One on One with Carlos Brooks, TSMMA's Quiet Warrior

NEW YORK

He may have a career in the cage that's seen some ups and downs, but Carlos Brooks is living the dream. After all, he gets to train and train others - two things he loves - and he earns a living doing it.

I sat down with Carlos when I visited the new Manhattan TSMMA school last week (where he teaches), and as his students buzzed about preparing for class, the Ring of Combat and Bellator veteran talked of his goals, his son, and his recovery from the eye injury he sustained when he fought Tom DeBlass last April.

Check out the interview below.

Mickle vs. McBroom to Headline NYFE March 15 Show

NEW YORK

The next big MMA show in New York City will be the New York Fight Exchange's March 15 event, and though they've had to work to find a suitable opponent for welterweight champ Jerome Mickle, it seems they finally have one that will make for one heck of a main event contest.

Mickle will be defending his belt against veteran fighter Jesse McBroom.

UFC Fight Pass: Great for Watching UFCs at Odd Times

UFC

UFC Fight Pass has a wealth of videos from old MMA events in its library, but the greatest thing about the new online subscription service are the live events that are broadcast on it - events that take place in countries with vastly different time zones and therefore vastly different start time for the shows. Last week, we got to watch the TUF: China Finale (which took place in Macau) at 6:20am on Saturday morning; this Saturday it will be a Fight Night in London at 12:30pm. After years of being conditioned to expect UFC action on Saturday nights, these events at odd hours are a nice change of pace.

Anyway, here's a preview vid for Saturday's UFC.

Jimmie Rivera on Aljamain Sterling: "I Don't Even Think He's That Good"

NEW YORK

To hear Jimmie Rivera tell it, Aljamain Sterling isn't all that.

At a visit to the Tiger Schulmann MMA school in Manhattan last week, The MMA Journalist sat down with the Bellator and WSOF veteran and talked with Rivera about his past, present and future. Rivera - who had just taught a kids' class and was about to teach a class full of adults - spoke of his TUF 14 loss to eventual runner-up Dennis Bermudez, as well as his goals in the sport. But one fighter on the UFC's roster drew much of Rivera's ire, a local fighter who Rivera claims twice turned down fights with him before the UFC called him up.

That fighter was Team Serra/Longo rep Sterling. Not long ago Rivera had pegged Sterling as someone who, if he beat him in the New Jersey regional circuit, would be his ticket back to the Octagon - a destination Rivera has been hoping to reach since before he won belts in King of the Cage and Ring of Combat.

Get to Know Bernardo Cano, One of New York City's MMA Champs

NEW YORK

While you were sleeping, New York's MMA scene was churning out amateur shows and crowning champs. One such champ is Bernardo Cano, who earned his welterweight belt in November at the last Golden MMA Championships with a pretty nice guillotine. Are you feeling a little left out because you didn't know this? Well, here's a video on Bernardo to help bring you up to speed.

Sunday Link Dump - 3.2.14

NEW YORK

If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it, it still makes a sound. Such is the case with fighting in New York - even if I'm not there to cover it, it's still going on. Therefore, here are some links to stuff I did not cover, as well as things that are simply just relevant to The MMA Journalist is about. Consider it your Sunday reading assignment.

• There was a Friday Night Fights kickboxing show at the Broad Street Ballroom and Bauzen was there to snap quality pics.
• Andrew Leone had his first fight in the UCL, now the New Yorker fights in ONE FC in Singapore. Pretty cool, huh? 
• Oh look, another amateur MMA show, this one taking place upstate.
• In case you're a numbers person, here's some recent polling data on MMA's consumer base.
• Here's an oldie but a goodie by Peter Rugg. It gives some good insight to the NYC fight scene.

An Amazing Video on New York Fighter Kenny Rivera

NEW YORK

The Underground Combat League has seen a lot of stud fighters come through its doors, and included among those ranks of badasses is Kenny Rivera, who used his UCL experience as a stepping stone and went on to compete in various amateur promotions in other states. When he returned, he won a UCL belt, then turned pro. How good is the veteran fighter? Last weekend, Rivera took a fight in Philadelphia on just a few days notice and earned a quick win via guillotine. Yeah, he's that good.

For a closer look at one of New York's best, check out this awesome video.

There Was a UFC this Morning, and the Stun Gun Made it Awesome

UFC


You know what sucks? Having to wake up before 8am on a Saturday because that's what time a UFC in Macau is airing. You know what makes it worth it? This:

Yeah, Dong Hyun Kim has been kicking ass lately.

