VIDEO | Former MMA fighter Josh Longood restrains unruly Frontier Airlines passenger

MMA veteran Josh Longood potentially saved lives after a Frontier Airlines passenger attempted to open an emergency door mid-flight.

A Frontier Airlines flight from Puerto Rico to Chicago turned chaotic after an unruly passenger attempted to open the emergency door mid-flight and assaulted an off-duty airline employee.

Luckily, a former MMA fighter was on that same flight, and likely saved 10s of lives as a result of his actions.

Former MMA fighter Josh Longood (4-1-0) was traveling home from his brother’s bachelor party when the incident occurred on the May 31st Frontier Airlines flight. After the suspect, Juan Gabriel Reyes, attempted to open the emergency door, Longood quickly intervened and physically restrained him during the flight’s abrupt descent into Miami.

MMA fighter Josh Longood retrains passenger after attempting to open emergency door

In a recent interview, Longood explained his side of the story.

“I knew I had to be the one to step in, and I knew I could do it safely without anybody getting injured,” Longood told WJW-TV.

“I was kind of ready already. I had my feet in the aisle. I knew he was going to do something crazy, so as soon as he jumped on him, I just controlled him safely, kind of pushed him against the window.

“He started to flip out on our descent to Miami, so I just kind of sat with him, holding him down and kind of treated him like a little kid that was throwing a tantrum, just held him down and did what I needed to do.” (h/t NewsNation)

Longood went on to allege that Reyes, 51, was extremely drunk at the time of the incident. Reyes is now facing federal charges, including interference with the flight crew.

Longood fought in regional MMA promotions Big Guns and Justified Defiance Fight Series during his professional career, with all four of his wins coming by stoppage. He last fought in MMA in 2016 and returned to combat sports in a grappling match in October 2023.

Longood’s heroics come after several former and current UFC fighters were on the unfortunate end of viral moments on airplanes. UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov was kicked out of an emergency row seat just weeks before cornering at UFC 311, while Arman Tsarukyan was kicked off an American Airlines flight earlier this year for allegedly failing to comply with orders from flight attendants.

What is your favorite MMA fighter-turned-hero story from the last few years? Let us know in the comments!