Mike's Gym burns down to the ground; Badr Hari in shock

Just days remain until Badr Hari's eagerly anticipated appearance in the K-1 World Grand Prix Final 2009; Melvin Manhoef's signing with Strikeforce graced the headlines of multiple MMA media outlets on Wednesday.

On the heels of the big publicity surrounding two of the brightest stars from Mike's Gym comes a very tragic news.

According to K-1 official Web site, Mike's Gym, where Hari and Manhoef call home, burned down to the ground on Nov. 26.

While an ongoing investigation has yet to uncover the source of the fire that razed the Amsterdam gym, it is suspected that the fire started in a neighboring building and then quickly engulfed the gym.

Hari, who has been in Japan since last week, held an open workout for the media on Monday, Nov. 30 at the Omori location of Gold Gym in Tokyo. He could not hide his shock upon receiving the news of the fire: Despite proceeding with the open workout an hour longer than he had originally planned, he looked somewhat frazzled during the workout.

During a brief Q & A with the media after the workout, Hari had little to say regarding the tragic fate of Mike's gym and simply stated that "it's a big shock since I trained so hard in that gym. It's a big disappointment."

The K-1 Web site's description of Hari's demeanor during the open workout raises serious concerns about the psychological repercussions of the unforeseen tragedy on Hari.

MMAmania would like to express our condolence to Hari, Manhoef, and other members of Mike's Gym in the wake of the tragic incident.