The story of Christy Mack and War Machine is a harrowing tale of abuse, violence, and legal battles. It involves a former adult film star and a mixed martial artist, whose relationship took a dark and tragic turn.
Mack grew up in Edinburgh, Indiana, where she was a cheerleader. In 2013, Mack began a relationship with mixed martial artist War Machine (born Jonathan Koppenhaver). She says Koppenhaver became physically abusive toward her a few months later.
Witness describes beating from "War Machine" during trial
The Attack and Its Aftermath
Mack claims Koppenhaver beat her on Aug. 8, leaving her with 18 broken bones in her face, a fractured rib and a ruptured liver. In an August 11, 2014 tweet, Mack described an attack that Koppenhaver had inflicted upon her and her then-boyfriend, Corey Thomas, which included photographs documenting her injuries. Mack stated that although he had beaten her before, he had never done so as badly.
On August 8, 2014, Koppenhaver assaulted Mack and her boyfriend Corey Thomas in Mack's Las Vegas home. As Mack and Thomas would later testify, Koppenhaver showed up in their bedroom unannounced as Mack and Thomas were in bed. Koppenhaver began punching Thomas and biting his face before placing him in a chokehold. After about 10 minutes, Mack would later testify, Koppenhaver told him to leave the house and not report the incident to police, an order with which Thomas complied. Koppenhaver then began repeatedly punching Mack, causing her to lose consciousness at least once, and kicked her in the side of her body.
As she laid on her bathroom floor, Mack said that Koppenhaver told her, "That is my pussy, and I'm going to take it back now." He then either stripped naked or forced her to do so, and to shower in front of him. Koppenhaver also stabbed her with a dull knife from her kitchen, and used it to saw off her hair, continuing to threaten her with the blade after the handle broke off. He also took her phone and cancelled all of her appointments for the following week to ensure that her absences would not arouse suspicion. Mack said he also attempted to rape her.
Read also: The story of Kirby Mack
Her injuries left her blind in her left eye, and with slurred speech, and unable to chew on account of the missing teeth. Koppenhaver also fractured one of her ribs and severely ruptured liver when he kicked her. One of her legs was so badly injured that she was not able to walk unaided. Mack ran out the back door and knocked on neighbors' doors until one answered, after which she was taken to a hospital. She suffered 18 broken bones around her eyes, and a nose broken in two places, and missing teeth.
On August 15, Koppenhaver was apprehended after posting self-pitying tweets, which enabled authorities to trace the IP location of his cell phone. Dog the Bounty Hunter also joined the search.
Legal Proceedings and Sentencing
Police said he was arrested without incident for a warrant out of Nevada. Koppenhaver is facing charges of battery, strangulation, gross lewdness and assault in connection with the incident.
Koppenhaver’s ex-girlfriend, former porn actress Christy Mack, had testified that his violence against her increased over the course of their 15-month relationship, culminating in an August 2014 attack which left her with a fractured eye socket, a broken nose, missing teeth, leg injuries and a lacerated liver. Mack, whose real name is Christine Mackinday, spoke at Monday’s sentencing hearing and told the court that she was afraid Koppenhaver, if he did not get a lengthy term, would kill her when he got out of jail. She had cited death threats he made against her during his trial, which also featured testimony from Corey Thomas, the man prosecutors said she was with when the ex-MMA star burst in on them.
Former UFC competitor War Machine received a life sentence Monday, with the possibility of parole after 36 years, for assaulting his ex-girlfriend and a companion of hers. The 35-year-old went by his birth name, Jonathan Koppenhaver, during his trial, which took place in March and ended with him being convicted on 29 of 34 charges, including sexual assault and kidnapping. The ruling Monday, by Clark County (Nevada) District Court judge Elissa Cadish, means that Koppenhaver will be 71 before he can have his first parole hearing.
Koppenhaver’s defense attorney submitted a motion Monday for a new trial, claiming that he had been unable to prepare a case that his client attacked Mack while in a state of unconsciousness, but Cadish denied it. The judge said that she did not think Koppenhaver was “a monster,” and that some of his issues stemmed from a difficult childhood, but she stated that his actions merited a lengthy sentence.
