Don "The Dragon" Wilson
| Don Wilson | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | Donald Glen Wilson September 10, 1954 Alton, Illinois, United States |
| Other names | The Dragon, Hoshino |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight | 175 lb (79 kg; 12.5 st) |
| Division |
Middleweight Light heavyweight Cruiserweight |
| Style | Gōjū-ryū Karate, Kickboxing, Pai Lum Tao Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Wrestling, Boxing, |
| Fighting out of | Alton, Illinois, United States |
| Team | White Dragon Kickboxing |
| Rank | 5th degree black belt in Kickboxing |
| Years active | 1974-1991, 1999-2002, 2013- |
| Professional boxing record | |
| Total | 9 |
| Wins | 6 |
| By knockout | 4 |
| Losses | 3 |
| By knockout | 3 |
| Kickboxing record | |
| Total | 82 |
| Wins | 72 |
| By knockout | 47 |
| Losses | 5 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No contests | 3 |
| Other information | |
| Notable relatives | Jim Wilson (trainer), Kathleen Karridene (wife) |
| Website | http://www.donthedragonwilson.com |
Don "The Dragon" Wilson (born September 10, 1954) is an American 11-time professional kickboxing world champion who scored 47 knockouts in four decades, a European Martial Arts Hall of Famer and an action film actor. He stated many times before that he's a kung fu stylist and saw kickboxing as an opportunity to put his skill to practice, as there was no such thing as full contact kung fu.
Wilson was born to an American father and Japanese mother in Alton, Illinois. His older brother, James, was born in Japan, where his parents met. His father's job as an engineer for the Kennedy Space Center brought the family to Florida when Wilson was four. He attended Saint Andrew's School in Boca Raton, where he was an MVP in football and basketball. Wilson also tried his hand at wrestling, in which he excelled enough to score a 4th place in the Florida State Collegiate Wrestling competition.
After high school, Wilson went to the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut in the fall of 1972. Wilson has stated that his brother challenged him to friendly sparring, which he imagined he would dominate since Wilson was more physically imposing and athletic than his brother. To his surprise, he was easily knocked around by his brother's martial arts ability. He credits this experience as making a believer out of him, after which he would pursue martial arts. He began studying Goju-ryu Karate with Sensi Chuck Merriman for two hours a week for one year.
In 1973, Wilson left the academy and earned an associate degree in electrical engineering at Brevard Community College in Florida. He then enrolled at his father's alma mater, the Florida Institute of Technology, but dropped out to pursue a professional fighting career, to the elder Wilson's disappointment. During this time, he was trained by his brother Jim in Pai Lum Kung-Fu.
Don's nickname, "The Dragon" was used in his first professional kickboxing match in Orlando. He also had two other nicknames that were used at times during his long career.
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Wikipedia