It pays to be able to defend yourself and the people around you. In July 2014, a young gas station clerk in Houston, Texas, heard a commotion in the parking lot, looked outside and saw his coworker on the ground being beaten by robbers. He did not wait for someone else to act. Mayura Dissanyake, a mixed martial arts fighter working the register to pay for his training, ran out the door and put an end to the attack in seconds. Store security cameras caught the whole thing, and within days the video had been seen around the world. Here is the story of the clerk who refused to stand by, and of the long American tradition of ordinary people who step up when it counts.
Who Is Mayura Dissanyake?
Mayura Dissanyake (his name was spelled this way in news reports at the time) was 24 years old in the summer of 2014. He came from Sri Lanka, where he had been undefeated as a fighter. He learned martial arts from his father, a national martial arts champion in that country.
Like many people who come to America chasing a dream, he left his family behind and started from the bottom. He moved to Houston to train at Metro Fight Club and took a job at a gas station near the Gulf Freeway and Wayside Drive to cover his bills. He worked the counter by day and trained in the gym, hoping one day to fight on the biggest stage in the sport.
The Robbery Outside the Store
One day in July 2014, a fellow employee stepped outside the station and was attacked by two men who wanted his money. The coworker was knocked to the ground and beaten. Inside, Dissanyake realized what was happening.
Surveillance video shows him sprinting out the door and straight into the fight. Using his training, he quickly overpowered one of the attackers and the fight was over in moments. “I saw my friend on the floor, getting beat,” he told a Houston TV station afterward, explaining that helping was simply the right thing to do.
Police later identified the man he subdued as 33-year-old Odell Mathis, who was charged with robbery with bodily injury and booked into the Harris County Jail. His coworker survived the attack.
The Video That Went Viral
When the surveillance footage was released, it spread quickly across television news, sports websites and social media. Viewers were stunned by how fast the clerk ended the attack. Even UFC president Dana White praised his quick decision to help.
Dissanyake took the attention with good humor. He said the robbers had no idea who they were dealing with and that they probably just thought he was “a regular guy.” He also said he would do the same thing again, and that the experience had made him more alert. He hoped the publicity might help him land more fights and catch the attention of the UFC.
A Short History of Mixed Martial Arts in America
Mixed martial arts combines striking, wrestling and grappling from many fighting traditions. The modern sport took off in the United States with the first Ultimate Fighting Championship event in Denver in November 1993. In its early years it had few rules and many critics, but over the following decades it adopted weight classes, rounds and state athletic commission oversight, and grew into one of the most popular combat sports in the world.
Gyms like Houston’s Metro Fight Club train thousands of amateurs and professionals. Most of them never step into a cage for a big payday. What they gain instead is discipline, fitness and the confidence to act calmly under pressure, which is exactly what Dissanyake showed that day.
America’s Tradition of Everyday Heroes
The United States has long honored ordinary citizens who risk their own safety to help a stranger or a friend. In 1904 the industrialist Andrew Carnegie created the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission to recognize civilians who perform acts of extraordinary heroism, and it has awarded the Carnegie Medal to thousands of Americans and Canadians since then. Countless other heroes, from bystanders who pull drivers from burning cars to neighbors who stop an assault, never receive a medal at all.
Safety experts and police generally advise people to call 911 first and avoid confrontation whenever possible. Not everyone has the training to do what Dissanyake did, and no one should feel obliged to take on armed criminals. But his story is a reminder of a simple American value: when a neighbor is in trouble, you do what you can to help.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the MMA fighter who stopped a gas station robbery?
He is Mayura Dissanyake, a mixed martial arts fighter from Sri Lanka who was working as a gas station clerk in Houston, Texas, in July 2014 when he stopped two men attacking his coworker.
Where did the gas station robbery happen?
It happened at a gas station near the Gulf Freeway and Wayside Drive in Houston, Texas, in July 2014.
What happened to the robbers?
Dissanyake subdued one attacker, identified as 33-year-old Odell Mathis, who was charged with robbery with bodily injury. The second man ran away.
Where did Mayura Dissanyake train?
He trained at Metro Fight Club in Houston. He first learned martial arts in Sri Lanka from his father, a national martial arts champion.
When did MMA start in the United States?
The modern sport of mixed martial arts took off in the U.S. with the first UFC event in Denver in November 1993.
What is the Carnegie Hero Fund?
It is an organization founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1904 to honor civilians in the United States and Canada who risk their lives to save others. Its award is called the Carnegie Medal.
Celebrate Courage and Community
Heroes come in every shape and size, and some of them work behind a counter. If you love the Lone Star State, read our History of the Texas Flag, and learn How to Properly Display and Respect the American Flag. Show your pride with our Texas Flag, honor the officers who answer the call with the Thin Blue Line Flag, or fly the We the People Gadsden Flag.
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