Jordan Burroughs changes mind on MMA career

Wrestling is the best base for mixed martial arts, as even a casual glance at the best in the world demonstrates:

Heavyweight • Cain Velasquez • JUCO national champion, 2X Div I All American

Light Heavyweight • Jon Jones • JUCO national champion

Middleweight • Chris Weidman • 2X Div I All American

Welterweight • Georges St-Pierre • Arguably the best wrestling in MMA, ironically never wrestled

Lightweight • Anthony Pettis • Taekwondo/Kickboxing

Featherweight • José Aldo • BJJ/Kickboxing

Bantamweight • Dominick Cruz • Wrestled in HS, did not wrestle in college, but coached wrestling post HS

Flyweigh • Demetrious Johnson • 2X All State in HS, did not wrestle in college

Thus it was with great anticipation that MMA fans looked forward to American, world, and Olympic freestyle wrestling champion Jordan Ernest Burroughs entering the cage.

Shortly before winning Olympic gold in 2012, Burroughs set out a timeline for a career in the world’s fastest growing sport.

“Probably after the 2016 Olympics,” said Burroughs. “I want to go two Olympic cycles. I feel like I have a lot of wrestling left in me, a lot of double legs left in me, so that’s basically my focus right now. Winning a couple world medals, win a couple gold medals in the Olympics and then make that transition to MMA.”

However, Saturday night Burroughs said a cage is not in his future.

“MMA is brutal,” tweeted Burroughs. “Great sport, but not for me. I will never step foot in the Octagon.”

Burroughs will instead presumably focus on coaching wrestling, continuing a tradition that in turn has produced countless great MMA champions.