Beast: Blood, Struggle, and Dreams at the Heart of Mixed Martial Arts

by Doug Merlino

Overview

Mixed martial arts is America's fastest-growing sport--around the country, new gyms open their doors and enthusiastic viewers tune in to UFC matches. Although some dismiss it as brutal combat, its fighters are among the most dedicated athletes in any arena. But MMA also takes a heavy toll on the body, and it's a rare fighter who can earn a living in the sport's top ranks.

Beast follows four high-level fighters at one of the sport's elite gyms, Florida's American Top Team. Doug Merlino had unprecedented access, training alongside the men for two years, traveling to their matches, and eating in their homes. Mirsad Bektic, a young Bosnian refugee who started in karate as a boy in Nebraska, dreams of stardom. Jeff Monson, a battered veteran at forty-one, is an outspoken, tattooed anarchist enjoying a bizarre burst of celebrity in Russia. Steve Mocco is a newcomer--a former Olympic wrestler from a close-knit intellectual family. Finally there's Daniel Straus, who, from a life short on opportunity, fights his way up to title contention. All will experience electrifying highs and career lows, and Merlino takes us along every step of the way while also examining the culture and meaning of professional cage fighting. A book for both the uninitiated and the hard-core fan, Beast offers a fascinating journey into an often misunderstood world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620401569
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	10/13/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Doug Merlino won the 2011 Washington State Book Award for Biography/Memoir for his first book, The Hustle: One Team and Ten Lives in Black and White. He has contributed to Slate, Wired, Men's Journal, Vice, and many other publications. Merlino lives with his wife in New York City. www.dougmerlino.net
Doug Merlino is a veteran journalist who has written for Wired, Men's Journal, Legal Affairs, and many other publications. He previously lived in Budapest after leaving Seattle. He now lives in New York with his wife.

Editorial Reviews

Doug Merlino hasn't made a convert out of me, but, like any gifted writer, he's got me thinking seriously about the history, culture and business of professional cage fighting, and about the four aspiring combatants at the center of his book…Merlino maintains a nifty balancing act throughout Beast, keeping an objective, critical distance from the sport's culture…while becoming absorbed in the lives of its gladiators. His narrative tone is more often philosophical than raucous.

The New York Times Book Review - Ihsan Taylor

07/13/2015
In this insightful look at mixed martial arts (MMA), Merlino offers a window into the sport's octagon ring through four "high-level fighters" from one of the three MMA "supercamps" in the U.S. Unlike other writers on the same topic, Merlino doesn't profile fighters whom readers might have heard about or seen on television; instead, he focuses on the guys who are still trying to make it to the top level. They are the men who fight to fight another day. While their paths are all different, with some fighting strictly within the U.S. while others travel all the way to Kazakhstan or Russia, each has one goal in mind: to make it in the sport. Success would provide money to support their families and their dreams, and they are all willing to do what is necessary, even if it means the destruction of their own health. One of the men Merlino profiles takes a second fight two weeks after being knocked out, because he was stiffed by the first fight's promoter and needed the money. Merlino provides an enhanced picture for anyone who wants to look past the glitz and glamour of the spotlights presented on television and see the grit and sacrifice required from anyone who wants to step into the octagon. Agent: Zoe Pagnamento, Zoe Pagnamento Agency. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"Easily the best book on MMA that I have ever read." —Eddie Goldman, No Holds Barred

“An intimate portrayal of the world of Mixed Martial Arts . . . Told in a candid and nicely flowing conversational tone, this story will certainly appeal to MMA followers but may also attract a broader range of sports fans, in the manner of John Feinstein’s similar days-in-the-life accounts. The best of the growing collection of MMA literature.” —starred review, Booklist

"Merlino is able to get into these fighters’ minds and souls to find out what exactly makes them tick. This is as inside a look at MMA as you’re going to get without actually being there yourself. A must-read for MMA fans." —MMA Manifesto

“One of the best books written on MMA; readers don’t have to be fans of the sport to appreciate this story.” —Library Journal

“Insightful . . . Merlino provides an enhanced picture for anyone who wants to look past the glitz and glamour of the spotlights presented on television and see the grit and sacrifice required from anyone who wants to step into the octagon.” —Publishers Weekly

“Merlino consistently captures the grit, determination, and sheer willpower of these hungry warriors . . . Fascinating.” —Kirkus Reviews

