(Props: TheMrsCountryman. Fight starts at the 2:23 mark, knockout happens at 4:16. And yeah, the audio doesn’t work in this clip, so feel free to hum a tune of your choice.)
Ten months before making his UFC debut at the TUF 2 Finale in November 2005, Melvin Guillard decided to take a pro boxing bout in Las Vegas against a Detroit-based fighter named James Countryman. The fight did not go well for Melvin.
About a minute and a half into the match, Countryman lands a big overhand right that levels Guillard. The Young Assassin springs to his feet and nods his head a couple times to signify that yes, he got smacked with a good one, then goes right back into the fight. Seconds later, Guillard catches a left hook from Countryman flush on the jaw and falls backwards into the ropes, unconscious. Game. Over.
Guillard would go onto a successful career in the UFC, but has never boxed professionally again. Countryman boxed for four more years, compiling a 14-1 record through March 2009. Interestingly enough, Countryman’s final boxing match was a decision win against none other than Karl “KJ” Noons, the current UFC lightweight and former EliteXC champion. Noons fought three more boxing matches that year, winning all three of them, and put together an 11-2 boxing record overall before devoting himself to MMA full time — which maybe wasn’t the greatest choice, in retrospect.
(Props: TheMrsCountryman. Fight starts at the 2:23 mark, knockout happens at 4:16. And yeah, the audio doesn’t work in this clip, so feel free to hum a tune of your choice.)
Ten months before making his UFC debut at the TUF 2 Finale in November 2005, Melvin Guillard decided to take a pro boxing bout in Las Vegas against a Detroit-based fighter named James Countryman. The fight did not go well for Melvin.
About a minute and a half into the match, Countryman lands a big overhand right that levels Guillard. The Young Assassin springs to his feet and nods his head a couple times to signify that yes, he got smacked with a good one, then goes right back into the fight. Seconds later, Guillard catches a left hook from Countryman flush on the jaw and falls backwards into the ropes, unconscious. Game. Over.
Guillard would go onto a successful career in the UFC, but has never boxed professionally again. Countryman boxed for four more years, compiling a 14-1 record through March 2009. Interestingly enough, Countryman’s final boxing match was a decision win against none other than Karl “KJ” Noons, the current UFC lightweight and former EliteXC champion. Noons fought three more boxing matches that year, winning all three of them, and put together an 11-2 boxing record overall before devoting himself to MMA full time — which maybe wasn’t the greatest choice, in retrospect.
UFC President Dana White has had a hard time holding his tongue over the last year about a volatile relationship that developed with former television partner Showtime while they were broadcasting Strikeforce events on the network. Zuffa (parent company of the UFC) purchased Strikeforce in 2011 with an existing Showtime television deal already in place. […]
UFC President Dana White has had a hard time holding his tongue over the last year about a volatile relationship that developed with former television partner Showtime while they were broadcasting Strikeforce events on the network. Zuffa (parent company of the UFC) purchased Strikeforce in 2011 with an existing Showtime television deal already in place. […]
(Full disclosure – one of the staff members of Wai Kru is a family member of mine)
By now, we have all seen the tragedy in Boston. We have all seen their faces on the news.And we have all seen the tremendous acts of heroism, patriotism, and humanitarianism that reminds us that when it comes to good vs. evil, good shall always prevail.I grew up in Massachusetts, so it’s safe to say this had a surreal effect over me.
As Seth’s piece pointed out (not that it matters) one of these d-bags had previously trained at Wai Kru in Allston Mass.While MMA gyms are popping up all over the country at an alarming rate, this one is something to note as it is where former UFC fighters, John Howard and Sean Gannon currently train.Head trainer, Kru John Allan, who is currently in Thailand, sent this statement out when reached for comment sent this statement via Facebook message:
(Full disclosure – one of the staff members of Wai Kru is a family member of mine)
By now, we have all seen the tragedy in Boston. We have all seen their faces on the news.And we have all seen the tremendous acts of heroism, patriotism, and humanitarianism that reminds us that when it comes to good vs. evil, good shall always prevail.I grew up in Massachusetts, so it’s safe to say this had a surreal effect over me.
As Seth’s piece pointed out (not that it matters) one of these d-bags had previously trained at Wai Kru in Allston Mass.While MMA gyms are popping up all over the country at an alarming rate, this one is something to note as it is where former UFC fighters, John Howard and Sean Gannon currently train.Head trainer, Kru John Allan, who is currently in Thailand, sent this statement out when reached for comment via Facebook message:
Wai Kru MMA would like to first take the time to say our hearts go out to the victims and their families of this horrible tragedy.Tamerlan Sarnayev was not now, or ever a member of the Wai Kru MMA facilities. He was a local golden gloves boxer who came into the gym to spar from time to time. Wai Kru has been working closely with the FBI & Homeland Joint Task Force all morning to provide them with any materials that might be useful to bring these people to justice for their heinous crimes.
Several employees of the school supported the statement when asked about his relationship with his gym.“He came in for cross-fit, mostly… And occasionally sparred.But he was not a member” stated one employee who asked for his name to be withheld.Another employee stated he had not been present for over 4 weeks and even then the employee wasn’t sure if Tamerlan really had much of a presence at the gym.
Most likely, the only reason why Wai Kru is even being mentioned in the conversation is because photos do exist of him wearing the school’s shirt.An employee of the gym explains that “he’s a good boxer and sometimes we give them free sh*t”.As far as his interaction with other members, that same employee stated that he “kept to himself” and reinforced that Tamerlan only appeared for the occasional sparring session.
