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Family’s ‘drug addiction’ and ‘alcohol abuse’ led Josh Emmett to MMA: ‘I was scared for my mom’s safety’

Josh Emmett says fighting another man in a controlled environment is a cakewalk compared to some of his experiences growing up.

Emmett, 34, opened up about his upbringing when speaking to Bloody Elbow after his first-round TKO of Mirsad Bektic at UFC Sacramento. “My mom was a single mom [taking care of] my brother and I. I’ve just seen with my older brother — and my dad, he had another family and stuff — it was a lot of drug addiction, a lot of alcohol abuse,” he shared “My brother, just, maybe hung out with the wrong crowd when he was younger.