Jon Koppenhaver’s War

[pa99fighter]

Jon Koppenhaver’s War
By Rhett Butler

It never ceases to amaze how traumatic childhood experiences always create the best artistry. You see it in children who were adopted and then become great orators or entertainers hailing from the urban maelstrom that can translate their pain into harmony that streams through white iPod headsets across the globe. It is the classic rose that grew through the concrete image. The rawness of the juxtaposition instantly brands the person to whom the example is applied as special, one who can achieve greatness without the safety net of a positive environment. This is true in the case of Jon Koppenhaver, one of the UFC’s newest signees and a recent graduate of the reality house that Dana built.

Growing up in Simi Valley, a city located in the southeast corner of California, Koppenhaver lived with his mother and father until the age of eight, when things took a bad turn and they decided to divorce. Young Koppenhaver moved in with his father, where the spark towards mixed martial arts was ignited.

“My town was small, we only had two high schools. I played a lot of sports in high school but was known as the tough guy in town but not a bully. It started off with me and my dad watching UFC and then I found Gracie Jiu Jitsu in the back of Black Belt Magazine; me and my dad would train.”

However, the fun would cease when unexpectedly the elder Koppenhaver took ill in the presence of his progeny. Dad was experiencing a heart attack and true to his warrior spirit, the son tried to resuscitate life back into his father, who, at that moment, was caught between the paradox of life and death. Jon Koppenhaver was only 13.

“My dad died of a heart attack. I gave him CPR but that s**t don’t work,” he says, followed with a light chuckle to offset the still present somberness. “I hadn’t talked to my mom for three years then all of a sudden I had to live there.”

The tension between mother and son was as thick as potato bread, and with his new stepfather in the mix, it would only get worse.

“Mom was a drug addict, Stepdad was a drug addict, there were no rules but I raised myself. I kept good grades and tried to stay out of trouble as much as I could.”

This quest led Koppenhaver into the gym, a story repetitiously linked to fight greats like a young Cassius Clay to others that needed a physical release from emotional instability. Finding a gym in Simi Valley, Koppenhaver trained there for six months before high school, and then started wrestling. His quest pushed him to test himself in potentially dangerous ways, but his warrior spirit proved creative enough to put the notion of professional fighter into his head.

“(In high school) I would let my friends kick and punch me and all I would do is wrestle and grapple. But I hate getting up in the morning; I don’t get up before 10 am. I hate traffic. Whenever I had a job I had it for three months because I would hate the boss. I love this job; if I wasn’t doing this I’d probably rob banks. (Laughs) It gives me freedom, I train, I fight, travel the world. This is a good job for me.”

Along with the new job came the nickname of “War Machine,” with which Koppenhaver lets you know from the outset it will never be a pretty day if you stand across him in the Octagon. Surprisingly, the name comes from an MMA veteran and former UFC Middleweight, Phil “New York Bad Ass” Baroni.

“The name is a combination of my tattoos and Phil Baroni; he had a big part in my career and is like a big brother to me. I have bio-mechanical tattoos so they kind of look like a machine, but whenever I would spar I couldn’t relax, I was like a maniac.”

This truism is evident in Koppenhaver’s professional debut in 2004, where he executed a first round TKO. Two more wins came via submission and another first round TKO, adding lube to war machine’s axels and cogs. With only one loss, then a redeeming first round TKO by way of strikes, Koppenhaver journeyed to the tryouts for season six of The Ultimate Fighter. Although impressive, dismay set in when he found out that his performance just wasn’t good enough to make the initial cut.

“When they called and told me I was an alternate I was pissed. I stopped training and started drinking when all of a sudden I was on the beach with an ex-girlfriend and they (UFC) said something happened and they might need me in 24 hours. I had totally written the show off though (because) I thought 100% I was on that thing.”

Roman Mitichyan’s fractured elbow during the evaluation session turned into Jon Koppenhaver’s saving grace and he was let into the shut-out world of TUF. Like many before him, the solace and disconnect from the information super-highway
played out like a long soap opera in his mind.

“Kendall Grove and Joe Stevenson are two of my best friends and they all tell you how much it sucks. It’s really horrible, it’s miserable, not the training, just the mental. In normal life you have distractions, but in the house you don’t have none of that stuff. It made me a wreck but I wouldn’t take it back. I made good friends but it’s a mind game that sucks.”

During that free time, Koppenhaver was a past of the notable threesome of himself, Richie Hightower and Troy Mandaloniz that played the upper decker toilet trick. This drunken trickery is not a part of his normal personality, and a wish to find out if an “urban legend people talked about” was true during the time in the house was his motivation; Koppenhaver’s convinced it was “funny as hell” and guaranteed his spot in the finale. At the finale however, another motivation overcame him in a surprise come from behind victory over Jared Rollins. This fight transformed the fighter fans knew from the reality television series into the respect a name like War Machine demands.

“That fight was huge for my career; no one can watch that fight and hate me. When I pulled it off I wasn’t arrogant or rude. I had like 3000 friend requests on myspace and since then every time I go around town people mention that fight. I’m on the best of 2007 DVD so it gave me good exposure.”