In March 2017, Koppenhaver was convicted on 29 felony counts of rape, kidnapping, domestic battery, and other charges after sexually assaulting and beating his ex-girlfriend, pornographic film actress Christy Mack and her then-boyfriend Corey Thomas in 2014.
On October 14, the same day he was supposed to appear in court to discuss a plea deal, Koppenhaver was found unresponsive in his cell by a corrections officer after attempting to hang himself. A cell officer found Koppenhaver struggling to breathe, with a torn piece of linen around his neck that was tied to the leg of his bunk bed. After the officer cut the linen, Koppenhaver's vitals stabilized within 15 minutes, and he was moved to a medical ward, where he was placed on suicide watch.
War Machine's MMA Career
Koppenhaver had a 14-5 overall record in MMA fighting in various MMA promotions, including Bellator MMA and the UFC. He competed in the welterweight division. He was a fighter on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra as part of Team Serra and also competed for Bellator MMA, Tachi Palace Fights, BAMMA, and the Xtreme Fighting Championships.
Koppenhaver was born in the Los Angeles suburb of Simi Valley. His German-American father was an officer for the Los Angeles Police Department. Koppenhaver was a fighter on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra, fighting on Team Serra.
In War Machine's official UFC debut, he defeated Jared Rollins in The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs Team Serra Finale via KO at 2:01 of the third round. War Machine and Rollins both received $25,000 due to winning fight of the night honors and War Machine winning knockout of the night.
He was released from the UFC after rejecting a fight offered by UFC matchmaker Joe Silva, and after comments made about the death of fellow UFC fighter Evan Tanner. War Machine posted on his Myspace that he believed that Tanner had gone to the isolated southern California desert to kill himself after he realized his career might have been over and basically had made no money during it.
War Machine was signed and then released by Bellator Fighting Championships. On September 5, 2009, War Machine stepped into the cage and faced off against Mikey Gomez. On December 7, 2011, it was announced that War Machine was re-signed to an exclusive deal with Bellator Fighting Championships and would be competing in its sixth-season Welterweight Tournament.
War Machine was expected to fight Karl Amoussou in the opening round of the welterweight tournament at Bellator 63. War Machine was set to make his Bellator debut on January 17, 2013, against Paul Daley when he tore his ACL and broke his fibula which forced him out of the fight.
War Machine faced Blas Avena at Bellator 96 on June 19, 2013. He won via TKO due to punches in round one. War Machine then took part in Bellator MMA's Season Nine Welterweight Tournament at Bellator 100 against Vaughn Anderson in the Quarterfinals. He won via technical submission due to a rear naked choke in the second round. War Machine then faced Ron Keslar on October 18, 2013, at Bellator 104 in the semifinals of the Season Nine Welterweight Tournament. He lost via technical submission due to a rear naked choke in the first round.
Past Legal Issues
In July 2010, he pleaded guilty to assaulting a female bartender and bouncer at two bars in San Diego’s Pacific Beach neighborhood. In August 2010, Koppenhaver was sentenced to one year in the county jail for a felony assault conviction stemming from a fight at a Point Loma bar earlier in the year, as well as an additional fight at a bar in Pacific Beach, San Diego. He was imprisoned in San Diego's George Bailey County Detention Facility, mostly in solitary confinement. He was released on October 29, 2012, after serving two years and two months.
Awards and Recognition
War Machine received the following awards during his fighting career:
- 2007: Ranked #7 Knockout of the Year
- Ranked #4 Fight of the Year vs. UWF 1: Huerta vs.
- Knockout of the Night
Christy Mack also received nominations and awards for her work in the adult film industry:
| Year | Award | Category |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Miss FreeOnes | Winner |
| 2013 | Venus Award | Winner |
| 2014 | AVN Award | Nominee |
| 2014 | XBIZ Award | Winner |
| 2014 | XRCO Awards | Nominee |
| 2014 | XCritic Awards | Winner |
