Former WWE superstar Bobby Lashley made news when he departed the fictional fight world of the WWE to pursue a career in the extremely non-fictional fight world of mixed martial arts. Far from just an entertainer, the 260-pound powerhouse is an athlete in every sense of the word. A former NAIA wrestling champion and a silver medalist at the world championships, Lashley is no stranger to the art of combat.
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| Lashley wouldn't mind fighting Brock Lesnar once he gets some experience. (Getty Images) |
Lashley told FiveOuncesOfPain.com that the move from the entertainment world to the fight world has been a long time coming.
"I talked with the management of the WWE about my interest in fighting about a year before leaving," said Lashley. "I had an injury and had to take some time off. So while I was rehabbing the injury I talked to them a little more and just came to the conclusion that if any time was a good time it was now. That's when I decided to take the leave and started training."
The decision to set sail in the competitive world of mixed martial arts was not a difficult move to make for the Colorado native. Competition at the highest level has become a way of life for Lashley.
"I have eighteen years of wrestling experience," said Lashley. "I wrestled in college an I wrestled at the Olympic training center for three years. I have obtained numerous awards in wrestling. I have three national championships in college and a silver medal at the world championships."
"I was doing a lot of different things in wrestling and towards the end of my wrestling career I started training with a lot with some of the MMA fighters. I had a chance to meet some of the guys that were actually fighting and that's the direction I thought I was heading in."
With Lashley's wrestling credentials and imposing physical dimensions it was no surprise that he caught the attention of some very important people right out of college. He was at a crossroads in his life and had a very important decision to make.
"At that same time is when the WWE was offering me a contract," explained Lashley. "It just came to a point where it was like 'Alright, do you want to get into MMA now or do you want to do the professional wrestling deal?' Just speaking to some of the people from the WWE like Kurt Angle and some others, I felt like I would want to make that jump into the WWE and see more of the entertainment side of the sport."
Even while performing under the bright lights of WWE, Lashley found himself with a hunger for something more. Something more competetive. Something more real.
"I definitely had aspirations to get into mixed martial arts before the WWE but the WWE was pulling a little harder," said Lashley. "Even while going through the WWE there were always moments where I wanted to train and wanted to fight, so when the time was right I decided to start fighting."
The wheels really started turning in Lashley's head after he had the opprtunity to train with several different fighters while wrestling in Colorado. The first-hand experience with some of the techniques they were teaching opened his eyes to many of the different competetive dimensions of the sport.
"It was about 2002 or 2003 when I started training with some of the guys and actually looking into it a little more," said Lashley. "I had seen some fights before and nobody really knew that much about it so it was just kind of cool to watch the fights. When I was up there at the training center in Colorado some of the guys that were fighting with the management company I was with before would come down. They would send them up there to get the altitude training, and since I was wrestling there, I was wrestling some of the guys."
