Mike “The Joker” Guymon Retires From Fighting
Posted by Dylan Horner (Staff Writer)Jan 25
Following his third loss in his last four fights, Mike “The Joker” Guymon (12-5-1) has decided to walk away from MMA. After his loss to DaMarques Johnson this past weekend in which he was forced to verbally submit after Johnson locked in a body triangle, Joker tweeted “I’m finally free.” Many of his followers inquired as to what exactly that meant, but Joker wouldn’t clarify anything.
Early Monday morning, middleeasy.com posted a link featuring a post-fight video that showed Johnson and Guymon talking backstage. As the two were talking about what had happened, Joker said “I’m so glad to finally be done. I’m definitely done.” With a confused look on his face, Johnson asked if Joker meant that he was done with MMA and as he fought back tears, Joker nodded his head and simply said “yeah. I’m done.” As the video goes on, an emotional Joker explains that he is happy with what he has accomplished with his career and that it’s for the best. With things still a little bit uncertain as to whether or not he was serious, neither his camp nor the UFC came out with any official statement on the matter.
This morning, Guymon was a guest on MMA Junkie Radio and took the time to clarify everything. He stated that the reason he verbally submitted to DaMarques Johnson is because he suffered two ruptured disks in his back as the result of Johnson’s body triangle. The force and the angle at which Johnson had him locked up in caused two of the vertebrae in his spine to slip out-of-place and caused him some excruciating pain. Upon hearing him yell out, Johnson immediately released his grip and backed away as Joker rolled on the ground, grimacing in pain.
Junkie Radio host, Gorgeous George, inquired about the aforementioned video in hopes of getting some clarification. Joker restated that he was, in fact, “done” with MMA. The reason that he gave was that the current medication he was on made him feel as if he was no longer the same Mike Guymon that he once was. He also claimed that it had some strenuous effects on his heart and that it altered his mindset to the point that he felt as if he was watching himself on TV. As the interview went on, Joker announced that he would still continue running his gym in Lake Forest, California and would continue working behind the scenes in the sport, just not actively fighting any longer. Joker also stated that he was finally at peace with himself and had accepted that he was no longer in love with the sport like he once was.
Photo Courtesy of MMAJunkie.com
Not only was he involved in one of the greatest post-weigh in stare downs in UFC history, Mike “The Joker” Guymon is one of the most lovable fighters in the company and owns a personality that will definitely be missed in the future.
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