Michael Wayne Burnett (born April 12, 1974) is a former American

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

who was a member of the fight team the Lion's Den. Burnett lost a controversial decision to

Pat Miletich Patrick Jay Miletich (; born March 9, 1966) is a retired American mixed martial artist and former sports commentator. He is known for his fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he became the first UFC Welterweight Champion and UFC ...

in a UFC title fight for the

UFC Welterweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

at UFC Ultimate Brazil crowning Miletich the first-ever holder of the UFC Welterweight belt.

Biography

Burnett was born in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

and graduated from Nathan Hale High School in 1991. He wrestled for three years in

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

. Burnett was also an amateur

Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nation ...

boxing champion in his home state of Oklahoma. He formerly owned and operated Mikey's Gym in East Tulsa. Burnett was the lead MMA and grappling instructor at Apollo's Karate. On October 1, 2011 Mikey opened the new Mikey's Gym located at 3320 E. 32nd St in Tulsa. Mikey was shot in the stomach and groin while exiting a Tulsa gym on Feb. 29, 2016, and taken to the emergency room at Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa. the juvenile suspect was recently sentenced to 35 years in prison.

Mixed martial arts career

Burnett made his professional MMA debut on April 20, 1996, competing at the third and final Oklahoma Free Fight Federation tournament in Tulsa. Burnett defeated Todd Justice and Tony Hays only to eventually lose to Kevin Nix in the final round of the tournament. Shortly after this, Burnett began to train with

Ken Shamrock Kenneth Wayne Shamrock (''né'' Kilpatrick; born February 11, 1964) is an American bare-knuckle boxing promoter and semi-retired professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, and kickboxer. He is best known for his time in Ultimate Fighting Cha ...

's Lion's Den in Susanville, California. Burnett's next fight would not take place until the following year at the inaugural World Pankration Championships where Burnett submitted Mike Hipp with a

heel hook Heel hook may refer to: * Heel hook, in grappling * A climbing technique {{disambig