http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/news/story?id=2891840
Johnnie Morton's transition from the NFL to Mixed Martial Arts didn't go as planned for the former wide receiver.
Morton
Morton, 35, was knocked out just 38 seconds into the first round of his match against Bernard Ackah on Saturday night and then was suspended by the California State Athletic Commission after refusing to supply a urine sample for drug testing.
Morton wasn't available to comment on the fight or the suspension, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Morton was fighting on a K-1/Elite XC Dynamite!! USA card at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. He was put in a neck splint and taken to California Hospital in Los Angeles for observation but was able to flash a victory sign to the crowd before leaving the ring on a stretcher.
"How many people who would do what he did, stepping into the NFL of MMA and putting it all on the line," Morton's trainer, Mike Guymon told the Times.
Morton only trained for two months for his MMA debut, but Guymon said Morton was ready for the fight.
"When you want to jump into something, you jump into something," Guymon told the Times. "I've been fighting for 10 years and I still don't feel like I'm prepared."
Ackah, however, doesn't think Morton's ready for the big time yet.
"He needs more experience," he told the Times.
Morton had four 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his 12-year career with the Lions, Chiefs and 49ers. He retired from the NFL after the 2005 season.
Johnnie Morton's transition from the NFL to Mixed Martial Arts didn't go as planned for the former wide receiver.
Morton, 35, was knocked out just 38 seconds into the first round of his match against Bernard Ackah on Saturday night and then was suspended by the California State Athletic Commission after refusing to supply a urine sample for drug testing.
Morton wasn't available to comment on the fight or the suspension, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Morton was fighting on a K-1/Elite XC Dynamite!! USA card at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. He was put in a neck splint and taken to California Hospital in Los Angeles for observation but was able to flash a victory sign to the crowd before leaving the ring on a stretcher.
"How many people who would do what he did, stepping into the NFL of MMA and putting it all on the line," Morton's trainer, Mike Guymon told the Times.
Morton only trained for two months for his MMA debut, but Guymon said Morton was ready for the fight.
"When you want to jump into something, you jump into something," Guymon told the Times. "I've been fighting for 10 years and I still don't feel like I'm prepared."
Ackah, however, doesn't think Morton's ready for the big time yet.
"He needs more experience," he told the Times.
Morton had four 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his 12-year career with the Lions, Chiefs and 49ers. He retired from the NFL after the 2005 season.
