MMA Reacts: Osama Bin Laden’s Demise

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Once the world’s most wanted man and long regarded as its most notorious terrorist, Osama bin Laden is finally no more.

With President Obama’s announcement on Sunday that bin Laden had been killed by U.S. Forces in Pakistan, the news resonated across the world like few stories in recent years. Bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda and the architect of the Sept. 11 attacks, had evaded capture for well over a decade, stretching back to the Clinton Administration in the 1990s.

After being tracked to a compound in Abottabad, Pakistan, a joint operation of U.S. forces and CIA operatives killed bin Laden. His death elicits a wide range of feelings and reactions, given the duration of the chase and stakes involved.

Sherdog.com weighed in with fighters and others in the fight game to share their thoughts on the matter.

“I wish it was me that put a bullet in him. Zombies are the only thing I want to kill more than Osama. I hope everyone does not think that this means all of our troops will immediately come home. There is still a lot of work to be done there, but this is definitely an opportunity for us to push the enemy harder and really break their backs.” -- Tim Kennedy, Strikeforce middleweight

“After serving in Afghanistan for more than four years, this news brought a huge sense of peace and satisfaction to me and makes all the sacrifices feel worthwhile. It has been the biggest privilege of my life to have been blessed with the opportunity to serve my country in the capacity that I have. To all my JSOC brothers, well done! To those continuing to fight the good fight of freedom and those continuing to put yourselves in harm’s way daily, God bless, God speed and good hunting. Today is a good day, a day of victory, but there will always be villains, and, with that, there will always be warriors ready to put them down. God bless the peacemakers!” -- Chad Robichaux, Bellator Fighting Championships bantamweight

“When I heard about the death of Osama bin Laden at the hands of a heroic team of American forces, I was hit with so many emotions. First, I was relieved that an architect of the biggest mass murder of innocent American citizens was permanently checked off the active list. Second, I was sad because it made me remember the pain I felt in my heart when 9/11 happened. Thirdly, I was glad they whacked that scumbag. And lastly, it made me a little numb because I realized the sobering reality that this thing will probably never be over. There will always be another lunatic wearing a ski mask and waving an AK-47 in the air while making videotapes of hatred and vows of revenge towards America from the safety of some remote location. But alas, this is life.” -- Stephen Quadros, Showtime color analyst

“It definitely brought to me, anyway, a feeling of satisfaction that justice was served. I think it also brought a feeling of closure to many of the 9/11 victims’ families and reminded many others of the horrors of that day. It seemed as the years went by many people got complacent and forgot what a threat these terrorists really are. Hell, it seemed at times people in this country were more concerned about the rights of terrorists held at GITMO than they were about protecting ourselves! It also shows the grit and determination of our armed forces to have pursued him all these years and finally put him down. I find it ironic, however, that after all the sacrifices made by our armed forces over the last decade, many of our politicians would still find it prudent to put them in harm’s way and yet impose budget cuts to our military!” -- Colin Oyama, Team Oyama head coach

“I believe this is a great moment in history, not to celebrate another death but to take a moment and remember why this justice feels good and to remember all who have fallen.” -- Rick Story, UFC welterweight

“Where are the pictures of Osama being dead? Hearing too much about burying him because of his religion; there should be a documented trail of his death.” -- Javier Mendez, American Kickboxing Academy head trainer

“Great news! Hopefully we’ll nab everyone else involved.” -- Cesar Gracie, Cesar Gracie Academy head trainer

“It’s a relief, but I don’t think it will go unanswered. I think we need to be on point more so now and expect retaliation.” – Eddie Wineland, UFC bantamweight

“My response is: who cares about Bin Laden? The Jose Aldo-Mark Hominick fight was amazing.” -- Din Thomas, UFC veteran

“I was like every American -- very happy and relieved that someone like that has been got rid of from this world. Anyone that kills innocent people does not deserve to live in my book. I wanna thank the men and women that serve our country all over the world. Best wishes and God bless!” -- Ray Sefo, Strikeforce heavyweight

“I think it is awesome that our troops finally exacted justice. I think this great act will unfortunately be overshadowed by scummy politicians trying to take credit for it, when not one of them was in the trenches with a finger on the trigger. Great news. Let’s remember who the heroes are and who risked their lives every day. God bless our troops.” -- Trevor Prangley, Strikeforce light heavyweight

“When I heard the news, I had chills run down my spine and almost broke down in I guess what you could call happy tears, even though it was a terrible day when those two towers fell and killed our friends, family and loved ones. When I say happy tears, I’m talking about a state of mind that the fallen can now rest in peace! This country is the greatest in the world, and I’m proud to be an American. These country boys can survive!” -- Tim McKenzie, UFC veteran

“They [have] been looking for bin Laden for some time and all that has been happening is the gas prices going up. Now that they finally got him, hopefully they can work on getting the gas back to a price everyone can manage.” -- Jaime Jara, Bellator Fighting Championships veteran

“The capture and killing of bin Laden is bittersweet for me. While I’m glad our military captured and killed him, it is also a reminder of all the men and women we lost because of him. Bottom line, the world is now a better place, and justice was served.” -- Mike Roberts, MMA Inc. chief operating officer

“It was an historic day. I’ll never forget where I was when he orchestrated the attacks against us on 9/11, and I’ll never forget where I was when I heard we put a bullet through his [expletive] brain.” -- David Martin, Martin Advisory Group founder

Jason Probst can be reached at [email protected] or www.twitter.com/jasonprobst.