Which Religion Does Khalil Rountree Jr. Follow? Is He a Muslim or Christian?
34-year-old Khalil Rountree Jr. is one of those rare fighters who has turned his fortunes around in the light-heavyweight division in recent times. ‘The War Horse’ suffered a ban for four months after consuming a banned substance unintentionally. What followed was a series of criticism as he had to pull out from his fight against Jamahal Hill at UFC 303.
The fighter is, without a doubt, one of the best in the business, and fans want to know more about him. One of the biggest questions that fans want to know is which religion he follows. Let us delve into its details below.
All we know about Khalil Rountree’s religion and beliefs
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Khalil Rountree Jr. is gearing up for his biggest challenge to date as he prepares to take on Alex Pereira at UFC 307. Before his clash, the #8 ranked light-heavyweight shared a clip of his training montage on his social media account. The caption on the post read ‘church’, and the song featured ‘God Put a Smile Upon Your Face’ by Coldplay. Does this mean he believes in Christianity? Well, there’s not much information to back the claims. Rountree Jr. is one of those rare fighters who likes to keep a low profile and has not spoken about his religion.
Some fans believe he is a Christian, while others think he might be Muslim (mainly because of his first name). To add to the speculations, ‘The War Horse’ recently shared a picture of his wedding in a temple in Thailand. This is the only picture he has on his social media where he is seen inside a religious monument.
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More about Khalil Rountree’s early life and background
Rountree Jr.’s rise to the top of the sport is nothing short of incredible. At a very young age, the #8 light-heavyweight contender faced a strategy that left a dent in his heart forever. Rountree Jr. lost his father in May 1992 after was murdered in a Gold Coast hotel by three 20-year-old kids. However, this was not the only challenge he faced during his early days.
‘The War Horse’ lost his father when he was just two years old. While speaking to the UFC before his scheduled fight, he said, “When I was 2 years old, my father was murdered. He was a manager for Boyz II Men. There was a time in his career when he was a personal bodyguard for Muhammad Ali. I have this plaque that was given to me from Boyz II Men, ” The absence of his father had a significant impact but he used it as a motivation to cross another huddle in his life.
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At the age of 20, Rountree weighed over 300 pounds and quickly realized he needed to lose weight drastically. His initial motivation was simply to lose weight. However, after discovering Muay Thai, Rountree’s passion found a new goal in life, and thus, his journey in MMA began. In just over two years of training, he made his amateur MMA debut and now will be contesting for the light-heavyweight title. Since the fight was announced, many felt that this would be an easy fight for Pereira. However, one cannot look past the current run of form of the 34-year-old as he has been unbeaten in his last five fights.
Rountree Jr. is aware of the threat ahead of him and is leaving no stone unturned in his preparation. Many even believe he will cause an upset at UFC 307 against the Brazilian. Do you think Khalil Rountree Jr. will do the impossible? Let us know in the comments below.