Jordan Burroughs, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist and six-time world champion, revealed that his Christian faith played a decisive role in his choice to walk away from a potential MMA transition, a path he once seriously weighed after winning Olympic gold.
Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show following his RAF one-year anniversary win over Sean Brady, Burroughs explained that the years between 2012 and 2016 represented the strongest window for wrestlers crossing into mixed martial arts, pointing to the success of Chris Weidman, Johnny Hendricks, Ben Askren, Kamaru Usman, Daniel Cormier and Henry Cejudo as proof the path was real.
“I really considered it, like heavily considered it,” Burroughs said. “I’m going to win the Olympics. I’m going to transition.”
He even began training.
“I started training striking. I went maybe a two-month span where I was training striking a few times a week. I was doing jiu-jitsu and doing a bit of grappling,” he said.
Sports agent Ali Abdelaziz reached out with a direct offer to build a path into the UFC. “He was like, ‘Hey, if you want to do this, let me shop you around. Who do you want to fig ht? We can do a catchweight. We can make this happen. Let me guide you, let me lead you.'”
Ultimately, Burroughs said the motivation behind the interest was the problem.
“What was at the heart of why I wanted to go to MMA was the glamour. It was the celebrities ringside. It was the big paydays. It was the global recognition, and it wasn’t the purity,” he said. “And me being a Christian, me being a man based in spirituality, and honoring Christ in my walk, I thought that transition would be more about what I could get than who I could become. And I just don’t think it would have been good for my faith, for my family, for my marriage. That lifestyle would not have been healthy for a family man.”
Burroughs said he does not regret the decision, even as he continues wrestling exhibitions through RAF. He hopes his name still gets mentioned among wrestlers who could have thrived in MMA.
