MMA Campfire Tales: Phil Baroni
It was May 10th, 2002. The fully regulated sport of MMA was just starting to emerge from the darkness of straight-to-video hell, prompting me to throw away my membership to Video Thunder and find a friend with cable television. While the spectacle of yesteryear was now just a wonderful bloody memory, the legitimate sport had evolved and attracted legitimate athletes to its banner in droves. Elite wrestlers in particular could now use their skills for something that actually paid money, and didn’t involve touring the Midwest 350 days a year being suplexed by evil clowns, or managed by guys carrying tennis rackets or bullhorns.
![[Pic of the day] Nick Diaz vs KJ Noons: Fact!](http://mmavalor.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/DiazvsNoons.jpg "[Pic of the day] Nick Diaz vs KJ Noons: Fact!")
