2020 in Review: My Favourite Features
Reflecting on the pieces I wrote that resonated with me the most over the last 12 months
Friends and family and acquaintances ask a lot of different questions about the work I do, but it generally trends in the “Who’s the coolest person you’ve talked to?” And “What was the most difficult interview you’ve ever done?” variety.
The answers, for the record, are Cabral Richards (aka Cabbie, aka Cabbie on the Street) and I’m not telling you because I’m not putting that kind of stuff out into the world in print.
Plenty of people ask how I got into it — always liked writing, started doing some essays for myself, thought they were okay, tried sports, then focused on MMA, now I’m here — and what else I want to do in the future (everything!), but rarely, if ever, do I talk about the stuff that really pushes me to do this every day and keep trying to get better at my craft.
The honest answer is that it has changed a lot over the years.
Initially, I wanted to be famous, or at least well-known to the point where each new column or feature was appointment reading and random people on the Internet would sing my praises. That didn’t happen and instead of understanding that it doesn’t happen for most people who pursue this path, I internalized it, turned it into punishing anxiety, and spent a lot of years questioning myself and being jealous of those that seemingly had what I so desperately wanted: acceptance.
But over time — and especially over this last year — I’ve gotten to a place where none of that matters. Truly. I’ve figured out that public opinion doesn’t have anywhere near the value that personal appreciation does, and shifted my focus from craving positive feedback from folks on the Internet that I don’t know to being happy with what I’ve put together and hoping it resonates with the people that matter most: my editor and mentor, Thomas Gerbasi; the athletes I speak with and their teams; and most importantly, myself.
And I’m really happy with the work I’ve done this year because I’m a really good writer and I know that I put time, effort, energy, and care into crafting each of the more than 100 interview features I penned in 2020.
A lot of people bristle when they hear you give yourself praise, but the truth of the matter is that I’m proud of the work I do, the stories I’m able to tell, the way I’m able to find different approaches, different angles to stories or get athletes to open up about things they rarely discuss, and I was able to do that a lot over these last 12 months.
In previous years, I’d be mad about how many people didn’t find those pieces or read those pieces or praise those pieces, but now, I just feel like it was their loss because I know the quality of the work I delivered and that I put it out there for everyone to enjoy, and that’s all I can do.
So now, as the final days of 2020 tick off the calendar, I’ve built a collection of my favourite pieces I wrote from each month of this past year, plus a few extras, and left them here.
Thanks for reading; I genuinely appreciate it.
January: Sara McMann Creates Her Own Expectations
McMann has long been a curious figure to me — someone who entered the sport with a tremendous pedigree, raced out to an unbeaten record and a place in the UFC, and was hustled into a championship opportunity long before she was ready. Inconsistency followed, along with various injuries, and she became just another fighter in the bantamweight division.
But you could never deny her potential and even in her setbacks, you could see the flashes of dominance. It always felt like she was on the cusp of putting it all together and figuring it all out, and that ended up being what we talked about ahead of her bout against Lina Lansberg in January.
February: Derrick Lewis Reflects on His Journey to the Top
I vividly remember the first time I spoke with Derrick Lewis one-on-one:
He was standing off to the side at a UFC Media Day with a Houston Colt .45s had pulled low over his eyes. He looked menacing. He looked like a guy that didn’t want some journalist walking over to strike up a conversation. After all, he wasn’t taking part in the media day, even though he was fighting that weekend; he was there to support his friend, Mike Jackson, who was facing Mickey Gall in the “CM Punk Bowl.”
I’d been a part of a scrum with Lewis the previous October in his hometown of Houston, and used elements from that session as a way in, reminding him of the conversation, hopeful it would put him at ease. It only sort of worked — Lewis was never big on interviews, but we had a brief chat, I wrote up a story, and then went and watched him beat Damian Grabowski a few nights later at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
We’ve spoken prior to just about every fight since, and over that time, he’s come to know that I will always represent him and present his words honestly and truthfully, and that is what allowed me to have an incredible conversation with him at the start of February about being a favorite son in a city where the worst moments of his life transpired.
