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I weighed 21 STONE, smoked every day and was on brink of suicide before I found MMA, now I’m fighting for UFC gold
KHALIL ROUNTREE JR is on the cusp of becoming a UFC champion – just over a decade and a half after making the life-changing decision to try mixed martial arts.
Early on Sunday morning, Rountree Jr will bid to become the new ruler of the promotion’s stacked light-heavyweight division.
Standing between the Ultimate Fighter season 23 contestant and having the belt wrapped around his waist is dominant champion, Alex Pereira.
The pair will collide in the main event of UFC 307 in Salt Lake City, where Rountree Jr can complete the most unintentional of journies to UFC gold.
Unlike many in the UFC, Rountree Jr didn’t grow up wanting to be a MMA fighter.
In fact, he only started the sport after realising he was at a crossroads in his life and with his health.
After years of abusing his body with junk food, cigarettes and pills, Rountree Jr found himself weighing a staggering 21 STONE and without a purpose in his life at the tender age of 19.
He was “on the brink of suicide” before discovering MMA and using it as a vehicle to turn his life around and drop an incredible SEVEN STONE.
And the 34-year-old is still coming to terms with just how far he’s come in life, let alone the sport, ahead of the biggest moment of his career.
In an exclusive interview with SunSport, Rountree Jr said of his incredible journey: ” It’s definitely crazy.
“MMA gave me a place. Like a place, a home to be in. But I think, you know, even then I’ve grown since.
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“And it’s now about continuing on the journey. I went through those struggles and now I’m here.
“And I’ve been here and it’s just really about staying here and keeping the dream alive. You know what I mean?
“Not just getting in the door but making something out of it. So, yeah, man, what a ride. What a ride for sure.”
Rountree Jr – whose father was murdered when he was a toddler – hopes a win in the mountains of Salt Lake City will serve as an inspiration to teens battling their own demons.
He said: “I wanna be able to make as much of an impact and inspiration as I can so that I’m not doing this just selfishly.
“I want to be able to use my platform and be a champion so that I can give back to the people who supported me and give back to my community.
“We’ve seen it with multiple champions and I just think that something like that, to me, has always been a dream.
“That’s been a part of the reason why I’ve wanted to become a champion so that I could make a difference.”
Capturing UFC gold would be the completion of a Hollywood-esque story for Rountree Jr, who is umming and ahhing about allowing himself to think about the magnitude of the spot he finds himself in this weekend.
So it’s incredibly fitting that the man standing between him and immortality is a surging superstar with destructive punching power befitting a Marvel supervillain.
“It’s a little bit of both,” he said when asked if he’s allowed himself to think about the magnitude of dethroning Pereira.
“I see it as I’ve always thought it possible for me to win against Alex. It’s always been possible for me.
“And now we’re, you know, approaching that time. And yeah, it’s almost like a dream come true.
“I mean, it’s cool. Like I get to go up against this challenge, you know?
“I get to face the boogeyman and I’m up for it, you know. I’ve always seen it that way. I’ve always seen that.
“I’m up for this challenge and now here we are.”
What a ride
Khalil Rountree Jr on his journey
Dethroning Pereira as the king of the light-heavyweights has, so far, proven to be difficult, just ask former champions Jamahal Hill and Jiri Prochazka.
The Brazilian bruiser’s body of work at 205lbs isn’t something that’s sniffed at by Rountree Jr, who said: “I look at it and I respect it.
“And I think that’s what kind of calls me to be up for the challenge. Because I’m like, ‘Wow, it’s like, it seems like a hard task.’
“And I like that. That’s what we’re here for, right?
“We’re here to challenge ourselves and really put ourselves to the test.
“So when I see the title reign and the things that he’s been through, I definitely respect it.
“And now it’s my time, to challenge it. Stylistically, I’ve always said it from the start that I think it’s a great match-up.
“I think that it’s a matchup for the fans, for sure. Especially if both of us go in there and do what we do best. And everyone knows what that is.
“It’s a great matchup. I think that it’s a fight for the fans and that’s what I’m really preparing for.”
Rountree Jr knows ending Pereira’s title reign will be no easy feat but remains confident of pulling off what would be one of the biggest upsets of the year.
