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A former Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight spent time training with 18th Military Police Brigade Soldiers at the Sembach Fitness Center Feb. 21.
Din Thomas, a native of Wilmington, Del., has a 15-year UFC record of 26 wins and nine losses. He holds a black-belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Ricardo Liborio and currently runs two successful Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial arts academies in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
According to UFC.com, Thomas is known for his versatility, patience and killer instinct, which secured him a major role on the reality television show “The Ultimate Fighter 4: The Comeback.”
During his career, Thomas met Sgt. 1st Class Ronnell Foster, 18th MP Bde. military working dog operations Soldier, who is also a fighter.
“The first time I met Din was when I tried out for ‘The Ultimate Fighter 7’ back in 2007,” Foster said. “We ran into each other again in 2010 while I was promoting an MMA event, and we remained in contact off and on over the years.”
Foster and Thomas recently reconnected, which resulted in Thomas’s visit to Sembach.
“I just happened to catch up with Sergeant Foster on the Internet,” Thomas said.
Thomas was in Frankfurt training German fighters, three of whom traveled to Sembach with him.
“When I found out he was in Germany, we linked up and here I am,” Thomas added.
Foster managed to spark his friend’s interest in modern Army combatives and arranged for him to train with some of the “Ever Vigilant” Soldiers.
“I came down to this station today to meet some of the guys and hang out,” Thomas said. “I wanted to see what was going on and just have fun with the guys.”
Foster said he was grateful for the opportunity to bring Thomas out to meet the Soldiers.
“Din has fought some of the best guys in the world at the highest level, and the fact that he would take time away from his training to spend time with the troops says a lot about his character,” Foster said. “Din is someone I consider a true friend, and I really appreciate his time.”
