NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with MMA fighter Fallon Fox.

Now 3-0 as a pro, her next fight will be Saturday, October 12, at CFA 12, in the highly-anticipated finals of the Championship Fighting Alliance (CFA) women's 145-pound tournament, at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables, Florida.

Her opponent will be Ashlee Evans-Smith, who is 1-0 as a pro. From 2006 to 2009, Ashlee Evans-Smith was an All-American in women's wrestling and captain of the women's wrestling team at Menlo College in Atherton, California. After college, she trained in MMA with former MMA star fighter Eugene Jackson.

CFA 12 will be televised live in the U.S. on AXS TV.

We spoke with Fallon Fox by phone Friday.

Regarding her opponent's wrestling ability, Fallon Fox confidently said she is ready face her.

"If she takes me down to the ground, that's great. I'm happy. That's exactly where I want her to take me," she said. "My specialty is jiu-jitsu and muay Thai. So if I'm on my feet, I'm going to bang her there. If I'm on the ground, I'm just going to submit her."

We also discussed her training at the Midwest Training Center in Schaumburg, Illinois; how the bigotry directed at her by some as the first openly transgender MMA fighter is "irrelevant" and her focus is on this fight; the growing participation and acceptance of women athletes in MMA and the combat sports over the past several decades; 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.

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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: Ashlee Evans-Smith, BJJ, CFA, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, fighter, jiu-jitsu, LGBT, MMA, muay Thai, No Holds Barred, transgender, transsexual, women, wrestling

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with MMA fighter Fallon Fox.

She was in New York Sunday, June 30, to participate in the annual Heritage of Pride March, which aims to oppose discrimination against the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community. Fallon, of course, is the first openly transsexual MMA fighter, and marched with the contingent from GLAAD.

Her next fight will be in the finals of the Championship Fighting Alliance women's 145-pound tournament, where she will face Ashlee Evans-Smith.

We spoke with Fallon Fox Sunday shortly after we both left the Pride March, at a restaurant in New York.

"Wow, this was an amazing event," she said. While she has participated in Pride marches in Chicago a few times and recently in Portland, Oregon, she noted that this was "by far the biggest" she had seen.

"It was insane, it was crazy. A lot of people out just celebrating diversity."

Besides discussing the significance of this event, we of course discussed both her last fight and her upcoming fight in CFA. In her last match, on May 24 at CFA 11 in the tournament semifinals, she won by a third-round submission over Allanna Jones, using a catch wrestling hold known as a "Dragon Sleeper". We discussed what she knows of her next opponent, Ashlee Evans-Smith. While no date has yet been announced for that fight, it is expected to take place relatively soon. And we discussed her growing acceptance in the MMA world.

Before the interview, there is a commentary on the 2013 New York Pride March and its importance. Some photos from the march can be seen here.

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: CFA, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, LGBT, MMA, New York Pride March, No Holds Barred