“It ends with me victorious and new,” he said when asked how his maiden UFC title fight ends. “I mean, that’s the goal.
“That’s what I’ve been working for and that’s what I’m focused on.
“So yeah, it ends with me victorious and going home smiling with the belt around my shoulder and never taking it off.”
Heartbreaking end to search as body of influencer, 27, found after yacht party shipwreck on ‘Devil’s Throat’ coastline
THE body of an influencer has been recovered after a boat capsized on the Devil’s Throat coastline.
The body of influencer Beatriz Tavares da Silva Faria, 27, has been recovered by Maritime Firefighters while Aline Tamara Moreira de Amorim, 37, is still missing.
The incident happened near Guaruja, a municipality in the Garganta do Diabo (Devil’s Throat) area, near the famous Iguazu Falls waterfalls, in the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo, when the speedboat suddenly capsised.
Aline had posted photographs on social media showing her and pals on the luxury yacht near Sao Vicente on 29 September, shortly before the tragedy.
The authorities are still investigating what exactly caused the tragedy, with survivor Camila Alves, 20, telling local media that they were at a boozy birthday party on a yacht near Guaruja.
But when things began to wind down and it was time to return, the partygoers split into two smaller vessels and headed back to shore.
But one of the two smaller vessels, a rented speedboat, was suddenly hit by a large wave that caused it to sink.
Camila said: “We could see that we wouldn’t be able to hold on for long, we were kicking our feet and swallowing a lot of water. Our solution was to throw ourselves on the rocks to try to hold on and save ourselves.”
Another survivor, named as Vanessa Audrey, 35, said that they had held out hope of finding Aline alive.
The other survivors from the sunk vessel were Daniel Goncalves Ferreira, 22, Gabriela Santos Lima, age not reported, and Nathan Cardoso Soares da Silva, whose age was not given either.
Vanessa said shortly after the incident: “Five people managed to reach that rock, and she (Aline) was wearing a vest. So, the hope was that she survived.”
Aline did not make it to the rocks, and rescuers are still looking for her body.
Lauren Keen-Hawkins: Jockey to be discharged from hospital ‘in the very near future’ after suffering serious head injury
YOUNG amateur jockey Lauren Keen-Hawkins will be discharged from hospital “in the near future” following a serious head injury.
The 22-year-old fell face-first off her horse at the Worcester Racecourse in Birmingham on September 1.
Keen-Hawkins was rushed to Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where she spent the month in intensive care.
But after being moved to the Gloucester Royal Hospital, there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel.
The Injured Jockeys Fund said: “Lauren continues to make steady progress with her rehabilitation.
“She is mobile with assistance, and although confused from time to time, her mental functioning is improving.
“Lauren’s family anticipate she will be discharged from hospital in the relatively near future to continue her recovery at home.
“And with Out-Patient Therapy from both the NHS and the Injured Jockeys Fund.”
She has now entered a stage termed Post Traumatic Amnesia (PTA).
Keen-Hawkins came down while on 10-1 Faerie Cutlass at the third-last fence in the 2m4f handicap hurdle.
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The young jockey was knocked out by the fall, with screens put up around her as she was checked by staff.
Several ambulances, including an air ambulance, arrived at the racecourse to treat Keen-Hawkins.
At the time, a spokesperson for Worcester Racecourse said: “The thoughts of everyone at the Racecourse are with Lauren and her family at the moment.”
The youngster’s partner and parents have been at her bedside for the last month.
Kim Bailey’s horse Faerie Cutlass was reported to be unharmed after the incident.
Keen-Hawkins is a hugely promising young rider who has tasted success at Cheltenham, the home of jumps racing.
She won a hunters’ chase at the track’s prestigious April meeting in 2022, steering 13-2 Dandy Dan to victory.
Her so-far sole victory in 12 career runs, Keen-Hawkins has ridden mostly for former Grand National-winning handler Bailey.
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Man (40) killed for trying to save friend from a fight
The Zimbabwe Republic Police is investigating a case of murder which occurred along Antony Road in Hopely, Harare on 1/10/24 in which Pardon Muvengwa (40) died. An unknown suspect stabbed the victim once on the chest with an unknown object after the victim tried to refrain the suspect from assaulting his friend. The victim succumbed […]
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