This is one of my favourite things I’ve ever put together and the kind of stories I want to tell as often as I can.
March: Mark Madsen is All In
I think Olympic-caliber athletes are some of the most fascinating people on the Earth and speaking with someone who has travelled down that road is always amazing.
Mark Madsen wrestled at three Olympics, winning a silver medal in 2016. He eventually shifted his focus to mixed martial arts, and made his UFC debut at home in Copenhagen, Denmark, earning a first-round submission victory over Danilo Belluardo.
I spoke with Madsen ahead of his sophomore appearance in the Octagon in March, and learning the details of his pivot to MMA — the time, money, energy, focus — that he and his wife had committed to him reaching the highest level in the sport was incredible.
Sharing that story prior to his bout at UFC 248 was one of the highlights of my year.
April: Mark Hominick’s Big Moment
UFC 129 will always hold a special place in my heart for a number of reasons, and Mark Hominick’s story heading into that historic event is a part of that.
Nine years later, I caught up with the former featherweight title challenger, who reflected on his personal Rocky moment, how it all came together, the memories so many share with him about the event, the losses that followed.
I chronicled this story in real time as it was happening and returning to it all these years later was powerful for me. It was awesome to catch up with Hominick, who was a consummate pro then and remains so now, and to think back to the night all the eyes in the MMA world were focused on a kid from Thamesford, Ontario.
May: Ray Borg is Chasing Consistency
Ray Borg debuted in the UFC when he was 20 years old.
He fought for the flyweight title three years later.
Even before that fight with Demetrious Johnson and in the years that followed, his career has been a series of peaks and valleys — strong performances chased by pedestrian efforts, mixed together with misses on the scale and personal challenges outside of the Octagon.
Prior to his May appearance opposite Ricky Simon, the now 27-year-old fighter spoke with me about his ongoing education as both a fighter and a man, the hurdles he’s faced along the way, and his hopes for the future.
June: Amanda Nunes Wants to Become One-of-One
Nunes has been one of my favourite athletes to speak with over the years — she’s playful, engaging, and unafraid to acknowledge the tremendous success she’s enjoyed and the lofty goals she continues to set for herself.
Ahead of her bout against Felicia Spencer at UFC 250, we spoke about chasing history and finding new motivations after having accomplished everything she’d set out to do in her career.
June: Jim Miller Will Always Have Respect
Jim Miller is on the short list of fighters I’ve spoken with the most over my decade-plus speaking with fighters, and, as I tweet out after every conversation we have, I could speak to him every month and it wouldn’t get old.
He’s just one of those sharp, thoughtful, articulate types who not only makes my job easier in many respects, but also understands what it is I’m trying to do, which is why our interviews aren’t so much interviews as they are 30-45 minute conversations that often barely touch on his upcoming fight.
I wrote a piece for The Sporting News once a few years back talking to people that shared the Octagon with Miller, asking why he was so respected and what made him such a tough opponent. This time around, I spoke with Miller about what that means to him, and as always, he brought the goods.
July: Volkanovski Ready to Prove Them Wrong Again
Alexander Volkanovski’s featherweight title win over Max Holloway at the end of 2019 was one of the closest fights of the year. Between the narrow margin of victory and the Hawaiian’s track record atop the division, an immediate rematch was booked.
Prior to their second meeting at UFC 251 on Fight Island, I chronicled the Australian champion’s ascent up the rankings — which he laid out to me before hand — and spoke to him about having to run it back with Holloway in order to solidify his place on the featherweight throne.
“AV” is one of those guys that doesn’t get profiled enough, but he’s an outstanding interview and I look forward to continuing to detail his. Adventures in the Octagon going forward.
August: Gavin Tucker: From Fighter to Martial Artist
This was a breakout year from the UFC’s only fighter from Newfoundland, as Tucker earned a pair of victories while showcasing his smooth, technical style.
We discussed his intense focus on his craft and his path to becoming a complete martial artist ahead of his August assignment opposite Justin Jaynes, but it wasn’t until his second victory of 2020 that more folks started to sit up and take notice of the improvements he’s made and the upside he brings to the featherweight division.
