad?”
Fitch: “As long as I’m not in it.”
Koscheck: “Hopefully nobody’s in it … well maybe one person. But if it burns down I’m cool, and we’ll be good.”
Now, in fairness to Koscheck, I’d like to add a little bit of context.
The first portions of Fight Factory were filmed in the early portions of this year, back when the split between Koscheck and Mendez was still fresh. So this isn’t some kind of lingering hatred from something that happened months ago. For Koscheck, the wound was still sore at the time this clip was being filmed.
That’s not to say that everything between Mendez and Koscheck is all roses and Candyland at this point, of course. It probably isn’t, given the severity of these feelings from Koscheck’s side.
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