some channel might be doing a documentary on the NYC underground show (i'm not allowed to name the channel yet), and because i've written extensively about the show, an exec from that channel contacted me to get the lowdown - you know, journo to journo. and i tell her about the underground show, the UFC and MMA in general.
apparently the first part of the process is to film an internal pitch, so she has a producer and cameraman come film Peter Storm (the underground show is his event) and also, curiously enough, film me. the exec says she wants me interviewed, but also wants footage of me training.
okay, cool. i can do that. i don't really have someone to train with, so Christian Montes hooks me up with someone my size named Manny. we all meet at the Fighthouse in midtown manhattan. they film me enter the building, they film me changing into my rashguard, and all the way they're saying things like, "we want the white collar angle - office worker by day, NHB fighter by night."
they had Manny and i get into the ring, i guess expecting us to fight each other (!). thankfully, neither of us felt so inclined, so we do some fixed sequences that ended in a submission (ending it each time with a different technique).
i don't think i played into any sensationalist agenda. when i was interviewed, i explained how hundreds die every day in the sport. also, i said "human cockfighting" a lot. like, "hey, i'm thirsty. mind if i have a glass of human cockfighting?"
anyway, i got a chance to speak a lot about MMA in new york - a topic i feel passionately about.
hopefully, something positive comes from it. a proposed law that would've allowed sanctioning bodies to come into NYS and regulate amateur MMA was shot down on the senate floor last week, so the Big Apple is gonna need some lovin' sometime soon.
