Johnson Surgery Went ‘Well,’ Says Trainer

Loretta HuntJul 06, 2009

The emergency surgery that Lavar Johnson underwent on Monday morning “looks like it went well,” said his manager and trainer Bob Cook via a text to Sherdog.com.

The 32-year-old heavyweight prospect was shot once to the back and abdomen area with a semi-automatic weapon by an unidentified assailant in the early hours of July 5 in Bakersfield, Calif.

Cook did not know Johnson’s current condition, but said he’d visited the fighter on Sunday evening in a local hospital, and had been told Johnson was “between serious and critical” condition.

Johnson was attending a family reunion and holiday celebration outside a private residence when a passerby opened fire on the gathering. Three others were shot and received minor to moderate wounds. A fourth man, Anthony Mack Johnson, reportedly died at the scene from multiple shots, according to the Bakersfield Police Dept.

A police dept. representative told Sherdog.com Monday that no further information would be released regarding the “ongoing investigation.”

Johnson (12-3) had been scheduled to compete on the undercard at Strikeforce’s Aug. 15 event in San Jose, Calif.