Issue 222

October 2025

In conversation with Paul Browne, Khalil Rountree Jr. shows that the science of fighting isn’t about control — it’s about how much chaos your power can carry.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely because it often has a hidden cost. The latest science has just found a way to measure it. A study published last month in the Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology found that the more explosive a fighter is, the faster fatigue sets in. Okay, so it’s something you probably already knew if you’ve ever watched Derrick Lewis or Yoel Romero ply their trade. These researchers did it the formal way, using Wingate Anaerobic and Countermovement Jump testing on 12 professional MMA athletes. They discovered that peak power and fatigue were almost inseparable, showing a near-perfect correlation. In human talk, the brighter you burn, the quicker you fade. Yet fighters who jumped higher also produced the greatest overall power. For a fighter like Khalil Rountree Jr., these equations define his brilliance. Despite a recent loss, his explosive bursts remain among the sport’s most feared displays of power, but they’re also a masterclass in managing the fine line between energy and exhaustion. Even as modern MMA shifts toward efficiency and pacing, Rountree embodies the primal side of the equation. He’s the one who reminds us why explosiveness still matters. Because in a world of five-round game plans and data-driven precision, there’s something beautiful about the fighter who can end everything in a single, perfect moment.

EARLY TUTELAGE

Rountree Jr. arrived late to MMA when he wandered into Wanderlei Silva’s gym in Las Vegas, weighing north of 300 pounds at 19; his soul needed saving. After a single Muay Thai class, he fell in love, and under the tutelage of former PRIDE middleweight champion Silva, he learned in the harshest of proving grounds. 

“That gym was where I discovered I had that natural fighting instinct and where I essentially learned how to fight,” he says with a smile. “It was the first gym that I ever joined. And if you're familiar with Wanderlei, his style during his own career was very chaotic, ‘axe murderer’ style, you know, damage was everything. So, yeah, I had the honor of pretty much learning how to fight from him and his coaches. And so that's just been my style since then.”

HARD LESSONS

Rountree Jr.’s ferocity carried him all the way to the UFC. After an initial bedding-in period in which he traded wins and losses, he began to find his footing. Now that he is testing his mettle against championship-level fighters, the next major challenge is learning to harness his instinctive explosiveness and manage his output over the whole duration of a fight.

“Yeah, I've got to find a balance, you know?” he says. “I've got to find the balance because trying to keep that energy up for three to five rounds is pretty exhausting. Going for massive strikes all the time is something you can get away with at a slightly lower level, but it’s different when you’re in there with the best guys in the world. So, it's a good balance. But it’s been almost 15 years now since I've been fighting. So, over the years, I've just learned how to manage it and control the aggression and use it when it's needed. I think from my experience, it's been a little harder to go back to training to fight three rounds, after fighting over 25 minutes. There's a different energy to it. I feel like three rounds is higher paced. So, the energy management is different, and it's a little bit harder in comparison to fighting over five rounds, where we can kind of take our time and get a feel for what's going on. But three rounds, you gotta give it your all. There's no time to wait. So, it's been interesting!”

BUILT BY BELIEF

A large part of Rountree Jr.’s growth is under the guidance of John Wood, his head coach at Syndicate MMA. Wood says that, along with helping him harness his undeniable power, he has also focused on quieting the noise surrounding the fighter.

“Khalil has always been one of the most talented guys in the room,” Wood says. “One of the most vicious, the hardest, the most explosive, the most athletic guys I've worked with. That's been there from day one. When he first turned professional, there was so much pressure on him. He was touted as the next big thing. The next coming of Anderson Silva or Wanderlei Silva. Those are the guys he trained with. There are legendary stories from sparring sessions. And so, there was a lot of pressure on his shoulders coming into the UFC and into the fight game. And I think at that point in time, the big picture was just too big. So, over the years — I’ve been with him 12 or 13 years now — we had to mitigate how big that picture needed to be and shrink things down.”

ETCHING HIS NAME IN HISTORY

Rountree Jr.’s evolution has been gradual, despite the bumps in the road. He is currently tied with Shogun Rua and Chuck Liddell for the most knockdowns in light heavyweight history (14), and with seven knockouts at 205 pounds, he is closing in on Rua (8) and Liddell (9).

“When I was told about this, I was like, ‘Wow, this is cool!’” he laughs. “I remember watching these guys. I remember being inspired by Chuck Liddell or Shogun Rua when they were in their prime. And now here I am, and my name is somewhere on the list next to them, and could surpass them. So, it's a really cool moment to take that in.”

FINDING PURPOSE BEYOND POWER

The Khalil Rountree Jr. fans see today is not just a knockout artist. He is a craftsman in progress, shaped as much by the people around him as by the battles he has survived.

“Over the years, he's not only grown and developed as a fighter, he's grown up as a man,” John Wood says. “The way he looks at things, the way he handles things, inside and outside of the cage. He’s always put a lot of pressure on himself, and I think he's starting to understand that that's just part of the process. His mental maturity and his focus. His skill set has been there from day one. Now he's got the mindset to back it. He's got the work ethic. Anybody can be a fighter. But developing from being a good fighter, to a great fighter, to then potentially championship quality — that takes all of the right ingredients. And I think we finally have all those right ingredients now with him. Now we’re mixing up something special.”

From a young man searching for direction to a seasoned fighter etching his name among the greats. His evolution is not measured just by knockouts or statistics, but by the discipline, patience, and clarity he has cultivated along the way. Rountree Jr. embodies the rare combination of raw, explosive talent and calculated, thoughtful growth. He proves that true greatness in MMA is forged not only in the cage but also in the quiet work behind the scenes. As he continues to chase the pinnacle of his sport, one thing is sure: the best chapters of ‘The War Horse’ are still ahead.