March 16, 2010 10:32 p.m. EST

Topics: sports, mixed martial arts

Fresno, California, United States (AHN) – Lavar Johnson will be stepping into the cage on March 26 for his second Strikeforce fight, seven and a half months late. Considering how close he was to “never,” he’s not going to complain about the delay.

Last summer, Johnson was a rising prospect in the Strikeforce heavyweight ranks. He was coming off of a spectacular 18 second knockout of Carl Seumanutafa that highlighted Showtime’s broadcast of Strikeforce Challengers 1.

The win gave him a five-bout winning streak, which, run back to back, would have taken less than two rounds of elapsed time. Of his 13 career wins, 11 were by knockout, the other two by submission, and only one win lasted more than a round.

Johnson had fought back from adversity. He missed two an a half years recovering from a knee injury. He was big and fit. He spoke softly and carried heavy hands.

With looks like The Rock and results like a young Mike Tyson, the sky was the limit for Lavar Johnson.

Johnson was scheduled to appear on Stirkeforce’s August 15, 2009 card, reportedly against veteran James Thompson.

It would have been the biggest challenge of his career. Instead, things were about to get much more challenging.

At 12:34 AM on the morning of July 5, police responded to a shooting. One man, a cousin of Johnson’s, was dead, four others were injured. Lavar Johnson was one of them, shot twice in the abdomen.

Nothing good happens after midnight, according to the old saying. If you’re out late looking for trouble, don’t be surprised if it finds you.

Except that Johnson was at a family reunion barbeque, celebrating Independence Day. The shooters were a group of teens who opened fire while walking past the house. Police later connected the shooters with a gang.

Johnson was hospitalized, with “life-threatening injuries to internal organs,” according to a press release. He would undergo surgery and a lengthy recovery.

By the time his August 15 fight date rolled around, Johnson had lost 60 pounds and was just over a week out of the hospital. The card, and the rest of MMA, went on without him.

“I was just worried about being alive, being able to play with my kids, and have a normal life like everybody else,” he said on a recent Showtime interview.

“You just realize that life is precious, and you don’t take it for granted.”

The shooting was the second involving a high-profile athlete in a span of a few hours. Earlier on July 4, NFL quarterback Steve McNair was killed in a domestic shooting incident.

Less than nine months after coming perilously close to suffering a similar fate, Johnson has been cleared to fight.

He has gained back the weight he lost and looks imposing as ever while running an MTV personality through his workout regimen. He will take on undefeated Lolohea Mahe (4-0-1) at Challengers 7 on March 26 in Fresno.

“I’ve had a good camp,” he said on Showtime. “(Fellow heavyweight) Brandon Cash is helping me work on my wrestling.”

He described Mahe as “a tough guy.” Of course, “tough” takes on a new dimension after what he’s been through.

“I’ve slowed down a lot on the drinking,” he said (although nothing released by police concerning the shooting imply that alcohol was a factor). “I take (MMA) a little bit more serious now. I’m getting older. I want to give a real good shot at it. Hopefully it turns out good.”

Win or lose, it already has.