Subscribe
“From the Red Side, right here from Camp Pendleton,” the ring announcer, Mike Hart, broadcasts to the hundreds of spectators throughout the stands. “Ladies and gentlemen, ‘El Salvaje!'” Walking down the path wearing crimson, painted in color by blue and red lights, U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Benjamin Smith keeps his eyes on the target, gearing up for the night’s final event.
‘MMA Fight Night,’ hosted by Marine Corps Community Services at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, March 21, was full of food, music, Marines, and, most importantly, fighters.
Hours prior, sharing his thoughts about the upcoming event, Smith reminisced on his relationship with fighting and his journey from a young kid going through foster care to today, as father, fighter, and Marine.
Growing up in a small town in Idaho, what began as a simple life for Smith quickly changed at an early age. He lost his parents before he turned five and was placed into foster care.
During his time in the foster care system, Smith lived in roughly eight different homes, all while separated from his siblings. Reflecting on this time, he accredited the early stages of his fighting spirit as what got him through the hard times.
“As a kid, prior to the Marine Corps, (I experienced) a lot of adversity,” explained Smith. “I lost my mom, lost my dad. So, a lot of bouncing in and out of the system, always having to fight kids in foster care. And then, I never really spoke. I was non-verbal for the first eight years of my life. So, I’d use a punching bag or anything to get my emotions out.”
After roughly three years, Smith was adopted by his parents, Jim and Sue Smith. Living with them on their ranch, he learned early lessons about hard work and the value of getting your hands dirty.
“It taught me to be tough,” recalled Smith. “It taught me to have a much different mindset. I came in (to their family) being adopted. I just kind of had this feeling I was owed stuff and that taught me, really quickly, that no one owes you anything.”
Through his teenage years, and nearing the end of high school, Smith set his mind on his next goal: joining the Marine Corps. After taking extra classes and passing, he was able to graduate early and enlist at 17 years old in 2008.
Joining as an amphibious combat vehicle crewman, Smith has deployed multiple times, both during and after wartime, since the late 2000s. Trained to embrace a warrior mentality, adapting to the Marine Corps was easy for Smith.
Discovering the strong family-oriented culture in the Corps, Smith developed an appreciation for the ‘big brother’ role that he could play for Marines, especially as he climbed through the ranks.
“I think that’s one of the biggest things I like about the Marine Corps,” explained Smith. “It reminds me that it’s really more about the guys coming in after you than it is about ourselves.”
As he became more acclimated to the climate of the Corps, he began making efforts to start looking into his various interests to do during his off time. A fighter from an early age, Smithalways felt a pull toward fighting. Finding an interest in mixed martial arts, he took the step of joining a formal MMA gym and began learning about the craft.
“I noticed Muay Thai,” remembers Smith. “I know a lot of people do boxing and I wanted to do something a little different, so I just went with Muay Thai.”
After becoming a member of the Compound, an MMA school in Oceanside, California, Smith began to fall in love with the sport and advanced rapidly.
While fighting in 2014 at the Sycuan Casino in California, he took on his nickname “El Savaje.
“I was with some of my teammates, and they called me, ‘El Savaje,’ in Spanish,” explained Smith. It translates to, ‘The Savage.’ They called me that because I was all gas. Boom, boom, boom. As soon as the bell rings, I just go. Press forward. I was winning my fights in the first round; knockouts.”
Over the next decade, Smith found incredible success in the octagon and as a Marine. Typically keeping his various roles and passions separate from one another, he eventually learned each role, when combined, could benefit the other.
“When I was a sergeant, I was going through a rough time,” explained Smith. “I was able to take some Marines I had underneath me to the gym and train with them and I realized that they were also having a rough time. I learned there’s more to the Marines than just the Marine Corps and we have to learn their personal aspects and take that time to tie it into two. At that point, I [also] learned that I love to teach.”