Into the Tigers' Den: A Tour of TSMMA's Manhattan School

NEW YORK

The path Northeast MMA has taken since the late 90s is a winding one, with each curve and bend in the road shaping fighters and gyms alike. Where once there were boutique schools teaching jiu-jitsu on matted basement floors, there are now great windowed storefronts revealing a sea of white and blue kimonos. Tae Kwon Do schools have half-cages set up. And in academies where a cotton gi was the standard uniform, now it's all about fight shorts and rashguards. This is evolution in action, a kind of trickle-down economics in which the UFC sets the pace and tone and everyone in the industry below adapts or dies.

But evolution is a reactionary thing, and some are much faster in reacting than others. For those who saw the writing on the wall the minute Royce Gracie choked out Ken Shamrock, change was just the acceptance of what would soon be the new reality of martial arts - and the teaching of martial arts.

That's where the Tiger Schulmann Mixed Martial Arts organization comes in.

Association of Boxing Commission's Won't Ban TRT/TUEs... Yet

TRT


The Association of Boxing Commissions is pretty much what it sounds like - a group of representatives from a multitude of boxing- and athletic commissions throughout the country who oversee combat sports. In their role as "big issue think tank", they've addressed possible changes to the Unified Rules, as well as reached out to government entities to alert them of potential problems with their oversight (or lack thereof) of particular aspects of mixed martial arts.

So what's their take on Nevada's banning of TRT/TUEs? Well, they're going to look into the matter further, but as of right now, they're sticking to their policy of strict exemption standards. Here's ABC president Tim Luekenhoff's official response:

The NJSACB's Response to Nevada's TRT/TUE Ban

NEW JERSEY

Earlier today the Nevada State Athletic Commission took the unprecedented step of banning all testosterone usage exemptions, thereby slaying the dragon of sanctioned TRT for MMA fighters seeking licenses in that state. Since New Jersey has long been considered to be one of the top jurisdictions in the nation when it comes to regulatory oversight of the sport, The MMA Journalist reached out to Nick Lembo of the NJSACB to see where the Garden State now stands in light of these recent dramatic developments.

Mr. Lembo's response:

One Good Reason to Watch TUF Brazil

UFC


There was a point in recent years when my interest in The Ultimate Fighter was superseded by the number of TUF installments, and the waters were further muddied by all these international versions of the show. But this upcoming season of TUF Brazil... this one might be cool.


March 9 on UFC Fight Pass, folks.

Bellator Flashback: Nick Pace Almost Kills a Man

BELLATOR


The tenth season of Bellator MMA starts tonight with Bellator 110 at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut, and though I won't be there in person, you can bet I'll be watching all the action on SpikeTV.

To get you motivated to tune in, here's a highlight vid featuring New York-based fighter Nick Pace practically murdering someone back at Bellator 11. This particular card also had Lyman Good, Uriah Hall, Jimmie Rivera and Dave Branch all racking up wins, so it was a pretty good time for the home team.

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A Look at the New York Fight Exchange's Upcoming Card

NEW YORK

The New York Fight Exchange's second event is set for March 15 at Club Amazura in Jamaica, Queens, and they posted the card - which looks pretty badass - over at Tapology. Here's how it stands two and a half weeks out (and note that champ Jerome Mickle's title defense isn't on there for some reason - not sure why):

Featherweight Championship

• Rob Scotti vs. Felipe Carlos

Main Card

• Fady Medani vs. Romeo Valdez
• Wade Werosta vs. Ken Sweeney
• Pedro Villa vs. William Joya
• Elija Punzone vs. Eric D'Arce
• Nick Olson vs. Omowale Adewale
• Mike Kuhn vs. Brandon Baez
• Karim Ibrahim vs. Uniah Banks
• Alfred Jones vs. Rich Pabon
• Eric Olson vs. Levy Reyes
• Rashad Clarke vs. Constanine Gremales
• Robert Diggle vs. Antonio Quinones
• Israel Martinez vs. Ahmed Aboras
• Rick Schaffer vs. Juan Rosario
• Kenny Sweeney vs. Matt Shamloo

Ithaca Journal Not Willing to Bet on MMA in New York This Year

NEW YORK


According to the Ithaca Journal, the road ahead is still pretty foggy when it comes to the future of MMA in the state. But in the article they posted on Monday, they did a good job of getting quotes from the sport's detractors.

