Top Five Backstage Food Spreads

Ah, the backstage food spread... the yardstick by which a promotion's success or failure can be measured. A press credential usually gives you access to wherever you want to go, and through the years where MMA Journalist has wanted to go is where the free grub is at, where one rule has emerged immutable: the more extravagant the selection, the more doomed the organization. (Something about spending money on unimportant things, like feeding the press, being directly proportionate to loose finances. Or something. Who cares?) MMA Journalist regrets never having partaken in Pride's alleged epic epicurean ensemble, but there have been quite a few winners Stateside, so here are the top five.

1. The World Fighting Alliance - July 5th, 2002 - When John Lewis was running the show, the venue was the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, where your press credential got you access to the hotel's staff cafeteria. Was the food good? It was outstanding, and entree selections were changed three times a day. Plus, as the hotel employed paid "beach goers" to populate their pool, the place was littered with bikini-clad babes getting their lunch on. That's always a plus.
2. BodogFIGHT: "Alvarez vs. Lee" - July 14th, 2007 - Sliced roast beef, steamed potatoes, mixed vegetables, plus a table stocked with fruit, juice and granola bars for snacking throughout the night. BodogFIGHT really pulled out all the stops to feed people. Where are they now?
3. EliteXC: "Heat" - October 4th, 2008 - Ken Shamrock and Seth Petruzelli may have conspired to destroy the organization that Kimbo Slice called home, but nothing can detract from this press room buffet. Hot dogs, hamburgers, potato salad, desserts and more, yet the icing on the cake was the endless supply of drinks (cans of soda and water). Yeah, baby.
4. UFC 32: "Showdown in the Meadowlands" - June 29th, 2001 - The organization may be the very model of success now, but don't forget that Zuffa was bleeding money for years. Case in point, this bad boy in New Jersey, which featured a pre-show dining extravaganza that saw everything from cocktail shrimp to a carving station in play. Oh how I miss the good old days!
5. UFC 37: "High Impact" - May 10th, 2002 - Zuffa still hadn't figured out the whole "not necessary to feed the reporters" thing, so they were still hosting press dinners at this point - which were small affairs where UFC brass would mingle with us scribes at high-end hotel restaurants. I remember the filet mignon as if it were just yesterday. Oh how I really miss the good old days!

The Best Female Fighter in the World Capable of Making Weight Returns

The best female fighter in the world capable of making a contracted weight, a.k.a. Tara LaRosa, returns to action on January 23rd at Extreme Challenge: "War at the Shore". Her opponent will be Alexis Davis, an overmatched chick from Who Cares, Idaho. Known for a well-rounded skill set and having extensive experience, LaRosa was BodogFIGHT's 135-pound champ when that organization crapped the bed, and although she hasn't fought in over a year, LaRosa is still widely believed to be at the top of the food chain in women's MMA (despite possessing a fraction of the notoriety held by the zoftig and rubenesque Gina Carano). Expect the Fight Factory warrior to trounce Davis, sending her back to her job as a hostess at Denny's in defeat.

Underground Profile: Kaream Ellington

Sometimes promising athletes realize their full potential, sometimes they don't. At an Underground Combat League event in December of 2004, 200-pound Bronx native Kaream Ellington clashed with 335-pound wrestling monster Bryan Vetell. It was a true "David vs. Goliath" bout that saw "David" survive almost seven grueling minutes of ground and pound to turn the tables and get the tap out via strikes. The win made the crowd go absolutely berserk, and it seemed to set Ellington's career back on track - a year and a half later the Muay Thai-trained warrior was dodging Kenichi Yamamoto's leglocks at the Mixed Fighting Championship in Atlantic City, then it was off to Costa Rica for BodogFIGHT and off to Japan for a match against a Brazilian. But now it's been two years since Ellington last fought. Will we ever see the talented competitor - who won an IFC tournament in New Jersey back in 2000, fought at seminal Garden State show BAMA FightNight and won a four-man tournament at the first UCL - fight again? With Ellington's personal problems, that's hard to answer. He will, however, always be the man who gutted out a win against "Goliath" to show New York City fight fans what a mixed martial artist was capable of. Realized or unrealized potential notwithstanding, that's something.

