Send us a text Ep 308 The Rise of EliteXC - Jared Shaw EliteXC made an incredible run to become an industry power in 2007. Joining us to talk about the historic rise is former Vice President of operations is Jared Shaw of the famous Shaw Boxing family. Details EliteXC's explosive growth: landing the Showtime deal, debuting in one month with Renzo Gracie vs. Frank Shamrock, pioneering women's MMA on TV with Gina Carano vs. Julie Kedzie (peaking ratings), co-promotions with...

Send us a text Ep 307 Jesse Taylor BEFORE the UFC Jesse Taylor dominated The Ultimate Fighter house, crushed everyone in sight, and was one win away from a UFC contract... Then one wild night changed everything. In this raw two-part episode, Jesse "JT Money" Taylor pulls no punches: early Team Quest chaos, underground San Diego stories, TUF glory and heartbreak, worldwide redemption wars, and some insane behind-the-scenes bombs you've never heard. Pure MMA history gold from a true 50-f...

Send us a text Ep 306 Andy Main TUF to the King of Pancrase Andy Main is currently a stand out coach at Pure Martial Arts in Rockaway NJ. Andy rose through ranks of the regional MMA scene at an incredibly early age… we go in depth with our analyzation of his career. From competing on the Ultimate Fighter tv series to winning the King of Pancrase belt, this is a great listen Special Thank You to our friend Brian McLaughlin for helping with the research and landing A...

Send us a text Ep 305 War Machine Jon Koppenhaver Career & Controversy IF YOU USE THIS VIDEO WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM US WE WILL FLAG YOIR CHANNEL War Machine Jon Koppenhaver interview took place from his living unit at Ely Prison. The video / audio is NOT in sync due to the prison security settings NOT allowing voice recording for video visitations. War Machine Jon Koppenhaver is a controversial figure whose career started with Ken Shamrock & the Lions Den Gym an...

Send us a text Ep 304 Jim Miller BEFORE the UFC w/ Brian McLaughlin Jim Miller is on the precipice of becoming the first ever member of the 50 Fights in the UFC. Jim Milers journey to the UFC is largely undocumented and with the help of his long time friend and trainer Brian McLaughlin we explore his path within the independent grind. Special Thank You to friend of the show Brian McLaughlin for helping out this together. Ep 304 Jim Miller BEFORE the UFC &nbs...

Send us a text Ep 303 Rafiel Torre RND Table 2 Legendary Reporter Jeff Sherwood, Documentary film maker Ed Doty and Referee Larry Landless weigh in on Rafiel Torre. The panel was out together to get a look at Rafiel Torre and his appearance from the side of the media. Rafiel Torre the person, the competitor and the reporter is an onion with many many layers…. We hope to do RoundTable discussions once a month for an additional drop, please let up know who you would like t...

Send us a text Ep 302 Ron Waterman Career Deep Dive Ron Waterman stepped out of the classroom as a teacher and made his way into the cage to fight some of the world’s toughest men. Ron takes us through his journey that includes legendary manager Phyllis Lee, dealings with Math maker John Perretti and wrestling in the WWE Please follow our channels on Follow the MMA History Team on Instagram: MMA Detective Mike Davis @mikedavis632 Co Host Joey Venti @aj_ventit...

Send us a text Ep 301 Rafiel Torre RoundTable Gerald Strebendt, Chris Brennan & Eddy Millis joined us to discuss their fallen friend Rafiel Torre Stebendt, Brennan & Millis recall their time with Rafiel Torre along with their current day feelings for him. The episode is filled with explosive truths, damning lies and fun stories involving Rafiel Torre. The RoundTable format is going to reoccur once a month, please tell Us who you would like to see on it ...

Send us a text Ep 300 Rafiel Torre Corcoran Prison Rafiel Torre is a notorious figure from the “Dark Ages” of the sport; a revered journalist, an alleged Black Belt and a powerfully connected insider to some of the sports biggest names. Rafiel Torre was arrested in 2003 and sentenced to life in prison in 2005 He has been taken to task publicly by Joe Rogan, Eddie Bravo and Eddy Millis At his trial Gerald Strebendt, Chris Brennan and Joe Rogan testified against him ...

Send us a text Ep 299 Jorge Rivera Career Deep Dive Jorge Rivera is a legend of the Atlantic Northeast MMA scene His career started with the legendary Jason Delucia and continues through one of the sports most respected trainers Keith Rockel. Throughout his career Jorge Rivera has faced some of the world’s toughest fighters; Tim Sylvia, Rich Franklin and Anderson Silva are just a few of the names. Rivera bout with Lee Murray and the reputation that Murray carried a...