Here's one women's group chiming in:

“We will continue to be opposed to this and do everything we can to make sure that New York state doesn’t make this a legal event,” said Zenaida Mendez, president of the state chapter of the National Organization for Women.

7 Days in NYC: Monday - 2.24.14

NEW YORK

To an outsider, it must be confusing. Professional iterations of the sport are banned here, but still the UFC comes, holding press luncheons, excursions and photo ops. The reasons for that are pretty obvious - regardless of New York State's stance on MMA, New York City is the center of the media universe, and depending on how the battle to get sanctioning here plays out, it can be one of the most fertile and verdant landscapes for MMA in the country.

It's Monday, Day Seven of 7 Days in NYC, and the UFC is celebrating Black History Month with a week-long media tour featuring stops in Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and, of course, New York City. Today's festivities include a visit to the Boys and Girls Club in Harlem, so I pick my 6-year-old daughter up from school and drive on over.

The Boys and Girls Club is where kids go after school to study, do homework, or stay busy doing something constructive in lieu of wandering the mean streets tipping over cars. My daughter and I arrive early, so when UFC champ Demetrious Johnson, TUF star Uriah Hall and media personality Karyn Bryant get there, they see us doing sprints back and forth on the gymnasium floor.

7 Days in NYC: Sunday - 2.23.14

NEW YORK

The Underground Combat League has always been about unique experiences. In the "Dark Ages" of 2003 to 2012, that experience was the simple act of seeing an MMA fight in New York City. In those days, it was the most clandestine of all clandestine affairs, with event info coming via text message only days before and a doorman keeping out those not on "the list". Times have changed, of course. Now the city is full of MMA shows going down in the full light of day, and you can follow the UCL on Facebook, where everything you need to know to attend is posted for all to see.

Still, in this brave new world of amateur MMA everywhere, the UCL remains unique - unique in ways that would be impossible to replicate elsewhere. Unique in ways that are just fine remaining the sole province of the 11-year-old unsanctioned MMA promotion.

7 Days in NYC: Saturday - 2.22.14, Part 2

NEW YORK

Like the Gregorian calendar's demarcation of the birth of Christ as the starting point for the numbering of years, the timeline of MMA in New York has its own very special Year Zero - a time of rebirth, change and hope. That year is 2012 of course, when, during the course of litigation of Zuffa's lawsuit against the State of New York, the State Attorney General was forced to concede that amateur MMA is and always has been legal. Yup, that was the year that it all began for the scene that exists today - a scene that includes massive 2,000-spectator events in Midtown concert halls and armories, and 1,000-spectator shindigs in high school and college gymnasiums in the Five Boroughs.

The numbers themselves tell the whole story. In 2011, there seven amateur MMA events in the state; in 2012, there were 24 - a number that doubled in 2013.

The floodgates, as the say, have been opened.

Of the 19 different promotions who put on events in 2013, one has managed to navigate the sudden rushing waters to greatest effect, holding seven MMA events over the course of the year (four more than their nearest competitor). That promotion with the most shows: the Aggressive Combat Championship.

It's Saturday night of Day Five on my week-long odyssey through the New York City MMA scene, and ACC is holding an event at the Fitzgerald Center at Queens College. After a day spent at a judging seminar in Manhattan, I head on out to the borough I call home.

Aggressive Combat Championship - 2.22.14

NEW YORK


Kickboxing bout results:

• Steve Inoshima def. Renzo Mendoza via TKO at 1:04, R3
• Joshua Nielsen def. Hung Nyugen via Unanimous Decision
• Erin Blachfield def. Destiny Quinones via TKO at 1:37, R2
• Louie Walter def. Alex Valasco via Majority Decision
• Nuchem Fisher def. Shamir Arias via Unanimous Decision
• Kat Morales def. Samantha Abrams via Unanimous Decision

Combat Jiu-Jitsu result:

• Mike Roseli def. Luiz Razuri via Unanimous Decision

MMA results:

• Isaias Guerra def. Stephen Ramos via Submission (Guillotine) at :28, R1
• Edwin Nicholas def. Florentino Laureno via Split Decision
• Luis Gonzalez def. Jackson Farjardo via Split Decision
• Paul Grant def. James Clark via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 1:42, R1
• Erick Taylor def. Matt Roman via Split Decision
• Oswald Perez def. Johnny Castillo via Submission (Armbar) at 2:04, R2