Former UFC welterweight John “Doomsday” Howard recently took to his Facebook page to offer a similar message. While Howard remembers sparring with Tamerlan, he reiterates that neither one of the Tsarnaevs were regulars at the gym.
Julie Goldsticker, head of public relations for US Boxing, confirmed that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was registered as an amateur fighter at Summerville Boxing Gym in 2003, 2004, and 2008 and registered at South Boston Boxing Club from 2009-2010.However, when asked about any gyms he was currently registered, Ms. Goldsticker did not have any information that pertains to his current registration status and was unable to confirm or deny if he has updated his registration with any gym.
It looks like a few pictures of this BOXER surfaced on the web with him wearing some Wai Kru apparel and the certain websites were quick to associate the school and the terrorist because of it.Like Falvo said, so they trained in various forms of hand-to-hand combat.So did this guy … And he beat the terrorist… TWICE!
(I had no idea what image to use for this post, so since we’re talking about sports propaganda, let’s leave that to the experts. Props: sportspropaganda.com)
If only it were that simple. Perhaps you’ve read that the suspects – Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev – trained MMA [Author note: I’m not linking to other sites that have been claiming this, Google it if you’re so curious]. Don’t bother looking for a professional record for either suspect, because it doesn’t exist. Neither does an amateur record. Or any proof that they were preparing for MMA bouts of any kind, for that matter.
(I had no idea what image to use for this post, so since we’re talking about sports propaganda, let’s leave that to the experts. Props: sportspropaganda.com)
If only it were that simple. Perhaps you’ve read that the suspects – Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev – trained MMA [Author note: I’m not linking to other sites that have been claiming this, Google it if you’re so curious]. Don’t bother looking for a professional record for either suspect, because it doesn’t exist. Neither does an amateur record. Or any proof that they were preparing for MMA bouts of any kind, for that matter.
So, a boxer occasionally sparring at an MMA gym and a high school wrestler are MMA fighters, because ___________…and the favorite sports of two alleged terrorists are completely relevant, apparently, because ___________. If anyone can fill in those blanks, I’d greatly appreciate it.
Berto (left) on his way to a unanimous decision victory over Luis Collazo
I can’t help but feel like I’ve seen this scenario play out before.
Earlier in the week, ES Boxing News caught up with two-time welterweight boxing champion Andre Berto, and spoke to the former champ about the possibility of seeing him fight MMA. The question isn’t exactly posed to Andre without merit – current Bellator fighter James Edson Berto is his brother and his sister, Revelina Berto, is trying out for the co-ed season of The Ultimate Fighter – even though it quickly becomes obvious that Berto is only a (very) casual fan of the sport. As in, he admits that he doesn’t know anything about MMA weight classes and possibly has Jon Jones confused with Anderson Silva (A Jon Jones/GSP super fight?).
Despite this, Berto claims to have spoken to Dana White about competing in the UFC – an idea that White was in support of. According to Berto, White was very complimentary of his boxing career, saying that he is “one of the only guys in boxing that keeps it alive” when they spoke.
Berto (left) on his way to a unanimous decision victory over Luis Collazo
I can’t help but feel like I’ve seen this scenario play out before.
Earlier in the week, ES Boxing News caught up with two-time welterweight boxing champion Andre Berto, and spoke to the former champ about the possibility of seeing him fight MMA. The question isn’t exactly posed to Andre without merit – current Bellator fighter James Edson Berto is his brother and his sister, Revelina Berto, is trying out for the co-ed season of The Ultimate Fighter – even though it quickly becomes obvious that Berto is only a (very) casual fan of the sport. As in, he admits that he doesn’t know anything about MMA weight classes and possibly has Jon Jones confused with Anderson Silva (A Jon Jones/GSP super fight?).
Despite this, Berto claims to have spoken to Dana White about competing in the UFC – an idea that White was in support of. According to Berto, White was very complimentary of his boxing career, saying that he is “one of the only guys in boxing that keeps it alive” when they spoke.
It wouldn’t be fair to compare Andre Berto to James Toney, a has-been who blatantly only wanted to compete in MMA for a quick paycheck. However, I think a comparison of his interest in MMA to Manny Pacquiao’s curiousity towards our sport isn’t too far of a stretch. Sure, it’d be fun to watch Berto step in the cage with a featherweight striker (Frankie Edgar and Leonard Garcia quickly come to mind), but there is absolutely no way that his management lets him accept an MMA fight while he’s still a relevant draw in the boxing world.
Besdies, Berto isn’t exaggerating when he says that he “definitely gets paid handsomely.” As BloodyElbow pointed out, he made $1,625,000 in his most recent fight – a unanimous decision loss to Robert Guerrero. Safe to say Dana White won’t be offering him that much money.
My personal favorite quote comes at the 4:38 mark, when Berto is asked who would win a fight between Cyborg Santos and Ronda Rousey. Berto takes a few seconds to think over the question, then replies “Cyborg’s like a dude! She’s a beast!” If you only watch one part of the interview, this is the part to watch.
So what do you think about the idea of Andre Berto competing in MMA? Would you be interested in seeing whether he could be competitive in this sport, or would he get lay-and-prayed into irrelevance? Or are we all just wasting our time discussing this, because he’ll never step foot in the cage? Let us know.
Mixed martial arts combines several different types of combat training to form one perfect weapon where any fighter really could be called a jack of all trades. Long gone are the days when a fighter could just be a good wrestler or a great striker. Now, every fighter has to carry at least some element […]
Mixed martial arts combines several different types of combat training to form one perfect weapon where any fighter really could be called a jack of all trades. Long gone are the days when a fighter could just be a good wrestler or a great striker. Now, every fighter has to carry at least some element […]
