Issue 069

December 2010

ESPN MMA Live host Jon Anik is fast becoming the face of fight TV.

He is the ultra-slick host of ESPN’s MMA Live, which is widely considered the most polished, in-depth mixed martial arts show on television. Jon Anik’s easy manner, deep knowledge of the sport and ability to rattle off words with the accuracy of a sniper, has made him the leading anchor in combat sports. 

Anik, 32, explained to Fighters Only magazine that he felt his life “had come full circle” when he found himself presenting the show for two days from the Garden in Boston, home of the Celtics. “I’m from Boston, so to find myself doing live shows for ESPN at UFC 118 from the home of the Celtics, for whom I’d had a season ticket growing up, just about topped it all. Basketball was my sport growing up, and to interview Shaquille O’Neal for ESPN at the Fan Expo, with Shaq now a member of the C’s, was a moment I’ll always remember.” 

Anik is one of four siblings, one of them his twin brother Jason. They grew up in the MetroWest Boston area. “I’m three minutes older than Jay. That was the first race of my life, so I had to win it, ya know? But it’s interesting sharing the same DNA with someone – we speak three or four times a day for a few minutes. He owns a check-cashing business in Florida. But he actually went to school to be an actor, and I’m the one who ended up on TV. That was pretty much the rub in his speech at my wedding. It’s kind of ironic.”

Anik admits to “not being much of a fighter growing up”. He played basketball, but his height, in the land of the giants, was a notable setback. Yet he always possessed a steely confidence. “I always had a lot to say; I was not the most outgoing at times but enjoyed public speaking.” He found himself working as a print journalist after graduating from Gettysburg College in central Pennsylvania. “I covered high-school sports, quite a lot of wrestling and I was teaching autistic kids at the same time, but eventually I got sick of laying out newspapers at 3am.”

Anik switched to radio, getting a hook hosting an afternoon drive show in Boston, and then had a weekly boxing radio show that covered many of Home Box Office’s pay-per-view fights. That period spanned the likes of Oscar De La Hoya, Bernard Hopkins, Winky Wright, Floyd Mayweather, Antonio Tarver, the Klitschko brothers, Joe Calzaghe and Ricky Hatton. “I have to say that perhaps the most memorable fight I covered was Mayweather and Ricky Hatton, and how the British fight fans took over and formed 95% of the audience. Mayweather was booed and was the crowd underdog in his hometown. Mayweather versus De La Hoya was also an amazing spectacle to absorb in person.” 

In that period Anik was introduced to mixed martial arts. Boxing promoter Gary Shaw invited Anik and the boxing show to EliteXC’s debut event, which had on its cast Renzo Gracie, Frank Shamrock and Gina Carano. “It was their first show, in Mississippi. And I was hooked. Now, that show had elements of WWE – dragons breathing fire, for example – and from a boxing purist’s view it was hard to take in one way, but that’s when I caught the MMA bug.” 

At the time Anik was splitting shifts between Boston radio and ESPN Radio, before eventually moving over to the ESPN digital media operation. As opportunities grew with ESPN, he moved to Connecticut to work four days a week for ESPN. “Then MMA Live was developed and has been my meal ticket ever since. It’s now what I’m best known for.” 

MMA Live’s been on our screens 30 months, but only 40% of Anik’s week at ESPN is taken up by mixed martial arts: the show and his Wednesday online MMA chat. He is also about to dabble into boxing commentary for the sport’s broadcasting leader and hosts a Sunday NFL show for ESPN.com. Anik hopes that his role one day will include covering all live MMA pay-per-view events, and would like to make a return to blow-by-blow commentary. “There’s nothing like calling fights, doing MMA play by play. In MMA, you never know what is going to happen. Of course I enjoy the live studio broadcast, but you are more like a traffic cop. Once a fight starts, you just call the action as it is, and become a small part of the card. I hope I haven’t called my last MMA event.

“In studio, I’m a facilitator, so I don’t criticize fighters. I’m not really asked my opinion.” Refreshingly, viewers often know it from his asides. “There is a blurring of those lines in my weekly MMA chat. It is two hours long and I try to be thoughtful and honest. The only time it gets difficult is working so closely with guys like Rashad Evans and Kenny Florian… When they have just lost to Lyoto Machida and Gray Maynard and you have to assess what has happened clinically and remove friendship from the equation. It is definitely a balancing act.” 

Anik had a period calling the shots for Bellator, a gig which grew from his role on MMA Live. Bellator’s first season was on ESPN Deportes, and it was broadcast in Canada and Australia. Anik called roughly 120 fights over 12 weeks. “It was a hectic time, doing MMA Live and Bellator, flying all over the place, but it was awesome.” Anik, like the fans and fighters, believes the sport is just rising to the surface. “I think many of us hope this is just the tipping point for the sport. We are in a sport that is full of opinions – and I think that is what makes it interesting for the fans, the media and the fighters.”

Appearance is mightily important in Anik’s world. So, to his perfectly groomed hair. How often does he get it cut? “I get a military haircut, high and tight, once a week, five minutes from ESPN [in Bristol, Connecticut] at Clippers Barber Shop, with Neal. It costs $14, and I give him a $6 tip. So, to keep me in trim costs $80 a month. My wife thinks it’s obnoxious!” 

WHERE DOES HE GET HIS SUITS?

“It’s funny. I shop all over. Rashad is always saying he will fly me to California to get me some suits, but those guys are working off a different budget which I wish I had. I shop at Banana Republic. I buy suits from many different brands, but to be honest I’m about volume. I wear suits every day, so I need options. I’m particular about ties. I must have 75 ties, which can make a whole outfit. I’m very secure in my masculinity, so I’m happy to say I like a pink/brown combination.” Slick, as ever.