Photos by Mike Calimbas and Shaw Lord
A Texas Thanksgiving celebration; 2013 gives many reasons to be appreciative
It’s that time again.
Another year has almost passed and with today’s Thanksgiving holiday we as a community take another moment to reflect on all the people and events that make Texas Mixed Martial Arts (TXMMA) one of the best fight communities to be a part of in the entire world.
2013 in Texas Mixed Martial Arts has brought us a lot to be thankful for. It’s been an eventful year to say the least. We’ve been witness to many a fighter and organization accomplishing their goals while they and others continue to set new ones, building hope for an even brighter future. For now we can confidently say that the TXMMA community is bigger and better than it’s ever been and showing no signs of slowing down.
Considering the Thanksgiving holiday let’s take a look at just some of the reasons we in the Texas Mixed Martial Arts community have to be thankful this year.
5 Reasons To Be Thankful In Texas Mixed Martial Arts
The continued growth of Legacy Fighting Championship
By the end of 2013, Mick Maynard’s Legacy Fighting Championship will have hosted ten pro events this year, all broadcast nationally on AXS TV. Undoubtedly the top promotion in the lone star state, the promotion has shown no signs of letting up and has grown year-over-year since beginning operations under the Legacy FC brand name in November 2009. More recently the promotion has become known worldwide as a launching pad for prospects looking to graduate into the UFC and experienced veterans looking to make their way back. The promotion has graduated homegrown talent such as Daniel Pineda and Andrew Craig into the national spotlight as the first two of their fighters to sign with the UFC last year. And just these few weeks the promotion saw no less than 5 Legacy FC veterans make it into the UFC with Will Campuzano, Frank Trevino, Ryan Benoit, Alptekin Ozkilic, and Josh Sampo all making their way into the octagon. Former Legacy FC heavyweights Derrick Lewis and Jared Rosholt are also set to debut soon while another vet in Sean Spencer fights on the The Ultmate Fighter 18 Finale this Saturday. As a matter of fact, the TUF 18 finale has 4 Legacy vets on the card including the aforementioned Ryan Benoit taking on Josh Sampo and Rosholt taking on Walt Harris.
Texas-based fighters continue to ascend in the UFC
Speaking of the UFC, Texas-based fighters are making more noise than ever when it comes to what they’ve been able to accomplish in the big leagues. One of them practically beat the pound-for-pound top-rated fighter in the world just recently when Dallas-based Johny Hendricks fought Georges St. Pierre for the UFC welterweight title. We’re not going to rehash that controversy once again but let’s just say the majority of the world minus three NSAC judges saw the bout going the way of “Big Rigg.” Though he’s originally from Oklahoma, Hendricks put DFW on the map with that performance and there’s already talk of him facing GSP in a potential rematch when the Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Dallas on March 15th of next year for UFC 171.
In addition to Hendricks, all the aforementioned names are also doing their part to make their way up the UFC ladder while other Texas fighters such as Carlos Diego Ferreira and Kevin Aguilar seem primed to make their way into the UFC at some point in the near future as the Texas pipeline into the big leagues continues to widen.
Promoters hosting more shows than ever all across the state
Aside from Legacy FC it’s important to note that many other promoters all across the state are doing their part to put Texas on the map. This includes pro shows like the Bussey’s Xtreme Combat (XKO) in Dallas-Fort Worth, Fabian Butler’s Twenty-Four Seven Entertainment promotion in Midland/Odessa, Garcia Promotions’ Fury Fighting Championship in Houston, Rock Balboa’s Rocks Xtreme Combat Rocks Xtreme Combat, James Jeda’s Rocktagon in El Paso, and all the others we fail to mention. Likewise amateur promotions are popping up everywhere as well – bringing even more events to cities that may not get them, like like Reynaldo Rueda’s CDM Promotions which debuts MMA in Angleton this December after going to College Station earlier this year and Nael Chavez’s Belts of Honorius which has held three shows thus far in Austin this year. Superior Combative Championships also went back to Pasadena recently and the list goes on and on but the point is that there’s more opportunity than ever for fighters and fans to be exposed to Texas mixed martial arts.
A loyal fan base that keeps pushing Texas MMA to grow and improve
From city to city and promotion to promotion, each part of Texas has its own distinct fan base that keeps pushing the state’s promotions and fighters to grow. The most dedicated ones have taken the discussion online as well, often talking about fights, suggesting matchups, and offering praise or criticism through the myriad of different platforms available including Twitter and Facebook. To date our Official TXMMA Facebook Page just went over 20,000 members this past week without hardly spending anything on advertising, a true testament to how engaged our community is with the goings on in Texas Mixed Martial Arts.
More quality sponsors starting or continuing to support the sport
We would be remiss if we closed this out without showing our thankfulness for all the great brands that continue to be ambassadors of Texas Mixed Martial Arts through their support of the sport.
Some of the brands that deserve mention for being staunch supporters of the sport include Ready Every Second (RES Nation) and War Tribe Gear, both of whom have come on strong with their influx of dollars and continual presence at events this past year. Many other brands including Furious Brand and more are also doing their part in support of Texas Mixed Martial Arts as well, giving many a reason to be thankful this year.
As for us here at TXMMA.com, we’re also trying to do our part in the form of interviews, articles, photos and all the other forms of exposure we can provide while promoting the sport here in Texas and beyond. We’ve also recently opened ourselves up to strategic partnerships for any brands looking to take their sponsorship of the sport to the next level in order to reach a vastly larger audience and achieve great ROI. We’re not big on solicitation since it’s not really all about the money for us anyways but interested parties can certainly contact us to find out more.
That’s it for us this Thanksgiving 2013. Enjoy your food and this day of appreciation with your loved ones. We’ll get back to talking fights on Monday!