The Doomsday doctrine: ‘It ain’t over till it’s over’

One of the great aspects of mixed martial arts is that a fight is never truly over until the final bell rings. It’s a claim that few sports can make, as there are no 20-point touchdowns in football, a nine point shot in basketball, or a goal in hockey or soccer that awards five points. In other words, when it gets to a certain point, it’s time to pack it in and accept your defeat.

This isn’t the case in a fight, and that’s a good thing for welterweight up and comer John Doomsday Howard, who has parlayed an unyielding will to win into 14 pro victories, including several of the ‘come from behind’ variety that has now become his trademark.

It comes from the way I grew up, said Howard. I never say die, and if you’re gonna die, at least go out on your shield. That’s what it is. I just try to be strong-minded, and if there’s a will, there definitely is a way. If I’m still breathing, I’m still moving, and I can still move my limbs, there’s still a way I can win and I’m definitely gonna try at least. That’s the way I think.

He’s definitely not loving things now as he begins the final stages of a weight cut that began weeks ago at 205 pounds. But as he sweats down to the 170 pound limit for his Sunday bout with Jake Ellenberger in San Diego, what keeps him motivated is the thought of his three biggest fans – his three daughters, aged two, seven, and eight.

If I get discouraged, I think about why I’m doing this, and the main reason I’m doing this is to take care of my family and my kids, he said. That gives me the boost back that I need.

His daughters aren’t allowed to watch Daddy fight live, but as Howard’s profile has grown bigger, so has his TV time thanks to re-runs of his fights on Spike TV, so at times, it becomes hard to keep them away from seeing the man of the house punch the time clock (and his opponents).

What can you do? he laughs, admitting that his two oldest daughters love it, and they love play fighting with me.

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