But What About Eddie Alvarez?

The sudden collapse of EliteXC has left more than a few fighters wondering where their next paycheck will come from, but Eddie Alvarez - who was slated to fight Nick Diaz for a championship belt at EliteXC's November 8th Showtime event - isn't all that worried. After all, the dude was BodogFIGHT's big star before they crapped the bed, and he cleaned house in Japan's DREAM tournament not too long ago. He should have no problems finding work. Last night MMA Journalist caught up with the Philadelphia superstar, and got his thoughts on the whole EliteXC debacle. "It's unfortunate for the promotion and it's unfortunate for the fighters who put all their eggs in one basket," he said. "I spread myself out and didn't put all my eggs in one basket, so I'm not too concerned. I have a great manager (Monte Cox) and I'm confident he'll find something for me." Added Alvarez: "I've been through this with Bodog so it's nothing new to me."

MMA Market Analysis: Same Old, Same Old

Rumors abound concerning EliteXC's dire financial straits, Afflictions impending doom, the demise of the newssource FightNetwork and what-have-you. But this is really nothing new. Like the stock market, the MMA market cyclical, and after every boom comes a period of economic downturn. Back in 1996, when the UFC's original incarnation was pulling in Earth-shattering pay-per-view buy rates, the industry was flush with money and people angling for a share of it. Remember Extreme Fighting and the World Combat Championship? I do. They were nice, big alternatives to the UFC that bled money like crazy. A market downturn killed them off, enabling the strong to live on. In 2001 Zuffa bought the UFC and began making strides in getting the sport back on track, and the industry took off again. Remember the WFA? Or Ultimate Athlete magazine? I do, and I remember the inevitable market downturn once more rearing its ugly head. The Ultimate Fighter came along in 2005, providing yet another infusion of consumer dollars which in turn prompted the creation of the IFL and BodogFIGHT. Are you sensing a pattern here? You should be. It's the "same old, same old", and if the market demands that EliteXC folds (doubtful), Affliction dies (likely), or that the FightNetwork goes bye-bye (see ya!), well... that's just part of the cycle. Trust me, MMA will get "huge" again - and flush with fools and faulty business models just like it always does.

Rumble on the Rez

The second of the aforementioned under-the-radar New York State shows took place last night, this one on an Indian reservation outside of Buffalo. Dubbed "Rumble on the Rez", the event was a mix of professional bouts and amateur bouts, and featured the likes of former BodogFIGHT headliner Matt Lee taking on kickboxer Peter Kalejevic (Lee won the decision), veteran warrior Andrew Montanez rematching with BCX champ Pat Audinwood (Audinwood won the split decision), and the Northeast's top-ranked bantamweight Steve DeAngelis squaring off against Josh Pearson (DeAngelis won via rear naked choke at 2:22 of the first round). Close to 500 spectators came out to watch the action, making this well-run event a nice addition to the Empire State's growing collection of MMA organizations.

Affliction Show to Register 6.5 Bodogs on the Fail-O-Meter

Bust out the Fail-O-Meter. Affliction: "Banned" will air on pay-per-view this Saturday opposite SpikeTV's UFC Fight Night 14, which means that: a) fight fans will have a chance to pay to see Fedor Emelianenko fight Tim Sylvia; b) fight fans will have a chance to see Anderson Silva destroy James Irvin on free TV; and, c) Affliction will make enough money to cover the cost of maybe 90 seconds of the Fedor/Sylvia bout, but everything after those 90 seconds and everything on the rest of the card is going to have to be written off as a financial loss. Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against Affliction, I'm thrilled they've put together a card of top fighters, and I wish them success. But reality has a way of slapping wanna-be UFCs (with a little money to burn and no viable revenue stream) in the face, and Affliction is going to get slapped pretty damn hard. Prediction: in terms of projected losses, someone will take a big hit on Saturday - and it ain't the UFC.