Former UFC heavyweight has been sentenced to five years in prison for beating girfriend

A veteran MMA fighter who competed in the UFC, Strikeforce and Bellator has been handed a five-year prison sentence for brutally beating his girlfriend.

Lavar Johnson, a heavyweight who holds victories over Pat Barry and Joey Beltran, will spend time behind bars after admitting to the physical altercation with his partner of seven years. ABC News report that the fighter pleaded with a Fresno County judge for a more lenient three-year sentence but the severity of the attack gave the court no other option but to sentence Johnson to five years. The assault reportedly involved Johnson slamming his then-girlfriend's head against the wall and striking her with his fists. "It does appear there were times when Mr. Johnson could have stopped this offense," Judge Glenda Allen-Hill told the court. "That he could have not inflicted the amount of damage that he inflicted on his victim, but he did not." "I'm sorry," Johnson said at the sentencing. "I take full responsibility for my actions." A long-time friend of Johnson's was in court to ask for a lighter punishment, painting Johnson as a respectful man whose behaviour was out of character. "Lavar is not the guy that a lot of people perceive because of his fighting career," friend Gary Davie said. "He just happened to be good at it, made some good money at it and pursued it. Or the guy that was labeled negatively because of this incident. Lavar is a man with serious flaws, incredible potential and self worth." This is not the first run-in with the law for Johnson as the 38-year-old served 30 days in jail in 2007 for a different domestic abuse incident.