September: Diego Sanchez Has a New Mindset
I’ve spoken with Diego Sanchez a bunch over the years, to the point where the calls felt like they followed the same pattern: I’d ask a simple question and “The Nightmare” would give me a long, meandering answer that had very little to do with what I had asked.
We’d repeat this three or four times per call, and I could usually stitch together a story out of his insistence that he was still on a quest for gold and one win away from reminding everyone that he’s still a force in the welterweight division.
This time, however, the pattern was broken, as Sanchez and I had a lengthy, focused conversation about where he’s at in his career, his eventual retirement, and coming to understand that he was so much more than Diego Sanchez, UFC Fighter.
October: Holm Searching for Another Big Moment
Holly Holm is another one of those athletes I’ve been fortunate enough to speak with enough times that it feels like she knows every story I produce from one of our conversations is going to be accurate, honest, and reflective of the elements we discussed.
We had spoken ahead of her January rematch with Raquel Pennington as well, and while it was a solid interview just like always, there were clearly things weighing on the former bantamweight champion that had her a little guarded, perhaps even distracted ahead of that one.
This time around, we talked about some of those challenges, including her father’s stroke, her continued evolution as a fighter, and chasing perfection inside the UFC cage.
November: A Long Time Coming for Ramiz Brahimaj
I will talk to Ramiz Brahimaj before each of his fights from now on; he’s “one of my guys” when it comes time to dole out assignments.
Ahead of his second attempt at a first fight in the UFC, the Fortis MMA product traced his difficult journey to finally competing inside the Octagon, opening up and expressing the kind of emotions that you don’t often encounter.
It was a powerful conversation and I’m honoured he was willing to allow me to share his story.
I have a few things coming out in the next few days that would be the December entry in this list, but with those still waiting to be published, I’ll wrap it up with my favourite two-piece of 2020.
The thing I always strive for when I speak with and write about these athletes (or anyone for that matter) is that I tell their stories in a way that feels fresh, whether that means I’m the first to tell that particular tale or just the one to give it a different spin. Most of the time, I never know for sure whether I got it right or not because I don’t often hear back from athletes about the final product; that’s just the way it goes.
In July, I spoke with veteran Roxanne Modafferi and the end result was a story that detailed her lengthy career and the uncommon path she’s taken to being a Top 10 flyweight in the UFC.
Roxanne Modafferi Won’t Stop Improving
The day it published, Modafferi reached out to thank me for the story, and it honestly made my year. It wasn’t just because she had nice things to say about the piece, but because I knew how much I had put into trying to get it exactly right and knowing I hit the mark and delivered something that resonated with her was one of those “this is what I’m always striving for” moments, and it was awesome.
We spoke again two months later before she stepped into the cage with Andrea Lee, and this time, the usually bubbly “Happy Warrior” was a little more… I don’t know, guarded? I honestly couldn’t name what she was, but I wrote about it in the piece and how it just felt weird.
“Roxy Rematch” Prepared for New Andrea Lee
I try not to ascribe feelings or emotions to people I write about because it’s easy to misread things, especially when you’re just sitting on opposite ends of the phone, but I trusted my read and rolled with it.
Shortly after passing along the story, Modafferi messaged me again, letting me know my read was dead on, and once again voicing her appreciation for the story.
Neither of these stories garnered much attention (as far as I know), but they meant something to Modafferi, and knowing that has served as such an incredible fuel over the last bunch of months.
In the days when I wasn’t feeling as good about something I wrote or my abilities in general, those messages served as a reminder of what I’m capable of doing and that the stories I put my heart and soul into week-in and week-out hit the mark every once in a while and motivate me to get out of my own way and tell these stories.
We forget some times how important is to tell someone they’ve done a good job and how powerful it can be to share a kind word.
Modafferi took the time to provide me with that feedback this year and I’m going to continue doing my best to follow her example going forward, including right now:
Thank you all for reading this, for following checking out this newsletter, and being a part of my journey as a writer — it means more to me than I can articulate and I value each and every one of you.
Be safe. Be well. Talk soon.
ESK