His tattoos were disturbing. Then the drama began

• The tattoos of Jonathan Koppenhaver, later known as War Machine, caused concern. On one arm he had tattoos of impaled people, among other things
• The American was released from the UFC after he began refusing to fight and suggested that the former UFC champion committed suicide. Later, he not only fought in MMA, but was also a star of adult films
• When 29 of the 34 charges were proven shortly thereafter, the court sentenced him to life imprisonment
• More information can be found in Przegląd Sportowy Onet

Jonathan Koppenhaver was not an MMA fighter with amazing talent, and it was rather unlikely that he would make a huge career. Undoubtedly, however, he had a lot of skills, which is confirmed by his participation in the well-known raelity show for fighters “The Ultimate Fighter”, as well as a successful debut in the largest mixed martial arts federation in the world, UFC.

The American won in the third round against Jared Rollins, but his UFC career ended a few months later. First he lost to Yoshiuki Yoshida, then he refused the fight he was offered, and then for the first time negatively surprised everyone.

What else is a low-paid player supposed to do after retirement? Start working for $10 an hour? – he wrote on social media when information came to light about the death of former federation champion Evan Tanner, who decided to travel alone through the desert. Koppenhaver suggested that Tanner committed suicide, and he did not change his mind, even when police investigators denied this thesis.

It didn’t stop his career at all. He also fought in the Bellator federation, and his record of 14 wins and five losses could be impressive. His career would probably have been more spectacular if not for regular problems with the law. It started with beatings and assaults, and ended with a life sentence.

War Machine – regular destruction

In the history of the American, it is not difficult to find moments that were at least disturbing. The holder of a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu decided to change his name and since 2008 he was officially called War Machine.

His tattoos were also interesting. When he tried to get on the show “The Ultimate Fighter”, he introduced some of them. The most surprising thing he had tattooed on his left bicep was impaled people. He explained that as a child he saw a similar scene in the movie “Dracula” and he liked it very much. In addition, he also had a grenade or a praying girl on his body.

In the program, he was known as an aggressive person, but viewers could also observe the moment when he decided to open up. In one of the episodes of War Machine, he told about his difficult childhood. His mother had a drug problem, and at the age of 13, he unsuccessfully performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on his father. Despite attempts to save him from a heart attack, his father died. And War Machine explained that when other players can count on support, that’s why he doesn’t have it.

Adult movies and fights

Further fights and assaults resulted in War Machine being sentenced to two years and two months in solitary confinement. After he was released, he decided to do what he loves and earn money for it. He was both an MMA fighter and an adult movie star, and it seemed like the perfect combination for him.

In April 2013, he began dating Christine Mackinday, who was known in the adult film community as Christy Mack. Their relationship initially seemed to be successful, but Mack later testified in court that War Machine abused her physically, psychologically and regularly controlled her.

The American allegedly threatened his partner that she would have problems if she told about his violence. Especially since he knows gang members and commandos. Mack had been bullied for a long time, and when she finally decided to run away from Koppenhaver, her problems were even worse.

Mack, now 32, decided to escape from her partner’s car as they stood at a traffic light. The MMA fighter then grabbed her by the hair, wouldn’t let her leave, and soon after announced that he had to take her to the desert and kill her because people saw her trying to escape.

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Rape, attempted murder and life imprisonment

When Mack managed to end the toxic relationship, she hoped that this was the end of the nightmare she had to live through. However, the apogee of the terrifying events did not take place until August 8, 2014. Then War Machine sneaked into her house and saw her with her new partner, Corey Thomas. And that made him furious.

First, he beat and bit Thomas for 10 minutes, bringing his face to a dramatic state. Mack’s then-partner had no chance against a professional MMA fighter. It seemed that War Machine was going to kill him, but decided to let him out of the house as if nothing had happened if he promised not to go to the police.

Then Christine Mackinday’s nightmare began. She was beaten, raped and stabbed for two hours. She managed to escape only because she took advantage of the moment when Koppenhaver turned his back on her. Then, through the balcony, she got into the garden of a neighbor who called the police.

War Machine was on the run from the authorities but was quickly found as he was posting on social media at the time. He was proven in court on 29 out of 34 charges, including rape, kidnapping, attempted murder and sexual assault.

He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 36 years of his sentence. War Machine may be released from prison in 2053.