How Soon Until History Repeats Itself in New York?

*originally published in Oct ’04 issue of Full Contact Fighter*

Part I

“The talk of establishing [prize fighting] in America, under an orderly supervision, is simply nonsense… At present its patrons seem to be men who seek not to encourage a perfect development of physical strength and beauty, and an occasional good-tempered contest for mastery, but who only desire to gamble on the result of a fight between two fine animals.” The New York Tribune, October 22nd, 1858

They fought in barns and in back rooms at pubs, pioneers of a sport that was heralded as brutal and barbaric by fans and detractors alike. They risked arrest and prosecution, these limited-rules pugilists, battling it out in a combative endeavor that had taken a young nation by storm. It was known only as “bare-knuckle prize fighting” then, this contest we’ve come to know as boxing, and it was the morally reprehensible yet irresistible attraction of the day.

Newspapers like the Tribune denounced prize fighting. Lawmakers decried it as criminal. Still, men fought, and hundreds, sometimes thousands, gathered to watch. In May of 1881, John Sullivan and John Flood squared off on a barge on the Hudson River, just out of reach of the New York City police. This was but one event out of many designed to skirt the law while satisfying the public’s interest, and it was the promotion of events like these that led to the sport’s eventual legalization. Who was at the forefront of this sanctioning movement? Who became the first to accept the realities - and revenues - of prize fighting? The State of New York.

Today, some fans cross the river into New Jersey to get their MMA fix at events like the UFC, Ring of Combat and Reality Fighting, while others gather at small amateur events in New York City. How soon will it be until history repeats itself?

* * *

It’s Sunday, September 26th, 2004, and in lieu of braving the Hudson to watch fisticuffs aboard a barge, people have gathered around a mat at a martial arts school in midtown Manhattan. They’re here to see a Machado purple belt take on a freestyle fighter, a Greco-Roman wrestler take on a jiu-jitsu man, and a judoka take on a kung fu instructor. They’re here for the third installment from promoters Peter Storm and Jerry Mendez, a show dubbed “Manhunt” that exploits the loophole in the law banning professional “combative sports”. Like those fans a century and a half before, the nearly 250 spectators (five times more than the last show) are here to see action.

Storm, a 180-pound judo black belt, takes the mat to face Abraham Garcia, a 185-pound freestyle fighter. As Mendez - also the referee - signals them to begin, and as an independent film crew films everything for a documentary, the two warriors engage. The scrappy Garcia really takes it to Storm, controlling the judoka on the ground and punishing him with strikes. Storm takes over when fatigue sets in, landing with a slew of bare-knuckle punches to Garcia’s face before slipping his forearm over his opponent’s throat, forcing Garcia to tap out nine minutes and fifteen seconds into the bout.

The crowd cheers. A lot of them are here due to word of mouth, but many have come to see their friends do battle. The friends of national-level Greco-Roman competitor Eric Uresk make their presence known with fervor when he steps onto the mat. At 169 pounds, he’s a specimen compared to his adversary, the 179-pound jiu-jitsu fighter Sergio Murillo. As predicted, Uresk dominates from the outset, firing off a kick and then scoring with a high-amplitude double-leg takedown. Letting loosing with a barrage of knee strikes that Murillo seems to have no answer for, the Greco-Roman powerhouse leaves the ref with no other choice but to step in and halt the bout at 2:14. The crowd grows even louder. Later, in what was to be the final bracket of a four-man middleweight tournament, Uresk finds himself in a straight submission grappling match against audience member Steven Lorenzo, who steps in to replace the injured Storm. The wrestler receives accolades for his decision-win there as well.