Send us a text Ep 298 Brad Imes Career Deep Dive Brad Imes has a story that very few can even imagine. Within 15 months of stepping into his first MMA gym, Imes found himself in the finals of The Ultimate Fighter reality show. Brad Imes recalls his time sparring with Tim Sylvia and Ben Rothwell at the Miletich Fighting Systems. Brad Imes the man tied with the most Gogoplata finishes in MMA gave us an incredible interview. Ep 298 Brad Imes Career Deep Dive 0:00 MMA h...

Send us a text Ep 297 Brian McLaughlin Deep Dive Brian McLaughlin is one of the sports unsung heroes; most widely known as Jon Miller’s BJJ coach, Brian takes us through some incredible highs when competing against names such as Wilson Reis and Ryan Hall. We also hit a few controversial topics like Gene Simco, Sillon Dani’s and the often times “hard attitudes” of ten Atlantic Northeast. It’s a great list with a legend of the sport 0:00 MMA history podcast intro &n...

Send us a text Ep 296 Jeremy Horn Early 2000’s Jeremy Horn joins us again to discuss a part of his career that saw him do battle with a who’s who of the worlds best fighters. Imagine a 24 month period of fighting Antonio Nogueira, Yoshihisa Yamamoto, Kiyosho Tamura, Ricardo Arona 2x, Eugene Jackson, Randy Couture & Akira Shoji… that is what we discuss in this episode. Jeremy Horn also gives his opinion on some of the lasting conflicts within the Miletich Fighting System...

Send us a text Ep 295 Josh Neer BEFORE the UFC Josh Neer burst onto the professional scene boasting a record that had just under 100 amateur fights. Neer’s MMA journey had him training in Canada with Joe Doerkson as well as many years at the Miletich Fighting Systems Chris Lytle joins us on this fantastic listen documenting the Indy grind of the Midwest Ep 295 Josh Neer BEFORE the UFC 0:00 plugs/ promotions 0:42 MMA history podcast intro 1:...

Send us a text Ep 294 Brock Larson BEFORE the UFC 50 Fight Club member Brock Larson is a stand out fighter from the tough Midwest grind. Larson started his career as a training partner to Sean Sherk and advanced himself to being a top 5 ranked fighter. Dave Menne, Brock Lesnar & Brad Kohler are all talked about with some killer stories. Ep 294 Brock Larson BEFORE the UFC 0:00 plugs/ promotions 0:42 MMA history podcast intro 1:14 Joe...

Send us a text Ep 293 Ant Evans 2008 UFC Media Relations The year 2008 was a wild year for the UFC; it featured 3 of the largest grossing PPV’s in company history and some incredible main events. Ant Evans returns to the show to discuss what took place in 2008 and share never heard from before stories from an incredible era. Ep 293 Ant Evans 2008 UFC Media Relations 0:00 plugs/ promotions 0:42 MMA history podcast intro 1:14 Joey Venti’s guest introducti...

Send us a text Ep 292 Shark Tank with Eddy Millis & Jay Martinez Shark Tank owner Eddy Millis and Jay Martinez are two influential members of the early NHB movement in California Eddy Millis & Jay Martinez share their stories from an era that is referred to as the golden era of Mixed Martial Arts Ep 292 Shark Tank w/ Eddy Millis & Jay Martinez 0:00 plugs/ promotions 0:42 MMA history podcast intro 1:14 Joey Venti’s guest introduction 1...

Send us a text Ep 291 Mac Danzig UFC Years 0:00 plugs/ promotions 0:42 MMA history podcast intro 1:14 Joey Venti’s guest introduction 1:32 interview start 3:44 plugs/ promotions 6:27 jiu jitsu for the current generation 8:54 backroom bonus from the UFC 12:02 Mac Danzig vs Josh Neer 15:16 suffering 3 straight losses in the UFC 18:26 opportunities from Joe Silva 21:12 firing Monte Cox as a manager 23:17 moving to Los Angeles&nbs...

Send us a text Ep 290 Kazja Kage Kombat & Conspiracy When it comes to pioneers of the early No Holds Barred days, the name Kazja is associated with both progress and controversy. Kazja gave us a look at what it was like to be on the front lines fighting the athletic commissions tooth and nail on every decision and how he was able to subvert their system. Some of the sports biggest names attended and participated in his events and in this interview we remember what is ...

Send us a text Ep 289 Cecil Peoples w/ Herb Dean Deep Dive Cecil Peoples joins us to discuss the developmental days of mixed martial arts and its transition into modern day fighting. We delve into stories about Frank Dux, Zane Frazier and the reputation of Gene LeBell Herb Dean sat in on this special episode with a true pioneer of the sport Cecil Peoples Ep 289 Cecil Peoples w/ Herb Dean Career Deep Dive 0:00 plugs/ promotions 0:42 MMA history podcast intro...