Passionate for the sport, there came a point when Smith had to choose between prioritizing his career or becoming a competitive fighter, especially as a father and husband. When push came to shove, he had to place the gym to the side, miss training sessions, or take a pause from fighting events and promotions to fulfill his duty to the Corps.
“It’s hard to get notable wins while you’re still active duty because that would require future sacrifices; more time off,” explained Smith. “Our mission is first. Sometimes you don’t get off work until (10 p.m.) or you have to go out into the field for a week at a time.”
Continuing to put in hours at the Compound when he could, Smith discovered a new, far more worthwhile passion: coaching and teaching.
After proving his abilities as a fighter, Smith was offered the chance to start teaching other athletes, eventually earning the role of Muay Thai instructor in 2019. Occasionally, he was still able to fight in a handful of well-known promotions, including the ‘King of the Cage’ MMA event in Oregon in 2023.
Falling in love with teaching classes, Smith knew he was meant to be an instructor. Embracing his love for mentoring and teaching, Smith’s leadership abilities began to develop, both professionally and personally.
Inspiring his kids, he was able to start including them in his training sessions.
“As a father, (fighting) allows me to have something I can do with my kids,” said Smith. “We learn together and train, I teach them discipline. It allows me to know that they can defend themselves, but I also teach them to defend others.”
The pride and inspiration the Smith children have for their father is undoubtable. His son, Beujay Jr., though only 11 years old, is a young, aspirational fighter already, dominating his division in pankration combative sparring. Smith cannot help but exude pride talking about Beujay Jr., as he recalls a core memory from his son’s very first fight in July 2024.
“He was scared,” recalled Smith. “I told him, ‘Before I get in every fight, what you’re feeling, I feel that same thing. That’s adrenaline. It’s normal.’ Just sharing that moment with him. Then he went in there and just dominated. He blew his competition out of the water and won it.”
Training together with his family at the Compound, Smith has found a new balance between being a coach, dad, fighter and Marine.
“It’s hard because the dad in me sometimes sees he’s hurting, or I see him struggle with something, and you kind of want to coddle him a little bit,” said Smith, of training with his son. “But, also, that same dad wants him to succeed and not give up. So, I push him so much more. And the Marine side says, ‘Don’t quit. Don’t be weak. Let’s go.’”
As an instructor, Smith was able to develop a level of professionalism that became a useful tool as a staff sergeant in the Corps as well.
MMA Fight Night is a relatively new event that has been held at Camp Pendleton for a few years. As an experienced fighter, Smith was able to fight for the same event a year ago. Fighting again this year, he put the gloves back on and fought for the Camp Pendleton belt for a second time.
Though his focus was, like all fighters, to dominate and win, Smith explained that his priority was to make not only the command and base, but more importantly his family and Marines, proud.
“I hope (the Marines) see it and they understand that there is something else, along with the Marine Corps, that you can do,” said Smith. “That they can balance life with doing something else and have the time and have a passion. I want them to see that if they’re passionate about something, the command will show up.”
Following the ring of the bell at the start of each bout, he began throwing fluid hooks and jabs, making the fight between him and his opponent something impossible to look away from.
After two intense rounds, the Camp Pendleton belt was awarded to his opponent. Though he came in second, Smith’s sportsmanship and enthusiasm was equally worthy of celebration. Hugging and cheering for his opponent on their win, he embodied the true character of both an athlete and Marine.
Leaving the octagon, Smith found his family and Marines standing right at the edge of the fence, cheering his name, ready to take photos and give him high fives and fist bumps. Regardless of the outcome of the fight, Smith’s loved ones embraced him in excitement, pride, and celebration.
Smiling from ear to ear, Smith proved that regardless of where or how a person’s story started, if they embody a fighting spirit, they are capable of greatness.
(U.S. Marine Corps Story by Cpl. Jacqueline Akamelu)
-30-
| Date Taken: | 04.04.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.04.2025 19:15 |
| Story ID: | 494640 |
| Location: | CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, From foster care to Fight Night: Marine’s fighting spirit proves anything is possible, by Cpl Jacqueline Akamelu, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
