Trio of UFC Stars Back from Goodwill Trip to the Middle East

Lightweight contender Joe Lauzon, along with fellow UFC standouts Heath Herring and Jorge Rivera, recently returned from a nearly two week long goodwill trip to the Middle East, visiting servicemen and women in Iraq and Kuwait.

And while the impact of the trip on the troops was immense, it was just as memorable for Lauzon.

“It was a long, busy 12 days,” said Lauzon. “But I’d definitely do it again. It’s something that I’ll never forget. I’m glad I did it.”

Lauzon and company spent time signing autographs, taking pictures, playing cards, and working out with the troops during the trip, and also got in some time on the firing range while being transported via Black Hawk helicopters.

“It was awesome,” said Lauzon, who is coming off an impressive second round TKO of Kyle Bradley in September. “It was one of the happiest 12 days of my life. They kept us real busy going from one camp to another. We visited 14 camps in Iraq and Kuwait. The first hour we’d give demonstrations and the second we signed autographs and posed for pictures with them. I was thrilled to see all of them over there, away from their friends and family, but helping all of us back home. It was cool to see how excited and appreciative they were to see us. There are a lot of MMA fans over there, too.”