Isaac Foutz, a Farmington native, standout football middle linebacker and wrestling champion, is focusing on a career as a mixed martial arts fighter, with his premier amateur fight against O’Ryin Guhrke scheduled for Saturday at the REV Entertainment Center in Albuquerque.
Foutz’s journey includes overcoming injuries and maintaining a balance between his construction job and training. He aims to continue in MMA, driven by his competitive spirit and the support of his sponsors, Ironwood Gym and Polara Wellness & Contrast Therapy and Massage.
Foutz, 21, who’s been training in Muay Thai kickboxing and Jiu Jitsu for over a year with his coach Cecilia Hathcock, said MMA is “my thing. I don’t like working, so I gotta find something.”
His current weight is 193 pounds but he must weigh in at 185 for his fight Saturday night.
“When he came to us, he was already a really good athlete,” Hathcock said. I mean, he’d been training different sports his whole life, pretty much.”
With a solid fitness foundation, Foutz began learning the fundamentals of Muay Thai kickboxing from Hathcock, who owns Zia Fitness & Jui Jitsu, 4500 E. Pinon Hills Blvd. #4102, in Farmington.
Additionally, Foutz trains four or five times a week, often sparring with partners from Bloomfield and Durango.
“He had a really good wrestling base already, so we just did some, you know, a few submissions,” said Hathcock. “Now he’s really good on the ground. Like he’s good with submissions … good with defense. And he already had really good takedowns.”
I actually started wrestling to get better at football,” said Foutz, who when introduced to wrestling as a seventh grader didn’t care for the sport. “They stuck me on the mat.”
However, he excelled as a wrestler in high school, rising in the ranks at state level.
“It was fun throwing people,” Foutz said. “They kept throwing flags on me in football, so I had to kind of contain myself.”
He said hitting people was the only reason he played football, but wrestling helped release that urge.
Blitzing was his favorite thing about football, he said, adding, “whenever I blitzed that quarterback – he was gone.”
He recalled a game against La Cueva where after being coached not to drop back in pass coverage he held his ground about three feet from the line of scrimmage and put a vicious tackle on the quarterback who had decided to run.
“He was turning that corner, I came down, wrapped him up, and then we flew back five yards,” said Foutz, adding the quarterback was a lot bigger than himself.
On the mat, Foutz said his entire senior year “was like a highlight, because I walked through everyone up until that last guy.”
That last guy — after over 60 matches — was the top-ranked La Cueva middle linebacker, Mason Posa, who won state two years in a row and went on to be the play linebacker for the University of Wisconsin.
Foutz, who was a starting linebacker for the Scorpions, wrestled throughout high school, finishing third in state at 185 pounds as a sophomore, third at 195 pounds as a junior and second at 215 as a senior.
After graduating from Farmington High School in 2024, Foutz attended Highlands University in Las Vegas, N.M., and wrestled for one semester before suffering a broken ankle and returning to Farmington to attend San Juan College.
Foutz, the youngest of two brothers and two sisters, is currently working with his dad and Allred Grading and Excavation in Kirtland.
Foutz said all his high school coaches influenced him, and FHS defensive coach Bob Shuttleworth was a major influence. Shuttleworth is currently working as head coach for the Kirtland Central football team.
“So he really molded me because coming into high school I was mean, right,” said Foutz. “Always angry, and I get flags thrown, and he’d have to reel me in.”
Foutz said he’d often get into fights during practice with the offensive line.
“Yeah, that’s what I loved, and I’m still that way. I just, I’ve learned to calm it down,” he said.
His “childhood was great,” Foutz said, “You hear all these people like getting divorced and stuff. My parents are still together. ”Always just want to make mom and dad proud.”
Austin, 30, Foutz’s older brother, has been a training partner for the fight camp. His dad played football, wrestled, and was on the Marine Corps powerlifting team.
“I don’t really like looking past this first fight, because you know we got to get this first fight done,” Foutz said.
Foutz’s aggressive nature seems to be a perfect fit for MMA.
“Yeah, I love it,” he said.
Foutz was in a kickboxing tournament that he said “didn’t go very well,” but he’s done a lot more cardio, “so we’ll be movin’,” he said.
And, Hathcock said a recent Muay Thai fight was lost by decision, but Foutz definitely won the second round after sustaining a hard kick to the liver.
Foutz said his parents don’t really like MMA, but “they support me, they let me follow my dreams. They have all my life.”
“Just trying to work hard with everything,” Foutz said about his basic philosophy of life. “Even going to work … it’s a lot easier (to) just do everything full effort,” adding that goes for how he practices as well.
He said watching Sean Strickland defeat Khamzat Chimaev earlier this year propelled him toward MMA.
“As soon as I saw Strickland’s hand get raised, I knew I wanted to do this,” Foutz said.
Getting hurt doesn’t arouse fear in Foutz.
“I’ve been getting hurt my whole life,” he said.
Never comfortable around large crowds, Foutz said it takes courage to overcome that obstacle.
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