NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with MMA and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu legend Wallid Ismail, who is the founder of the Brazilian MMA promotion Jungle Fight Championship.

Jungle Fight 82 takes place Saturday, October 24, 2015, in Clube Sírio in São Paulo, Brazil. The main event is Ciro "Bad Boy" Rodrigues vs. Eric "Parrudo" Barbosa. Jungle Fight shows are televised on the Band broadcast network in Brazil and ESPN Deportes in the U.S.

Beyond Brazil, Jungle Fight is gaining more international recognition. Wallid has just returned from Japan, where he was part of the inaugural press conference held October 8 introducing the newest Japanese MMA promotion, the Rizin Fighting Federation.

This new organization was founded by former executives of the Pride Fighting Championships, which from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s had been the largest and most important MMA promotion in the world. Unlike other organizations, Rizin will work with many other companies around the world, without requiring fighters to sign exclusive contracts with them and leave their promotions. Jungle Fight is one of those companies.

We spoke with Wallid Ismail by Skype this past Tuesday.

Speaking of Rizin and its head, Nobuyuki Sakakibara, he said, "I think it's going to be great for the sport. It's going to be great for Japan, because no matter what, to doing good in Japan needed to be a Japanese. Because he understands the market, he understands everything about the TV deals, the sponsorship deals in Japan, is very different [from] the United States."

Unlike many others, however, he does not see Rizin as competing with UFC.

"UFC do a great job all over the world. And I think Rizin's coming to help the sport," he said. Rizin is "going to be another organization can help the sport, especially in Asia and Japan." He thus described UFC as sort of a "World Cup" of MMA, while Rizin will be a "World Cup of Clubs." And he said he and Jungle Fight plan to continue working with UFC as well as now also working with Rizin.

Much of the fight card for Rizin's debut show, the Rizin Fighting World Grand-Prix 2015, a three-day extravaganza scheduled for the week of New Year's Eve from December 29 to December 31, remains to be finalized. But he plans to have fighting on that show the Jungle Fight bantamweight champion, Maike Linhares, as well as also possibly a heavyweight.

We also discussed how Jungle Fight's ratings dramatically increased when its shows moved to broadcast TV on the Band network in Brazil from cable, plans for an English-language telecast aimed at the U.S., how many fights on Jungle Fight's cards end in knockouts or submissions and have lots of action, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web, at http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/no-holds-barred-with-eddie-goldman.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player for iOS is available for free on the App Store.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Gracie Tournaments, featuring regional, national, and world competitions in submission-only Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. For more information, go to GracieWorlds.com.

Labels: Brazil, Eddie Goldman, Japan, Jungle Fight Championship, MMA, No Holds Barred, Rizin Fighting Federation, Wallid Ismail

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with our colleague and correspondent Kid Peligro.

Our main topic was the 2015 ADCC (Abu Dhabi Combat Club) Submission Fighting World Championship, which will be held Saturday, August 29, and Sunday, August 30, at the Ginásio Poliesportivo Mauro Pinheiro (Ginásio do Ibirapuera), Rua Manuel da Nóbrega, 1361 - Ibirapuera, São Paulo - SP, 04001-140, Brazil.

It is the most important and prestigious grappling tournament in the world, and as always will feature competition in no-gi grappling.

Besides the competition in the five men's and two women's weight classes and the absolute division, there will be two superfights. Defending superfight champion André Galvão will face 2013 Absolute Champion Roberto Cyborg, and in a masters' superfight, two legends will compete: Zé Mario Sperry and Ricardo Libório.

The 2015 ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship will be shown live on an Internet pay-per-view on Budovideos.com.

We spoke with Kid Peligro by phone Wednesday.

While there are a number of returning champions in this year's competition, the 2015 ADCC event will also see many new competitors from around the world going for their first world championship.

"ADCC seems to somehow every year come up with a whole new group of fighters that compete real well, and exciting names," said Kid Peligro. "The ADCC committee just always seems to bring up new names, and there's a whole new crop of competitors that are pretty exciting."

We discussed each weight class, who are the favorites and the underdogs, the many national and regional qualifiers which led up to this world championship, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web, at http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/no-holds-barred-with-eddie-goldman.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player for iOS is available for free on the App Store.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Gracie Tournaments, featuring regional, national, and world competitions in submission-only Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. For more information, go to GracieWorlds.com.

Labels: Abu Dhabi, ADCC, BJJ, Brazil, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Eddie Goldman, grappling, Kid Peligro, No Holds Barred, no-gi, São Paulo, Submission Fighting World Championship

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with martial artist Daniel Machado.