Heading into his first UFC pay-per-view, Koppenhaver faces new entrant, Yoshiyuki Yoshida, a Japanese standout currently on an 8 fight win streak. Although not with a big camp or big name fighters here in the states, Koppenhaver is certain that his victory is imminent.

“In my gym (Undisputed in San Diego, CA) I’m the big fish. I could easily move to Las Vegas and train with all the maniacs but I’d be a small fish. I went to Japan for 12 days to corner a teammate and I trained with Caol Uno and (Kuniyoshi) Hironaka so I got a taste of what my opponent’s got to offer.”

Regardless, win or lose, Koppenhaver has proven that negativity can yield success, as millions will watch and thousand will be in attendance for his true debut. The rose that grew from concrete grew tall enough to reach the sustaining energy from the sunshine. Who knew it would take five ounce gloves for a miracle to happen.

Great Read. I like War Machine

[Ifightforaliving]

yeah me too and that was a great fight there

[scottsec]

War war machine...lol....

[smoogy]

Message from him to his fans:

----------------- Bulletin Message -----------------
From: War Machine
Date: May 11, 2008 11:31 PM


1. Yes, I LOVE it when a bitch licks my ass...lol
SO WHAT!

2. No I didn't "try" to sell my hand wraps from the J-Roc fight on E-bay.


3. I DID sell my hand wraps on E-Bay for like $300 bucks, which isn't bad considering I was 10 seconds away from throwing them away.


4. Don't hate on me cuz my trash is worth more than your future.


5. I never said I was, or claimed to be, one of the best fighters in the world.


6. I have heart and am tough to beat.


7. I fight so I don't have to get up before 10 am and drive in traffic to work, don't want a "boss" and I like pussy too much to rob banks and go to jail.


8. I can beat the shit out of 99.9 percent of the humans on this Earth, yes I'm pretty sure that means YOU.


9. If I died in "battle" whether it be in the cage or the street I wouldn't care so stop warning me to be careful.


10. Yes, if I stayed in this country the rest of my life I probably would end up in jail and thats the number one reason why I will leave in the near future.


11. Yes, I cried on T.V. Given the chance I will cry again. Crying doesn't make you a pussy. Being afraid to cry does. When you KNOW you are hard you don't have to HIDE your emotions...only when you are SOFT and INSECURE do you have to do such things.


12. Finally IF Yoshida beats me on the 24th, which I highly doubt will happen, it doesn't matter the fight will be great, he will be hurt and I will be back to fight in the UFC again. You are all just miserable because YOU abandoned your childhood dream and SETTLED for the life that you have now. You watch sports and talk trash about the mediocre athletes...shit even the BEST athletes....and hate on them for losing and making mistakes when YOU never even had the BALLS to try.

=)

WM

I hope Yoshida pounds Plea Bargain Machine into a living death Ken Shamrock style

[POINDEXTER]

He needs a win here for sure. ^^^That message is pretty fucking retarded. Somebody or something has to set that head-case straight. If this opportunity he has in front of him hasn't, I'm not sure what will. He didn't want to train in a bigger well established gym because it would make him into a small fish?!?? WTF? This guy has a very short future ahead of him, IMO. He's got disaster and self-sabotage written all over his face.

Also, is the author of that article really named Rhett Butler?

[willpunisher]

nice find.
he is a nice guy and great fighter. i like him.
his fight with J-Rock was so crazy, that really was a war. i hope he sticks around in the ufc for a long time.
war war machineeeeeeeeeeeee

[hunterkiller]

I like this guy but I don't want to. I don't like what he stands for. Tons of people have had it rough growing up and don't end up joining a gang or choking civilians out. I survived an abusive/violent childhood and I turned out okay. That said, I hope he stays on the right path and becomes a respectable and humble fighter. I do like the guy alot and I can't seem to figure out why.

[HammerFist]

I bet he likes kissing the woman right after shes just licked his poopa aswell

[Texasboyballin]

Ima Fan of War Machine, I think he's a great addition to the UFC.

War Machine gonna get the "W" this Saturday.

[POINDEXTER]

Originally Posted by Texasboyballin

Ima Fan of War Machine, I think he's a great addition to the UFC.

There is something about him that I like, but I'm not sure what. I guess it borders on sympathy. His recent criminal behavior was less than impressive. I wanted him to win on TUF and on the finale. As we saw on TUF, he's got some shit to work out. He recent comments (above) have zero redeeming value and betray how adolescent his mindset it. I really do think it is only a matter of time until he fucks things up for himself - that seems to be his unacknowledged intention. Why wouldn't you work with the best camp you can, and if you didn't, why the hell would your reasoning be because you wanted to be the biggest fish in the pond? That is bizarre to me.

His skill set is nowhere near the type of imperviousness he attributes to himself. He won a war on the TUF finale, but he barely won it and his opponent was nothing to write home about. I'd like not to see him crumpled in the corner like we saw Speer - I don't think his mental state could withstand the setback. He wanted to quit, due to nerves, before his first fight on the show for Christ's sake. Also, why does he keep mentioning his fantasy of being a bank robber? There is a bit of arrested development going on, IMO.