Issue 045
January 2009
Rob Hewitt, President and CEO of Fighters Only, on his passion for MMA.
When I first came up with the idea of producing an MMA magazine, the sport was still very much in its infancy. My passion for MMA was born of being a lifelong fan of combat sports. Boxing used to be all I was interested in and, even now, the walls of my office are still adorned with pictures of my hero Muhammad Ali, amid the various UFC and Pride posters, and pictures of Fighters Only front covers. I have always been proud of the fact that I have had a personal involvement in the sport since its earliest days. Now I can also be proud that the company I established has a growing list of industry firsts that continue to help blaze the trail within the mainstream.
My introduction to MMA was somewhat of a painful one, by way of gruelling sparring and cardio sessions with my friends and mentors Ian Freeman and Colin Sexton, who at the time were among a handful of people travelling the world to take part in what were known more often as ‘Vale Tudo’ matches rather than MMA bouts. Fighters Only was still in its infancy when I came up with the concept of an awards ceremony. We saw it as a natural progression – we have always tried to develop our brand and here we put in place yet another industry first.
Our beliefs have never changed throughout all of our business development processes. Why shouldn’t MMA have a magazine? Every other sport has one! In the same vain, why shouldn’t MMA have annual awards to give praise and credit to those who deserve it? As a company our policy is to try and promote MMA (and the people within it) in the best way possible. In addition, we have always tried to form a relationship with our readers and take on board their points of view and feelings, because it is the combined passion and commitment of both parties which creates the success that MMA enjoys today. The awards were seen as being the best way to give the fans a voice, and the winners the praise they deserve, thus combining our two main principles successfully.
The World Mixed Martial Arts Awards is something we had planned for a long time, and we are elated with the results. Not only have people voted for what we consider credible and legitimate winners, but the response has allowed us to start planning in a bigger, better way for next year, and for the next five years after that. Red carpets, paparazzi and crowds of fans attending hotel venues - where the fighters are dressed in black tie and evening suits, with celebrity guests tearing open envelopes and announcing the winners prior to presenting an award to their sporting idol - is hopefully not too far away. Like the sport and the fighters themselves, we feel that if you believe enough and are committed enough, you can achieve anything.
If, like me, you are partial to a bit of ‘car crash’ television on a weekend, you may at some point have sat watching MTV Cribs, drooling at the homes of the rich and famous. Despite all the expensive fixtures and fittings, you might have seen an NFL or NBA player (or even a pop or rock star) stop to highlight to the viewing public their Heismann Trophies, MTV Awards, Grammy’s, Emmy’s, and so on – sometimes displaying more pride and value in their awards than they do for their £250,000 SLR McClaren or Olympic-size swimming pools! We hope that, in time, the stars of MMA are profiled in the same way, that their hard work not only earns them a life of luxury and security for their families, but also that the same value is placed on an award that will symbolise the recognition of their fans and show that their efforts were appreciated by others. Next time Chuck Liddell appears on the show we would love to see his trophy on the mantelpiece!
As with any ceremony, when an award is presented the speeches of thanks flow – and all of us at Fighters Only wish to thank everyone that has helped us launch this year’s awards. Firstly, we would like to thank the sponsors, especially The Sun and Toe2Toe, who have been committed to making this year a success. We would like to thank the fighters and organisations who have helped in the logistics and preparation of the acceptance and presentation of the awards – especially the UFC who have had the most work to do, as they have won just about everything! Finally, to all those people who cared enough to promote and vote for the people they wanted to see win, thanks for your support and we hope you enjoy the rest of this issue.
