David Green, BAMMA CEO
-GoDaddy are introduced as the new presenting sponsor of BAMMA.
- A-Frame are introduced as a new technical partner of BAMMA. They will be ‘tagging and logging’ all fights at BAMMA 6; a process that will allow the MMA media to deliver an unparalleled level of post-event coverage. An industry first, not just in MMA, but all live sports.
- The Scott Jansen/Craig Chesters fight will stream live and free on Facebook at 6:30pm (UK time).
- Four further fights will stream live via BAMMA.tv from 7:00pm, with the main card set to go live at 9pm on SyFy in the UK, and BAMMA.tv worldwide.
- BAMMA announced that BAMMA 7 would take place on Saturday September the 10th at the N.I.A. in Birmingham. No fights announced as of yet, but they are aiming to continually improve on their fight cards.
- BAMMA are excited to announce the addition of Michael Schiavello to the commentary team.
Andy Whitman, executive producer of NBC Sports/SyFy
- NBC Sports were pleased with BAMMA’s ratings on SyFy and Bravo.
- NBC Sports hope to replicate SyFy USA’s success with WWE wrestling in BAMMA in the UK
- Believes MMA fighters have ‘superhuman qualities’ that play into the SyFy demographic
Fighter questions:
- John Phillips was asked if he felt disrespected by Frank Trigg wanting to stand with him. He replied that if he did, it would be a quick night. He is disappointed that opponent Frank Trigg didn’t make it to the press conference, as all other fighters managed to get there. He feels that he should have made more effort.
- Matt Ewin was asked how he felt sitting next to Tom Watson, after the two had engaged in a Twitter war. Ewin said that the pair will fight one day and settle their differences…if Watson wanted to. Watson replied with a grin “I don’t really want to”. He went on to clarify that he had a fight on Saturday against Ninja, and wouldn’t be thinking about anyone else until then.
- Murillo Ninja stated that he was happy to be back in England and that he loved the country. He has been training hard and will put on a good show. He has come to win. When asked if it was a problem fighting in somebody else’s back yard, Ninja replied with a knowing smile “I’ve done it many times…no problem”
- John Phillips said that every fighter who has a loss to someone wants to avenge that loss and he wants to avenge his loss to Tom Watson. He thinks that the fight will happen somewhere down the line and that the best man will win.
- Ivan Salaverry said it felt great to be in front of the UK audience and around a group of talented athletes. He can’t wait to fight at Wembley and is honoured by the opportunity.
- Tom Watson talked about his elbow surgery. He said that he had it done in January and was not at 100% in his past few fights. “MMA is a tough sport and a lot of fighters get a lot of injuries. I’m 100% ready to go. Let’s do it!”
- Both Ivan Salaverry and Matt Ewin revealed that there were no nerves ahead of their respective returns to the cage. Both men showed a healthy amount of respect for each other, with Salaverry adding that he anticipated a great grappling match and couldn’t wait to roll with Ewin.
- Tom Watson said that he was unsure if it was personal, or just a case of people wanting the belt that has left him with so many targets on his back (both Phillips and Ewin have called him out publicly). He said that
either way, he doesn’t plan on losing so he’ll deal with it.
Ninja was asked how he felt about Watson’s Greg Jackson teammate Jon Jones recently beating his brother. He responded that he had a lot of respect for Greg and his team, and that he was sure they had something planned for him. He’s had a good camp, and will be ready for any situation. “I like challenges. Let’s do this! I promise a good show!”
- “You miss it, you really do. The cage calls on you. The crowd, the training.” Ivan Salaverry on why he’s returning to the professional MMA.
- BAMMA CEO Dave Green revealed that they are expecting a large number of London’s Brazilian population to show up for the event based on ticket sales.
- Ivan Salaverry closed the press conference on an emphatic note “We’re all just looking to have those epic fights and each one of us is looking to have that highlight-reel that younger guys are going to watch and say ‘Wow, I wanna do that!’ We’re all prepared, there’s no predictions at all, just good fights.”
Misc Notes:
- Frank Trigg was unable to attend the press conference due to a delay in his travel plans. Trigg has some additional paperwork to fill out and is expecting to leave on Wednesday to arrive Thursday.
- Murillo ‘Ninja’ had an ‘issue’ during his training camp, but wouldn’t elaborate on whether it was an injury or an outside issue as he did not want to make excuses.
- Ivan Salaverry was very excited about sight-seeing the big London landmarks. He seemed genuinely humbled by the attention and respect he received from the British media.
- Tom Watson was rocking some huge surgery scars on both elbows, but was telling everyone that they’d healed fine.
- Watson has a big weight cut ahead of him over the next two days, but has done bigger. He cut 16 kilo’s for his fight with
Keep it locked to MMABay this week for my BAMMA 6 interviews with Murillo ‘Ninja’ Rua, Tom ‘Kong’ Watson, Ivan Salaverry and John ‘The White Mike Tyson’ Phillips. I’ll also be bringing you highlights of my exclusive chat with BAMMA’s head of business development, Liam Fisher, on all things BAMMA 6 and the promotion’s plans for the future, as well as a full BAMMA 6 preview.
By Brad Wharton (Follow me on Twitter @MMABayBrad)
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