Standing at just over 5-foot-4, Mike Thomas has never been the biggest fighter in a tournament. Occasionally, his opponents outweigh him by 20 pounds or more.
It doesn’t faze Thomas, 28.
The Plant City resident can be relentless, closing in on fighters with his speed and charging them with a front kick they can’t catch. Watching his style, it’s little wonder he earned the nickname, “Rhino.”
While Thomas enjoys fighting competitively, most recently winning four gold plates at the Blitz Mayan Challenge in Orlando, he gets his greatest pleasure from learning karate. Life hasn’t always given him the chance.
STOLEN YOUTH
Raised in a single-parent household, Thomas, the oldest of three children, had always loved martial arts. His mother wasn’t able to put him in classes. She had to work two jobs to provide for the family. It didn’t stop Thomas from watching as many martial arts movies as he could. In particular, Thomas became a fan of Jean-Claude Van Damme and the movie, “Bloodsport,” which he said he would watch every day.
“Even when we went outside, I used to kick people all the time,” Thomas says. “I have friends who I haven’t talked to in, like, 10 years, asking me, ‘You still kicking people?’”
Another thing keeping Thomas from studying martial arts was the family’s frequent moves. Stints around Florida and Georgia kept the family from staying in one place for too long. At 14, Thomas went to live with his grandparents. He didn’t ask why.
What he didn’t know was his mother had been sick from kidney failure and had to receive treatments.
Paying for treatments made the budget tighter, so Thomas got to work as soon as he could. He entered the workforce when he was 15 had a full-time job to support his family. While he was able to get the money he needed, other parts of his life took a hit.
Long hours at work caused his grades to suffer.
His social life became near-nonexistent.
But whether Thomas worked one job at a time or more, he felt what he was doing was important.
“I was never disrespectful in school,” Thomas says. “I’d never been a bad student. I just didn’t do homework sometimes, and I didn’t take projects as seriously as I should have taken them.”
Thomas dropped out of high school to focus on work.
Some of the money he made went to immediate needs, such as food for the family. Some of it went to help his younger brother, who earned a full academic scholarship to Florida A&M University, rent apartments and take care of some basic living costs.
Thomas still helps his family, as well as himself. He got his GED. He is a department manager at Wal-mart. He supports his 3-year-old son, whom he raises as a single parent.
WAY OF THE “RHINO”
While working at Wal-mart, Thomas made a $500 bet with a co-worker on the 2013 NBA Finals. He lost, but was cut a deal: he could either pay $500 up front, or pay $100 and come out to Rudy Rogers’ karate school.
Out just $100, Thomas went to see Rogers. He was turned away for having no experience, but Rogers sent Thomas to Chris Welbon’s Collins Street school.
“I said, ‘I’m going to send you to go train with someone that I respect,’” Rogers says.
Training with Welbon gave Thomas something he had been missing for much of his life: a hobby he loved to do. Thomas loved karate so much that, when he didn’t have a car, he would walk to classes. But a schedule change prevented Thomas from being able to make it to Welbon's classes.
Fortunately for Thomas, Rogers, who is retired, makes himself available at any time of day or night. The two began to train together. Thomas’s 12-hour work days give him three days off each week, which are often spent at Rogers’ “open-air dojo” at his East Dr. Martin Luther King Street home.
“He’s a tremendous guy,” Rogers says. “I told him, ‘Man, when I was 28 years old, I wasn’t even trying to think about taking care of anyone else’ … That’s why I took him on as a student.”
Thomas took to Rogers’ demanding goju gung-fu “horse” style and learned quickly. His speed allows Rogers to “teach him to fly.” This often involves intense repetition of techniques.
“(Rogers) says, ‘A true champion is someone who can go past the pain barrier,’” Thomas says. “When he sees I’m hurting, when I’m in pain, that’s when the training starts.”
For the past year, Thomas has been competing in tournaments when his work schedule allows. So far, he has entered seven. Rogers insists Thomas fight opponents above his rank, so he can pick up on techniques.
At the Blitz Mayan Challenge Friday, Oct. 21, and Saturday, Oct. 22, Thomas stepped up to fighters from all over the world and walked away with four gold plates: three in fighting categories and one for his kata, or fighting form.
One day, Thomas hopes to start his own school and work with kids such as himself: those in tough situations, looking for something positive in life.
“I’ve loved martial arts my whole life … I wish I would have started back then.” Thomas says. “Who knows what I could have done by now?”
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.