Underneath, Mario, Underneath!. I liked Extreme Fighting. I've seen all the fights and Mario Sperry and Igor Zinoviev is in my top 5. I know exactly who John Perretti is and what he's done for the sport and greatly appreciate him. Great interview.
I trained BBJ with John many years ago when he used to live in NY. Was alway a interesting and smart guy. A super intense but yet somehow calm guy. Hard to explain. Wish we hadn't lost touch when he moved away would be great to hear from him again.
This guy brings back memories, I remember commentating in other organizations and him being the UFC’s match maker, he had a presence and was obviously very knowledgeable but he was a bad commentator (every time someone went for an armbar he would say “oh he’s going to break his arm!” Instead of informing what was happening He also came off a bit of a douche, but he brings back good memories.
I'll tell you how I got here and I'll let you imagine what was my reaction to this interview. I was rewatching old UFC from 1999 and I wondered "who is this stupid dude shitting on most of the fighters along with Mike Goldberg and Jeff Blatnik (who were both great btw) doing commentaries?" And then as I watched UFC Japan 1999, I saw him having an interview. I thought he looked crazy and full of shit... Anayway, I got his name so I wanted to know how on earth did he have a job as broadcast analyst with the UFC. That's when I found out he was the match maker of the company back then. I also read fighters saying he was weird, direspectful (check Dan Severn)... And then I saw this interview and boy... saying he created the Mix Martial Arts term and the ufc "as it is" + "I don't understand you question"... He grew old but still same egotistical with an inferiority complex feel about him. Then again, maybe I'm wrong, but that that's the same vibe I had with his UFC comments.
