Brett Rogers: My wife and I have our ups and downs, like anyone else
On June 28th, Brett Rogers was arrested and jailed in connection with assaulting his wife. She was reportedly strangled, punched…
On June 28th, Brett Rogers was arrested and jailed in connection with assaulting his wife. She was reportedly strangled, punched repeatedly in the head and face, and lost a tooth in the struggle. Rogers was charged with assault in the third degree, domestic assault by strangulation and pattern of stalking conduct — all felonies.. He was also charged with endangerment of a child, a gross misdameanor.
He was promptly cut from the Zuffa roster and publicly blasted by UFC President Dana White.
His current status was profiled on HDNet’s Inside MMA last night.
Brett Rogers
“I was told not to go into details. The situation that occured happened, and it was more of a misunderstanding, when I look at it. The papers can write whatever.”
“I am confident that things are going to be dropped, squared away. Then we can moved forward like we said. We are a married couple, we have our ups and downs just like everyone else.”
“It was a lesson learned, life is a roller coaster, and it was a lesson learned.”
Roger’s wife, Tiuana Rogers
“We just enjoy being aorund each other. and we just wanna continue loving each other, loving our family, and just focus on moving forward and being positive.”
“He’s a family man and a lot of people don’t see that with MMA fighters, they are so quick to judge.”
Rogers’ attorney, Murad Mohammad
“These allegations are serious allegations and we are taking them very seriously. We are looking forward to addressing them in court.”
“The alleged victim is Brett’s wife. And this is a family that’s been together for a long time. They love each other. And Ms. Rogers, at this point, appears not to be willing to testify against Brett.”
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A jury trial is set for Sept. 13
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In the mean time, Rogers will be making his return to the cage on Sept. 23, 2011 at Titan Fighting Championships 20 in Kansas City, Kansas against former UFC fighter Eddie Sanchez.
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In an interview with FCFighter, Rogers loosely detailed the circumstances leading up to the incident, and took issue with the UFC over the manner of his firing.
I’m blessed I got this fight and now I just want to let my hands go. I want to prove to the world that Brett Rogers isn’t going nowhere. He can stand and hang with the best of them. – even if I have to crawl before I walk again.
During fight week in Dallas, Rogers said that a three year old child of one of his neighbors walked onto Rogers’ family property and was bitten by Rogers’ dog that was on a leash outside the home. Rogers only found out about the incident upon his return home and, after an emotionally draining battle with local authorities, he gave in to the demands of the community and put the dog down.
The city didn’t want to listen to me, said Rogers, an avid dog lover and member of Knockout Dog Fighting, the non-profit organization that seeks to eliminate organized dog fighting competitions. I felt bad for the little child but, at the same time, I thought my dog should still be living.
Then came the incident at home for which Rogers was charged with assault in the third degree, domestic assault by strangulation and endangerment of a child.
Don’t believe everything you read. For me to do something (violent), Rogers said, you have to do something to me first.
I’m fighting for my family – to put food in the family. Every second I’m fighting, I’m thinking about my family and how I can better their lives.
Everything got blown out of proportion. It’s over and done with. My attorney is taking care of business and making sure things are straight and that I’m home where I need to be so I can provide.
“(Zuffa) could have given me a little more respect. I got out of jail and tried calling them, but no one picked up the phone or returned my calls. I felt like people were just avoiding me, so I gave up. Dana White needs to man up and pick up a phone.
UFC isn’t the only thing out there. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to fight out East in Asia. I’m hoping something like that can happen down the line. I’m going to keep my options open.
