Army training a plus for mixed martial arts fighters

[Chiron]

The military gave more than discipline to Aaron Cooper and Kawika Smith. It’s offered plenty of on-the-job training for a potential career in professional mixed martial arts fighting for the pair, who will fight at the Best of the Best 17 MMA event tonight at the Columbus Civic Center.

Cooper, who recently left the Army to pursue a college degree, spent more than three years as a hand-to-hand combat instructor at Fort Benning. There’s little practical difference in what Cooper, a former Ranger, taught and what he takes into the octagon, he said.

“Obviously, it’s life and death when you’re in combat, but there’s not much that’s different other than that,” Cooper said. “You might have to learn with dealing with weapons, or weapons retention, but the rest of the techniques are the same.”

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