Besides teaching Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he is involved in what will be the first catch wrestling competition in Brazil in about a half-century, the 2015 Copa Euclydes Hatem de Catch Wrestling.

Named in honor of the legendary Euclydes "Tatu" Hatem, who was the father of Luta Livre and a successful catch wrestler, this event takes place Sunday, June 14, at the BNB Clube de Fortaleza in Fortaleza, Brazil.

We spoke with Daniel Machado by Skype Thursday.

Discussing Euclydes Hatem, who lived from 1914 to 1984 and had his most success as an athlete in the 1930s and 40s, he said he was "in 300 wars over almost 40 years of fighting. He's one of the guys that finished George Gracie, which at that time was the Gracie with a lot of victories."

Tatu, he went on, didn't get "the respect that he deserved." He was the "father" of Luta Livre. As for Tatu's competition with the Gracies, Daniel Machado noted that the Gracies "used to do catch."

He stressed: "It comes all together, jiu-jitsu and the catch as well."

We discussed the rules of this event, where you can win by pin or submission, it is best-of-three in three, three-minute rounds, there are no points, but there are judges to avoid draws. There will also be both men's and women's competition.

Re-establishing an understanding of the history of catch wrestling in Brazil is also a task being carried out by the people involved in this event. Christiano Martins Milfont has been working with Tatu's family to develop media about catch wrestling in Brazil and Tatu's role, and to popularize it.

We also discussed the plans to hold two more catch wrestling events in Brazil this year, future plans to hold international events and work toward holding a world championship, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web, at http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/no-holds-barred-with-eddie-goldman.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player for iOS is available for free on the App Store.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Labels: Brasil, Brazil, catch wrestling, Copa Euclydes Hatem, Daniel Machado, Eddie Goldman, jiu-jitsu, No Holds Barred, Tatu

by Eddie Goldman

BROOKLYN, April 1 -- At a packed news conference held outdoors on the famed Boardwalk at Coney Island, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach today announced that the 2016 Summer Olympics are being moved from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to Brooklyn, New York, USA.

"We are well aware of the massive protests, unpopularity, and allegations of corruption about the present plans to hold the 2016 Olympics in Rio," he said. "The executive board of the IOC has thus voted unanimously to move it to the sporting capital of the world, Brooklyn. We never want to embarrass ourselves with the public."

He added, "The IOC deeply regrets the problems caused for the people of Rio and Brazil. We thus will fully compensate anyone in Brazil who was inconvenienced by us, including the people of the favelas."

He continued, "We also always strive to make the Olympics affordable for the average person. Thus, we have decided that admission to all events in the 2016 Brooklyn Olympics will be US$2.50, the current price of a subway ride in New York, as well as providing free Metrocards to all ticket-holders so they can use public transit."

Since there is an unusually short period of time to prepare for the Olympics in Brooklyn, he announced that the events will be mainly held at existing facilities, including the Coney Island Aquarium and Boardwalk, Gleason's Gym, Floyd Bennett Field, MCU Park, the Barclays Center, Brooklyn College, the Millennium and Oceana Theatres, and on Eastern Parkway.

The IOC will also finance the entire cost for the rebuilding of the former home of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Ebbets Field, which will serve as the Olympic stadium.

In a separate statement, Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, which abandoned Brooklyn after the 1957 season, announced that the team will permanently return home in 2016.

To make the Brooklyn Olympics more enticing to the people of Brooklyn and the surrounding area, the following traditional events have been added to the Olympic program: stickball, hot dog eating, subway car racing, and roller coaster riding.

Because the people of Brooklyn share with the people of Brazil a great tradition of mat sports, the IOC will also add Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, no-gi grappling, and catch wrestling to the 2016 Brooklyn Olympics. "We do try to do the right thing," said Bach.

Added to the membership of the IOC are the following, all of whom were born in Brooklyn: boxing legend Mike Tyson; baseball legend Sandy Koufax: pro wrestling legend Steve Lombardi AKA the Brooklyn Brawler; wrestling legend Coach George Hero of Midwood High School; and combat sports media legend Eddie Goldman.

The reaction from longtime Brooklynites to these announcements was overwhelmingly positive.

When asked if he approved of them, the Brooklyn-born actor and dancer Jerome Lester Horwitz replied, "Soitenly!"

"Well, I hope you liked the 2014 edition of my April Fool's Day prank," said Eddie Goldman. "But if you don't like it, then tough noogies."

