February 18, 2012 an all-female MMA fight card was hosted in Casper, WY (The Equality State). I had the honor of speaking with promoter Steve Alley on his vision and insight concerning the female fighter niche.
MB: What motivated you do an all women's card?
SA: Since almost of beginning of Kick Down MMA and Universal Fight Alliance MMA the fans have ALWAYS supported women in combative sports and we started out doing kick boxing and in Denver,Colorado and the few we did in Wyoming the fans loved it...........then we did MMA and it was a much bigger thing the fans took to it and it just went on from there. I have always worked with women in all of the business I have ever done so it has been easy to deal with them.
MB: You said you will be adding an all female promotion. What will it be called?
SA: Yes we will and are in the process of an ALL women's fighting promotion and I will not let the "cat out of the bag" so to speak but yes it is going to happen and ALL women all the time!
MB: How often do you plan to have female cards?
SA: The Women's fight cards will depend largely on the availability of the fighters but as often as 2 to 3 months apart would be my preference and see how it is accepted.
MB: Will they be in both CO and WY?
SA: The Women's fight cards will be in Colorado, Wyoming and branch into other states where there are other female competition. It needs to be addressed and built and will not happen overnight. If it were this easy it would be out there already.
MB: Is there any female talent, in particular, you look forward to adding to your cards?
SA: Yes namely Margaret Bloom and fighters like her because of the loyalty factor and having dealt with her I try to reward those that have been good to me and she would be at the top of that list. Now as far as top ten type fighters in the professional ranks I like Cat Albert out of Denver. I like Lisa Ward from Washington. Tandi Ogden out of Salt Lake City. And of course will stay loyal to Kick Down and UFA fighters as they are the ones that have paved the way here. If Louise Johnson were still in it I would have wanted her to be part of it as well. Some of the locals in Casper, Wyoming like Nancy Jaure and the newest phenom by the name of Katie Moerke and more. Shannon Culpepper out of Denver also. As the promotion gets bigger the more we can showcase the skills of the women and get the top 10 type fighters and work it from there
MB: Dana White stated he would "never" have women in the UFC. One rationale was that there is not a large enough pool of fighters to ensure on-going, quality fights. What gender-specific challenges have you encountered in organizing UFA8?
SA: The one problem if there is any is this. If a fighter drops out there are fewer fighters to try and replace a dropped fight and it would have to be built up..............Rome wasn't built in a day but you saw that product and this can work as well. The other issue that I learned at UFA 8 was that if someone pops up pregnant when they test for it (and yes we are not the 1st) you had better have a good backup plan which we did with an alternate that knew she was there specifically for that purpose. Fan awareness will be another item because the stereotype that some women or alot of women look a different way or are "lil men" is totally ridiculous. Did you see the women last Saturday? Many beautiful women that are educated professionals from all walks of life. The "never" comment was one that I don't understand but if the UFC doesn't want the women that is ok because we will take them and elevate the sport that way. I made that statement Saturday in Casper and I will stick with it but really because I have had more experience with the female fighters than most.
MB: A little background on you: why did you become a promoter? When? Why multiple promotions?
SA: I became a promoter because of my love for broadcasting. When I was a little boy I would sit in front of the TV and do Football, Baseball, and other sports while the volume was down so I always wanted to do that. I trained with Tom Johnson at Innovative Martial Arts and about a year before my Black Belt testing he said he was going to do a MMA and kick boxing event at his school and needed a ring announcer and I told him I wanted to do it but needed a bit of guidance. He gave me a script. I announce his 1st show which was around 1997 and there were fighters like Nate Marquardt and many other regional favorites there and it went great. Then I started covering UFC's for a former website and while at UFC "Throw Down" at the Mohegan Sun in Uncassville Conneticut I wanted to try and do a show and came back to Denver and came up with Kick Down Classic which was short for Kick Boxing and Take Downs. The name changed to Kick Down MMA about 6 years ago. The reason for multiple promotions is so we can develop new talent and give fighters a way to elevate their stature in MMA by winning titles in different weight classes and promotions, etc. Plus when you get stuck at 99 on one of them it is easy to go to the "sister" promotion and do a history making event like Universal Fight Alliance 8. And by the way the Kick Down started in February 23, 2002. The UFA in September of 2009. The Kick Down has operated in 7 states and the UFA in 3 as of this writing and scheduled to make it's Denver debut on Saint Patrick's Day March 17.
MB: How would you respond to your own daughter wanting to enter the cage? On that note, if your daughter aspired to enter the cage, would you prefer it as a ring card girl, or fighter?
SA: Since it is my daughter I would have to have a good long talk about it and make sure she knows EVERYTHING she is getting into. I believe she is a beautiful girl so I would prefer she be a ring card girl or even a ring announcer (few of them also) but if she really wanted to be a fighter I would support her 3000% and even train her and manage her. I would only be skeptical about other promotions because sometimes fighters get set up without knowing what to look for and doing some checking into their opponent.
MB: What else would you like the MMA community to know about you and your promotions?
SA: I want people to know that I appreciate the fact that we have fans that like to see the events and that I am accessible and will talk during and after events and love what I do and will continue to try and bring the best product possible to the fans and fighters. I am grateful that I am involved in MMA and more still that I have many friends that I have met over the years and will continue as long as the sport will have us.
To contact Steve Alley, visit his websites kickdownmma.com and universalfightalliance.com or call 720-422-5154.
Check back often here at 'Uppercuts Inc.' for updates and interviews from the world of Rocky Mountain combat sports.
See you at the fights!
