Bio

I’m a MMA fighter originally born and raised in Jackson, MS. I was introduced to MMA by my first trainer and brother, Jarrett Becks. Two years later in 2006, with a 4-0 record, I moved to the DC Metro Area to train with a great team, under Master Lloyd Irvin Jr. I left behind my family, job, friends, and a scholarship with a full stipend to the PhD program of Clinical Psychology at Jackson State University in Jackson, MS. I left all of this to pursue a dream to be the best in the world in MMA. I have hopes of one day using the influence I would gain to help others by public speaking, spreading real truth of Christ with integrity, and opening community centers that would help others all over the world. I often dream of opening free counseling clinics that would meet the mental health needs of individuals who wouldn’t ordinarily be able to afford it.

In 2007 I won 3 fights in one weekend. I won the WKA MMA National Championship. At the end of that year I had another bout and lost 5 extra lbs accidentally because I weighed myself on a bad scale. I had never cut weight before because unlike other fighters I fight at my walk-around weight. I was severely dehydrated and ended up losing the decision. This is my only MMA loss. I don’t know if it was because of the dehydration or the anxiety that accompanied the fact, I was told a week before the fight that the UFC match maker would be there and he was told to watch me. In March 2008 I had my last MMA fight where I won 18 sec into the first round by submission. Not long after that fight, I strained my groin, which put me out for 12 months. After this injury I returned for one month during the summer of 2009 and my skills had miraculously gotten better. Master Lloyd was very shocked, even though he knew I had been studying video like a mad man! At the end of that month I strained my other groin helping a teammate get ready for his WEC debut. While out with both of these injuries, other serious injuries that I didn’t know I had flared up. During this time, I also started having bad headaches and was told by the doctor that I had genetic hypertension. Boxing was the only thing that I could do that didn’t cause me as much pain. Consequently, my boxing coach at Team Lloyd Irvin, Tom Zurita, introduced me to Keystone Boxing where I met another great team with great coaches Gary Russell Sr. and 2008 Olympic coach Robert Martin. During this time, I experienced a lot of financial & personal problems that seemed to be out of my control.

In December 2009, one of my teammate was bench pressing 275 lbs from the floor (not a bench) and needed help. When I bent over to lift the weight, I hurt my back. I took about three week off and started back boxing with a back brace on. In 2010, I entered the Golden gloves tournament that my coaches expected me to win easily, wearing a brace underneath. Two days before the semi-final match, I received tragic news in my personal life. The day of the fight I had no energy because I was unable to sleep or eat. I miraculously won the fight by TKO first round. Later that night, I couldn’t walk by myself, because it felt as if my leg was disconnected from my hip. If I sneezed it felt as if someone was stabbing me. The next day, I went to the emergency room to only be given pain meds and told that the ex-ray showed nothing. The next week’s fight would have a different spin. I didn’t train any that week. I only went to a chiropractor because I couldn’t bend over and was in so much pain. Because, I still couldn’t sleep or eat, I weighted in 9 lbs under weight. Needless to say, I lost that bout, being TKO’d the first round. This was my first time loosing in boxing and my first time being TKO’d. All of my teammates were worried about me because they know how serious I am about my training. Even though one of my biggest fears in fighting had come true, I honestly didn’t care because my biggest fears in life had all come true prior to this. This pain was so enormous that it left no room for anymore. My dad always said, “Son when it rains, it pours”. I got an MRI done not to long after that fight, and it turned out that the back pain was the result of a ruptured disk the whole time. After a month of pain in every realm, not being able to eat, sleep, or clear my mind, I prayed often that God would take my life. I moved back to Mississippi to attack my problems. During this time I went to Tullos Chiropractic in Jackson,MS and got a lot of traction!!! Under the care of Dr. G., I also got epidural injections under the care of Dr. Summers at NewSouth NeuroSpine. The great news is that the recent MRI says that my disk has gone back to its original place. I still have a good bit of joint pain and pain due to the fact that the disk had been on the nerve. So now, I’m trying to ease back into training, and get back on the road to becoming the greatest! My trainers have told me that the reason I get injured is because I train too hard and don’t have a balance. I will be moving back to MD soon. I’m going to try my best not to repeat the same mistakes and not over train. This has always been hard for me because, even when I do more than everyone else I still hear in my head, “If you are to be the best you’ve got to do a lot more, that’s what separates the two!” If I try to stop, I feel guilty, as if I’m slacking or being lazy. So, we will see how that goes. One of my favorite sayings is “Nobody’s Gone Give It To You, You Gotta Go Get IT!!!!!!” So finally, here I come! I know I’ve got a lot of work to do and I’m 29 yrs old now, but I’m not afraid of any of that. I have always been the under dog. The only thing I’m afraid of in this is going through all this hell and not ever making it to being the best in the world!!