By Danny Jones, @Tidy_MMA on X
A deserved 2024 nominee for LFA Male Fighter of the Year, Alvin Hines was the only LFA heavyweight to obtain a 3-0 promotional record last year – the joint-highest LFA record in 2024, achieved by just eight other LFA athletes.
Of the 251 LFA athletes who competed for at least fifteen minutes on the main card in 2024, none had a greater striking output than “Goozie”. Averaging 18.4 strikes per minute in 2024, the Minnesotan threw over 250 strikes in his Fight of the Year 2024 nominated three-round war with Justin Smith at LFA 181.
Holding a 6-0 professional record, the 33-year-old returns for his fifth LFA bout on April 11th, in the co-main event of LFA 206. Matching up against New Mexico’s Billy Ray Valdez, the 6’2” heavyweight will be competing in his third professional bout of 2025 – just eleven weeks after his first contest of the year at LFA 200.
In-keeping with his four previous LFA bouts, the Duluth-resident will compete at the Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake, Minnesota. Having procured a loyal following in his home-state, Alvin will compete to a chorus of rousing ovation unmatched for any other athlete.
“I’m more nervous about letting them down, than I would ever be about that [guy] across the cage from me!” Alvin admits. “I’ve been thinking about him since I signed the contracts. I think about him every day. They live rent free. When I get there and hear that crowd, I’m like ‘I’m not gonna let these guys down’. And there’s so many out there compared to everyone else. Another way I look at it is [my opponent] hears that too. And he goes ‘Damn, I bet he doesn’t want to lose in front of that many people’. I hope that’s what he’s thinking anyways, because he’s gonna have to kill me!”.
Throughout his mixed martial arts endeavors, Alvin has remarkably continued to work full-time running heavy equipment as an operating engineer for the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 49 – a union representing over 15,000 operating engineers across Minnesota and the Dakotas.
An occupation he began as a 19-year-old, the Minnesotan imbues an authentic passion for the IUOE Local 49, and continues to work as an operating engineer to this very day.
With every bout, the heavyweight adorns a flag bearing the IUOE Local 49 emblem – a gesture of gratitude for the union’s unwavering support towards his mixed martial arts career.
“They sponsored me when I was an amateur still” Alvin explains. “I came to work one day, and I was all [messed] up. I won, but I was all beat up, and they were like ‘Do you get paid for that?’. I was like ‘Nahh actually that one cost me about 600 bucks by the end of the weekend!’. A week later, I went to union meeting, and they gave me my first sponsorship cheque man, and that meant a lot to me. It’s framed upstairs, with the wraps to that fight. They were my first ever sponsor, and now they are one of my biggest sponsors. So, I make sure I let them know how much I appreciate that. They buy like $4000 worth of tickets every time. They give them out at union meetings. They love it. I really want them to know how much I appreciate their support because I take a lot of time off work to go training”.
Eagle-eyed viewers may recall Alvin sporting some semblance of the union emblem tattooed on his back when competing in the octagon against Justin Smith at LFA 181.
It is not a tattoo. At least, not in the traditional sense.
It is, however, an example of Alvin’s dedication to his beloved IUOE Local 49, albeit with a humorous twist.
“I had one of these banners made… and they forgot to put [the IUOE Local 49 emblem] on the banner, and the shirts, and the shorts” Alvin laughs. “And I’m like ‘You guys are killing me man; they pay me the most!’ So I had to wear an old pair of shorts. That’s a sticker that I had [pointing at the banner]. I couldn’t get it put on all the shirts. My girlfriend knows this chick who does henna. I was like ‘Hey, can you just put a big 49?’ and she was like ‘Yeah I can do that’. And [IUOE Local 49] loved it. They were like ‘That is the best thing I have ever seen!’. So now I just do it every fight. The last one didn’t get too dark, because I went right from the gym and did it, so I think I was sweaty when she put it on there. But the first time she did it, it was dark, dark, and it looked really good. Now I do it every time!”
Alvin Hines sports a henna tattoo of the IUOE Local 49 against Justin Smith at LFA 181 (Image courtesy of Alvin Hines on Instagram – @hinesgoozie).
Alvin’s journey has all the hallmarks indicative of an athlete bound for greatness in mixed martial arts.
Indeed, when he launched his professional career in January 2023, he became the first athlete to defeat Dana White’s Contender Series alumnus Phillip Latu in a professional bout. To date, he remains the only athlete to defeat “The Doctor” at heavyweight, with only UFC’s Navajo Stirling besting Latu at light heavyweight since.
In the following five professional bouts – contested in just over thirteen months – “Goozie” also handed two more athletes their first professional defeats: Justin Smith and Junior Hicks.
Across his three amateur- and six professional-bouts, the heavyweight prospect has only seen the third-round once. Such is his proficiency, Alvin is yet to see the 2-minute mark in 2025.
Described as “quickly becoming a fan favorite”, and an “exciting” and “fan-friendly type of fighter” by Gilbert Melendez on commentary duties at LFA 200, 2025 is increasingly shaping up to be a defining year for Alvin Hines’ mixed martial arts career.
Of course, when one balances professional competition alongside full-time work, however, big things must sometimes wait.
“I do gotta go back to work for a little while after this fight” Alvin admits. “I’m obviously gonna stay in shape in case they call. But… I’ve got to go back to work for a while with the union, and keep my health insurance going. So, it’s kinda up in the air. I wouldn’t just jump into [a bout] because I gotta get that done. So, I’ll work for a while. But I would like to just fight at [Dana White’s] Contender Series”.
The author extends his utmost gratitude to Alvin Hines and Jamie McClintock for making this article possible.
