It came down to the wire before it was known if John Doyle was going to have an opponent for the Ring Of Combat XXIV in Atlantic City, NJ on April 17, 2009.  During the wait he continued to practice hard with Team Hammer.

With one week to go before the fight, John’s match was confirmed with a former UFC fighter.  During the fight, John’s opponent’s takedowns stifled John’s ability to stay standing and throw his big right hands.  John’s opponent used his upper level wrestling skills to negate John’s ground game.  Even though John’s opponent had the dominant ground position throughout the match, John never gave up.  The fight went to his opponent by unanimous decision.