Browsing: Mixed marital arts

Marine UFC legend and military fitness icon Brian Stann is adding a new title to his resume: college football announcer for Fox Sports South. Fox Sports South reported  Wednesday that the “All-American”  will join veteran sportscaster Wes Durham and Emmy-winning sports reporter Jenn Hildreth to cover Atlantic Coast Conference football. Stann will kick off his broadcast career on August 31, the first of 17 regular-season ACC games that Fox Sports South will air. “Brian brings a dynamic and energetic perspective to the booth,” Jeff Genthner, senior vice president and general manager of FOX Sports South and SportSouth, said in a news release. A…

This week a group of union activists and veterans from “Unite Here” are calling on the Marine Corps to cut ties with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts contest. On Thursday, the group delivered petitions to recruiting stations across the country, making a push for the Corps to disassociate and end sponsorship of the UFC. In a letter to Commandant Gen. Jim Amos, the group wrote, “We believe that, by aligning with the UFC, an organization that has tolerated homophobia, misogyny, and hate speech, the Marine Corps is violating its stated commitment of ‘maintaining dignity and respect…

Last night, UFC Ultimate Insider on Fuel TV profiled Marine Captain turned pro fighter Brian Stann. For those of you who missed it, UFC.com should post the entire episode online later this week. Check back for a link. In the meantime, watch the trailer. In it Stann talks not just about his UFC career, but about his time in Iraq where he was awarded the Silver Star for a pitched six day battle in 2005. He and his unit — 2nd Mobile Assault Platoon, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines — held a critical bridge after being ambushed by insurgents from all…

Today, our friend and fellow military blogger Phil Creed posted a great story about the re-emergence of mixed martial artist and former Marine Sgt. George “Loaded” Lockhart. Regular readers of Marine Corps Times will recognize that name. Lockhart was the subject of a cover story two years ago after the Marine Corps told him he could not accept Spike TV’s invitation to appear on “The Ultimate Fighter,” a reality show for up-and-coming MMA pros seeking a shot at UFC stardom. At the time, commanders in Quantico worried that Lockhart’s participation could reflect poorly on the institution, as some of the…

In the blink of an eye, it was over. Justin Timberlake may want to take notice. Cpl. Kelsey De Santis, the Marine who famously invited the singer and actor to attend the Marine Corps birthday ball with her, competed Saturday night in Operation Octagon XVI, a mixed martial arts event in Sterling, Va. To say it was a one-sided fight would be an understatement. De Santis, fighting in the 145-pound featherweight title fight, pummeled her opponent, Stacy Sneeringer. With a flurry of energy, De Santis took Sneeringer to the mat early, and finished her off 2:51 into the fight with…

Former Marine captain and UFC pro Brian Stann is partnering with the Call of Duty Endowment this Memorial Day weekend to raise money for programs that help place unemployed veterans in jobs. You don’t have to actually empty your pockets to help. Just “donate” your Facebook status by visiting the endowment’s page here. For every person that does, the endowment will give Stann’s organization — Hire Heroes USA — $1 for a grand total of up to $50,000. After transitioning to civilian life in 2008, Stann, who received the Silver Star for actions in Iraq, helped organize his own non-profit…

UFC-style competition will likely be rolled out Corps-wide within a year, according to Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps Carlton Kent. While Kent was clear that the final decision rests with the commandant, Marine officials are already in detailed meetings to discuss how an Army Combatives-style tournament system could be rolled out. Early this year, Kent sent Sgt. Maj. Howard Long, the senior enlisted Marines at Training and Education Command at Quantico, Va., on a fact finding mission that took him to the U.S. Army Combatives School at Fort Benning, Ga. There the Army’s master trainer, Sgt. 1st Class Jason…

Sgt. George “Loaded” Lockhart, one of the Marine Corps’ top martial arts instructors, has said he plans to open a gym this summer with rising UFC star Brian Stann. Lockhart, who is set to leave the Marine Corps in July, said he and Stann, a former Marine captain and Silver Star recipient, hope to co-manage the gym in Alpharetta, Ga., near Atlanta. The two of them are both quickly earning names for themselves in the UFC — Stann as the underdog fighter who crushed Chris Leben in a New Year’s Day victory and Lockhart as a diet guru who helps…

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