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Two sides of the coin; prize fighter has a softer side
At Gold Medal Grappling gym in Woodbridge, owner and trainer Elijah Harshbarger says, "We're goin' live," to tell his fighters and students that they're shifting from practice and workout sessions to grappling and fighting.
Last week, mixed martial arts competitor and Gold Medal Grappling member Elder Ramos shifted from rehearsal to game action in more than just his fighting career.
On Tuesday, Jan. 22, the prize fighter became the father of a baby boy, Joseph Humberto Ramos, and also proposed to his girlfriend, Kaitlyn Hoffman.
“She got the baby and the engagement ring on the same day,” Ramos said.
He then went on to compete in his fourth fight, bringing home the championship belt just two days after bringing his bride-to-be and baby home from the hospital.
"I'm so glad he came before the fight,” Ramos said of his son. “I was praying he would come before the fight.”
Manassas hosted the Operation Octagon mixed martial arts competition last Saturday night at the Prince William Fairgrounds.
Mixed martial arts is a savage combination of jujitsu, wrestling, grappling and boxing that is often bloodier than what one normally sees at a boxing or wrestling match.
Ramos, who lives near Woodbridge, came to America from Columbia when he was 14. His father had taken him out of the country because of family troubles and the murders of his older brothers. The 23-year-old fighter said the secret to his success in the ring is imagining that his opponents are the men who killed his brothers.
He met his fiancee at a high school wrestling match several years ago.
Hylton High School student Kaitlyn Hoffman was one of the managers for the opposing team, but decided to go for a Forest Park fellow instead.
The couple currently live at her parents' house while they are in transition. Ramos is saving money while Hoffman is studying at Northern Virginia Community College to become a first-grade teacher.
Rich Hoffman, Kaitlyn's father, went to the fight last Saturday, because she could not. He's a fan of the sport and even helps his future son-in-law train and lose weight before the competitions.
Ramos entered last Saturday's event with one championship belt already. He had previously been in three fights, losing his first by disqualification (“I didn't know all the rules,” he said.), then winning the next two.
At Operation Octagon, he was the headliner, taking on the undefeated Corey Bates in the day's featured fight.
"I can't wait till it's over, and I can bring another belt home to my baby,” he said shortly before the fight.
And several hours later, that's exactly what he did.
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