Labels: 2016 Olympics, April Fool's, BJJ, Brazil, Brooklyn, catch wrestling, Eddie Goldman, grappling, No Holds Barred, Rio de Janeiro

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Luke Dowdney, the founder of Fight for Peace and Luta Sportswear .

Originally from the UK where he was an amateur boxer, Luke Dowdney now lives in a favela in the Rio de Janeiro area in Brazil. In 2000, he founded Fight for Peace, a non-profit organization which supports young people in communities affected by gun crime, violence, and drugs. The organization set up academies in Rio, and later London, to provide youth with training in boxing and many styles of martial arts, as well as education.

Fight for Peace is now an independent NGO, and receives funding from many sources, including Luta Sportswear, also founded by him, which gives half of their profits to Fight for Peace.

The programs supported by Luta Sportswear are expanding to New York, and he was in town this week to start this process and promote the Luta brand. We spoke with him by phone Thursday afternoon.

Why boxing?

"Boxing is something that is so important to teach us about discipline, to teach us about what you put in is what you get out, that whole notion of never quitting," he said.

We also discussed the expansion of the program to include many disciplines in the martial arts including MMA, their working together with local organizations and gyms, their working with boxers including 2012 Olympic super heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, the recent mass protests in Brazil against the massive government spending for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Rio Olympics while the needs of the people are not being met, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

The First Annual Liberty Bell Classic East Coast King of Catch Tournament, organized by the North American Catch Wrestling Association in conjunction with Scientific Wrestling. This catch wrestling tournament will take place Saturday, August 31, 2013, at the Klein JCC, 10100 Jamison Ave., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19116. No points! No politics! Only submissions and pins win! For more information, go to http://nacwa.weebly.com.

Labels: boxing, Brazil, Eddie Goldman, favela, Fight for Peace, London, Luke Dowdney, Luta Sportswear, martial arts, MMA, New York, No Holds Barred, Rio

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Carlos Carvalho, the executive officer of the USA ADCC Federation.

Carlos is in New York to compete at the New York Summer International Open IBJJF Championship this Saturday, July 13. Returning recently to competition after taking a break, Carlos had a very successful trip to Rome, Italy, winning gold at the Rome International Open IBJJF Championship on June 29 in the black belt male senior heavyweight division, and also winning gold at the European Open No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2013 on June 30, also in the black belt male senior heavyweight division. He hopes to return home to Columbus, Ohio, with another medal from New York.

We spoke with him Friday at the Renzo Gracie Academy in New York.

Besides discussing his own return to the mat, we focused on the seemingly unstoppable growth of grappling virtually everywhere in the world. He noted the great improvement in the level of competition he had seen in Europe, and how he expects this trend to continue.

In the USA, the ADCC Federation has a busy schedule of events coming up, with the next tournament set for Saturday, August 3, in Phoenix, Arizona, at the Mountain Pointe High School. More ADCC tournaments are planned for the USA this year in the Denver, Seattle, Las Vegas, Chicago, New York, and Miami areas. The 2013 ADCC World Submission Fighting Championships will take place October 19-20 in Beijing, China.

"There's a lot of tournaments that are trying to figure out a formula to make this sport interesting to be watched by the general public," he said. "In some different rules in some organizations, the fights take too long. In some other ones, it takes too short. In some other ones, it's not fair this. In some other ones, it's not fair there."

He sees the ADCC rules, where the first half of the match is submission-only and the second half has points, as the best.

"In particular, the rules of ADCC are the most fair and the most active set of rules for the grappling that we have today."

We also discussed a program which is being organized with UAE Jiu Jitsu to bring both black belt and brown belt instructors to the United Arab Emirates to provide instruction in jiu-jitsu.

Besides discussing grappling, we also continued our examination of the mass protests in Brazil against the out-of-control public spending for the FIFA World Cup and 2016 Rio Olympics, while the basic needs of the bulk of the people are not being met. After nationwide mass demonstrations erupted in June all over Brazil, on Thursday, July 11, there was a ''National Day of Strikes, Stoppages and Protests'' led by labor unions. Tens of thousands of workers marched in the streets and held a one-day strike in dozens of cities to demand workers' rights, better working conditions, and more investment in many areas such as public health, education, and transportation. We discussed the importance of these ongoing struggles by the people of Brazil, some of the lessons which the combat sports can teach those involved in these struggles, and more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

The First Annual Liberty Bell Classic East Coast King of Catch Tournament, organized by the North American Catch Wrestling Association in conjunction with Scientific Wrestling. This catch wrestling tournament will take place Saturday, August 31, 2013, at the Klein JCC, 10100 Jamison Ave., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19116. No points! No politics! Only submissions and pins win! For more information, go to http://nacwa.weebly.com.

