By Brian Hemminger

Ok, so this is more than a little late, but I made a list of things I want to accomplish this year as I continue to develop my MMA writing skills.  If you’ve read the new biography page, you’ll know that I’ve only recently discovered mixed martial arts in the past 3 years.  I’ve got a lot of catching up to do to become a truly knowledgeable fan of the sport.  Here are my goals:

1.  Get Press Credentials – I don’t care what event, I just think it would be amazing to get media credentials for an mixed martial arts show.  To be there, up front, reporting on what’s going on and to get a first hand account is definitely a dream of mine.  Obviously the other perks of attending pre and post-fight press conferences, backstage interviews etc would just be another big bonus as well.

2.  Face to Face Interviews – I’ve been lucky enough to participate in a couple conference calls with Strikeforce, but what would absolutely make my year would be to get some face time with a fighter.  I think I do a decent enough job asking some tough questions on the conference calls, I really want to know what it would be like to get a fighter to open up a bit.  It’s not always easy to get them out of their politically correct “I’ve been training really hard and I really respect my opponent” zone.

3.  Join an MMA Gym – What better way to get to learn the sport than to practice it?  Pretty much all of the knowledge I’ve gained about MMA has been from watching fights, reading message boards, websites and viewing occasional instructional videos.  First hand knowledge would trump all of that and it would give me a fresh perspective on the sport.  Also, MMA workouts are almost legendary for their difficulty and I would want to see how I stacked up.

4.  Attend a UFC Event – Believe it or not, I’ve never been to an MMA event in person.  I always watched them on TV, at a sports bar with friends or I’d find a website that posted the fights the next day.  UFC president Dana White has said that nothing compares to attending an event in person and I want to experience that.  I’m sure it would be a great place to talk to other fans as well.

5.  Get Caught Up With MMA History – I’ve done some of my homework, but I’m not even close when it comes to all of it.  There are still so many older UFC and Pride fights that I haven’t seen.  They are available all over the internet and I just have to sit down and get to work.  I will never respect myself until I can bring up a 1998 fight as a trump card whilst in a debate with another fan to win an argument.