What happened to Khalil Rountree Jr.'s father? Exploring the tragic incident that continues to impact the UFC star

Khalil Rountree Jr. competed in the UFC's TUF (The Ultimate Fighter) reality show and currently boasts a professional MMA record of 13 victories, 5 defeats, and 1 no-contest. Apart from fighting, Rountree has earned considerable praise for inspiring others by overcoming adversity in his past.

Rountree Jr. famously went from being a 350-pound 19-year-old to joining MMA great Wanderlei Silva's 'Wand Fight Team,' learning Muay Thai and MMA. He has come a long way, and is currently scheduled to fight UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira (11-2 MMA) for the title in the headlining match of UFC 307 on Oct. 5, 2024.

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What happened to Khalil Rountree Jr.'s father?

Khalil Rountree Jr.'s father was Roderick 'Khalil' Rountree, a road manager for the American music group 'Boyz II Men.' In May 1992, the Orlando Sentinel reported that the 36-year-old Rountree was killed at a Gold Coast hotel.

The three suspects, all 20-year-olds, were reportedly Kenneth Copeland, Christopher Foley and Christopher Babbington. Rountree was shot in the head and an assistant named Qadree El-Amin was wounded in the knee.

In 1994, the Chicago Tribune reported that the shooting transpired in Chicago, Illinois. Copeland and Foley were acquitted of first-degree murder charges due to insufficient evidence. Babbington, who had allegedly shot Rountree, remained on trial.

In the UFC's TUF house, Khalil Rountree Jr. explained that his father was on tour with the band in 1992. After a show, a few armed robbers followed him to his hotel room, got him to come out, attempted a robbery and shot him in the ensuing chaos.

Watch Rountree discuss the topic below:

On The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani in March 2022, Khalil Rountree Jr. noted that he honors his father by fighting. He emphasized that people often praised his father for helping others, and said:

"So to be a child and to know that; to find out that my father was murdered and kind of taken from us was really heavy. And my thing was always to just try to make him proud and live a life to where he would be proud of me and the things that I do because I feel a lot of fathers that have sons would love for their sons to be an elevated version of them. And so I really tried to consciously live that."

Rountree Jr. also stated that a street in New Jersey street was renamed after his late father, saying:

"It's in New Jersey. I don't know if it's still named after him, but I do have photographs from the day that he passed away, the day that they changed the sign. And I do have the sign still as well."

Rountree Jr. also went on to thank his mother for working hard to raise her four children. He emphasized that he's inspired by his parents and aims to make them proud.

Check out Rountree Jr.'s comments below (12:52):