Labels: ADCC, America, BJJ, Brazil, Carlos Carvalho, Eddie Goldman, grappling, IBJJF, jiu-jitsu, No Holds Barred, North, protests, strikes, USA, World Submission Fighting Championships

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Carlos Carvalho, the executive officer of the USA ADCC Federation.

As the sport of grappling expands, so does the ADCC Federation. A series of ADCC tournaments are planned in the USA for the rest of this year and beyond. The next one will be held August 3 in the Phoenix, Arizona, area, with registration set to start Friday.

We spoke with Carlos Carvalho by phone Tuesday about the expansion of ADCC and the plans for events in the USA.

"We want to grow," he said in this interview. "We are the largest organization of grappling. We definitely have the most prestigious no-gi tournaments from the world. We are the only tournament that can bring together the best of the best from all over the world in one place."

The planned tournaments in the USA will primarily aim at involving amateur competitors, who will then become familiar with the ADCC rules, and have the opportunity to advance to the ADCC North American qualifiers to earn a spot in the ADCC World Submission Fighting Championships in 2015. The 2013 ADCC World Submission Fighting Championships will take place October 19-20 in Beijing, China.

After the Arizona tournament, the plans for 2013 include holding events in the Denver, Seattle, Las Vegas, Chicago, New York, and Miami areas.

We also discussed a program which is being organized with UAE Jiu Jitsu to bring both black belt and brown belt instructors to the United Arab Emirates to provide instruction in jiu-jitsu. And we discussed why grappling can become bigger than MMA, and how grappling could become part of the Olympics.

In addition, in his home country of Brazil, there have been massive popular protests against the spending by the Brazilian government on the FIFA World Cup, while neglecting the needs of the people for good jobs, health care, education, housing, etc. Carlos presented an impassioned explanation of the toll that the corruption in government and this wild spending by the politicians has had on the people of Brazil. So while we both know and advocate about the benefits people get from competing in sports, especially combat sports, there is no separation of sports and politics.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Abu Dhabi, ADCC, BJJ, Brazil, Carlos Carvalho, Eddie Goldman, grappling, No Holds Barred, Olympics, protests, USA, World Cup, World Submission Fighting Championships

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Brother Sadiki "Shep" Olugbala of the Peoples Survival Program and the Universal Zulu Nation.

Along with the the Universal Zulu Nation and the Kemetic Masters Of The Martial Arts, they are putting on an event called "QUILOMBO: The true story, origins and continuing culture of the long forgotten 'Afrikan Martial Arts Warrior Centered Slave Rebellion AKA Capoeira' and the liberated Maroon Nation that was built in the Palmares Mountains of Brasil, South America".

This event will take place this Saturday, June 15, 6-10 PM, at the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center at 3940 Broadway between West 165 and 166 Streets, New York City, NY 10032.

It will feature film, art, music, dance, and martial arts demonstrations, along with several presentations and discussions about the history of military resistance to Portuguese colonialism in Angola and Brazil, the historical origins and cultural significance of the traditional African resistance martial arts fighting styles, the connections to modern-day hip hop dance culture and martial arts, and urban street fighting skills and modern self-defense.

There will also be a screening of the film "Quilombo" about the Afro-Brazilian slave rebellion and the Maroon Nation Of Palmares, which existed in the 17th century.

All event proceeds will go to the Peoples Survival Program and the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center.

We spoke with Brother Sadiki "Shep" Olugbala by phone Thursday night about this event and its importance.

The film "Quilombo", he said, "actually shows you the picture of the rebellions and how they actually used Capoeira as a means to liberate themselves and to resist the Portuguese military, which tried to take back the land from them and recapture them."

The liberated area of Palmares, which was made up mostly of escaped African slaves and also indigenous people, "actually was a nation. It was over 30,000 people that lived in Palmares. It actually was a republic for itself that existed up in the mountains of Bahia."

The event will not only focus on this history of struggle, but also the lessons of this history for today. Martial arts are valuable because "We want people to be able to defend themselves," said Brother Shep, who is also a former member of the Black Panther Party. "Every creature on this planet has a right to self-defense."

We also discussed why this type of event is largely aimed at educating and involving the youth, the need for a healthy mind and body, the positive and negative messages that have come out of professional combat sports and martial arts events, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Africa, Brazil, Brother Sadiki Shep Olugbala, Capoeira, Eddie Goldman, hip hop, Malcolm X, martial arts, No Holds Barred, Palmares, Quilombo, slave rebellions