JD Burns and his wife, Skylar Burns, are bare-knuckle fighters on the BYB 9 card in Tampa, FL. Hear how JD fell in love with combat sports and his wife.Ā
Most husbands and wives get their kicks by going to dinner and a movie, but JD Burns and Skylar Burns satisfy their thrills by punching each other.
No, itās not spousal abuse. Itās just bare-knuckle boxing training.
āWho wouldnāt want to get to spar their wife every once in a while?ā JD Burns joked with FanSided.Ā āI used to let her hit me a bunch of times when she first started, but now, I donāt let her hit me. She hits really hard now.ā
JD and Skylar found love through combat sports, and their romance has them fighting on the same fight card at BYB 9 on March 12 at the Florida State Fair Grounds in Tampa, FL.
Long before JD found Skylar, his first love was combat sports.
Burns grew up in a martial arts household. His father, Rocky, was a black belt in taekwondo, and he shared his passion with his family. Soon, the entire Burns family was participating in martial arts.
āAfter a while, once he started seeing us kind of going through the ranks again and belts, heās like, āAh, just jump right back in and do it againā kind of thing,ā Burns said. āSo it turned into like a family activity and training and everything like that.ā
Burns picked up wrestling as he got older, and his father coached him. He was far from a natural, but that didnāt stop Burns from enjoying competing.
āEven though I grew up in a martial art household, and I was through MMA or Jiu Jitsu, or even wrestling through high school, I was the absolute worst,ā Burns said. āIn wrestling, I was, if youāve ever seen Full Metal Jacket, I was Private Pile.ā
Burns said that he discovered that you donāt have to be good at something to like it. But it helps, though.
Looking at Burns today, itās hard to compare him toĀ Vincent DāOnofrioās character Private Pile.
At 6-feet-1, the bare-knuckle boxer fights as a middleweight. His tatted chest, which includes what looks like a zombie demon on his left pec, and his slim build make him an intimidating figure.
Burns turned professional in MMA in 2015. His debut didnāt go as planned, and he lost via submission toĀ Bryan Nuro.
You can watch JD Burns, and Skylar Burns compete at BYB 9 on March 12 via BYB Extremeās YouTube page
Initially, Burns was disappointed but came to a realization.
āThe best part about martial arts is trial and error kind of thing,ā Burns said. āYou can have your technique, but then once you go out and fight, the videotapes not gonna lie.ā
Burns isnāt afraid of losing. His philosophy is to enjoy his fighting journey, win, lose or draw.
Burns loves to fight. He also loves his wife, who ironically met him due to his connection to combat sports.
One night, after coaching a friend to an MMA victory, Burns and his crew celebrated at Applebeeās. Skylar was their waitress and had an interest in MMA. She spotted Burns friendās title belt and struck up a conversation with the group.
āMy guy has his big title belt on, and heās all excited and peppy,ā Burns said. āShe saw it. She was all pumped and like, āWhere you guys train at?ā We let her know, and she started coming to train at our gym for, I want to say, a few years.ā
While at the Burns family gym in Lakewood, WA, Skylar and Burns spent a lot of time together, and their friendship developed into a romance. The glue that unites them is their shared love for combat.
āThatās kind of what she saw too, where we were just constantly sharpening each other each day in sparring,ā Burns said.
Burns and Skylar started in MMA, but Burns was always fascinated with bare-knuckle boxing. As a teen, he watched Rio Heroes and other fringe gloveless bouts.
Something about it appealed to Burns, and once bare-knuckle boxing started to become popular in the U.S., Burns wanted to get involved. He took it upon himself to reach out to BYB Extreme.
āIt was one of those things where it was like that movie Shawshank Redemption, where Iām just gonna keep writing letters and keep messaging and keep texting until I finally get a response,ā Burns said.
Just like Andy Dufresne in the movie, Burns finally got a response. He submitted footage of one of his fights to BYB, which eventually signed him.
Skylar also got a shot in BYB. At BYB 9, Burns fights Jose Fernandez, and Skylar meets Miranda Barber. Itās the second time this husband and wife duo have appeared on a fight card together.
Burns and Skylar know the game and have a pretty carefree attitude about winning and losing.
āWith her, I already know her demeanor is already good,ā Burns said. āSo Iām like, āCool, you all right? Right. Alright, cool. Right after the fight, weāre going to go get drinks at this bar now. Alright, coolā.ā
No matter what happens in the Trigon on March 12, Burns and Skylar are sure to enjoy their work. Itās their life, and theyāre in it together.