With a lot of “smoke and mirrors” in the regional MMA promotion game, former NFL star Shawne Merriman says his effort to grow the sport is sincere with Lights Out Xtreme Fighting.
Merriman’s fame came through a standout football career as a multi-time NFL Pro Bowl linebacker. However, like many athletes, he always has an affinity for combat sports, and in particular, MMA.
That passion began nearly two decades ago, when Merriman was drafted to the San Diego Chargers and formed a relationship with Jay Glazer, who has many connections to MMA. Merriman trained occasionally from there, crossing paths with the likes of Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell while in California.
Years later, Merriman’s love of MMA grew stronger. In 2019, he dipped his toe into the role of MMA promoter, with the desire to help the sport at a grassroots level. He’s put on nine fight cards since, with a number of fighters gaining experience under the Lights Out Xtreme Fighting banner en route to the UFC.
Lights Out Xtreme Fighting is expected to host its next event on July 22 in San Diego, and with a fubo Sports Network broadcast deal secured, Merriman said he’s enjoying the growth the company has displayed.
“There’s a lot of smoke and mirrors about how well these promotions are doing,” Merriman told MMA Junkie. “The reason why I don’t jump up and down and you don’t hear these things, is because I feel like we’re supposed to. We’ve got great fighters, great product – the fans come out. We just want to continue to give these up-and-coming guys a place to be seen. Because believe it or not, there’s not a whole lot of great promotions out here. I know they talk like they are, but there’s not a whole lot of them. We want to be one of the quality ones.”
Merriman, 39, said his current stance with Lights Out Xtreme Fighting is to help build the next wave of notable fighters in the sport. However, his background in the NFL does provide an additional layer of opportunity.
A handful of notable former NFL players have tried their hands at combat sports in recent years, and Merriman thinks it’s the beginning of a trend. Merriman sees much more crossover in the future, and he will use his relationships to give those athletes a place to grow before bigger promotions come after them.
“It was time for me to launch my own promotion, my own league, to concentrate on some of these former athletes and get them to transition over to MMA,” Merriman said. “It’s going to happen. I’ve been saying it for the last eight years. We’re starting to see Adrian Peterson, Le’Veon Bell, Greg Hardy. We’re starting to see a lot of those guys make this transition. Watch over the next 12 to 24 months. Watch how many big name NFL guys transition over to MMA.”