“This is more than a tour guide of a violent underworld. It is also a philosophic statement about conflict, understanding it, facing it, owning it, dealing with it. A wonderful dark read.” —Bill Buford, author of AMONG THE THUGS and HEAT

“Beautifully reported and written with rollicking flair, Beast is every bit as electric as the ferocious sport it chronicles. Doug Merlino’s extraordinary book perfectly captures not only the brutal splendor of mixed martial arts, but also the ways in which so many ambitious young men and women seek salvation through controlled violence. By the time you reach the last page, you will be so emotionally invested in each fighter’s turbulent journey that you’ll yearn for a sequel—or, better yet, a trilogy.” —Brendan I. Koerner, author of THE SKIES BELONG TO US

“A poignant, intimate look at professional fighters and their lives. Merlino pulls you in as he was pulled in; and in the end, understanding is earned, not given.” —Sam Sheridan, author of A FIGHTER'S HEART and THE FIGHTER'S MIND

“What makes us fight? Doug Merlino enters the dark world of mixed martial arts and discovers a landscape of pain, humor, fear, and tremendous courage. With elegant writing and tenacious reporting, Merlino makes us care about these men and the elemental humanity of their stories.” —Claire Dederer, author of POSER: MY LIFE IN TWENTY-THREE YOGA POSES

“Doug Merlino takes the reader way down into the grain of fighting lives: the gym, the road, the business, the complexities of desire and fear, the spectacle of fight night. A patiently observed, deeply felt book about the craft and meaning of skilled violence.” —Carlo Rotella, author of CUT TIME: AN EDUCATION AT THE FIGHTS

“To win inside the cage, you fight yourself as hard as you fight any opponent. Beast takes us into the lives of men fighting these battles in an intense portrait of very human struggles—physical, emotional, and philosophical—and into the crazy history of how MMA came to be the stage for brutal glory that it is today.Beast is blood-soaked and heartrending.” —David Shoemaker (aka the Masked Man), author of THE SQUARED CIRCLE: LIFE, DEATH, AND PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING

From the Publisher

07/01/2015
When Merlino (The Hustle) became interested in mixed martial arts (MMA) and wanted to learn more about the sport, he studied several fighters at the Florida-based gym American Top Team (ATT). Fighters were analyzed in their homes, at fight camps, and even in the moments before, during, and after matches. Profiled are veteran fighters such as Jeff Monson, who continues to fight in his 40s as his body quickly deteriorates. Meanwhile, up-and-comers Mirsad Bektic and Steve Mocco's lives are examined in detail. Notably, there are mentions of Daniel Straus, an ex-con on his way to becoming a champion. Wins propel fighters up the ladder to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the highest organization in the sport. Merlino documents the highest goal (to win a UFC Championship) and the risks that come along with it: low pay, grueling practices, fight camps, and stress. VERDICT One of the best books written on MMA; readers don't have to be fans of the sport to appreciate this story. A worthy read for fans of sports, MMA, overcoming obstacles, and intimate portraits of unique individuals.—Jason L. Steagall, Gateway Technical Coll., Elkhorn Lib., WI

Library Journal

2015-06-25
Journalist Merlino (The Hustle: One Team and Ten Lives in Black and White, 2010) delves into the fierce and unforgiving world of competitive mixed martial arts fighting. The no-holds-barred matches between MMA fighters, popularized by big-ticket Ultimate Fighting Championship specials, are a brutal combination of combat forms such as jujitsu, muay thai, kickboxing, and wrestling that takes place inside a caged arena. Unlike traditional boxing, MMA fighters are allowed to kick, takedown, and use grappling maneuvers to force their opponents to submit. The spectacle is a throwback to the days of gladiators, and MMA has attracted legions of fans for its testosterone-fueled mayhem. While it might seem easy to label the sport barbaric, the hulking fighters are mostly misunderstood. Seeking to correct this misrepresentation, Merlino—who inserted himself into the training camp at American Top Team, one of the most respected and revered MMA gyms in the country ("where you are received on your abilities, not your pedigree")—witnessed firsthand the struggle of each fighter striving to become a national prospect. Among them is Mirsad Bektic, whose family fled war-torn Bosnia when he was a child. Bektic represents a common theme among the many young aspiring fighters: MMA is a way of transcending their often tragic backgrounds. Some, however, just want to fight. Perhaps the most intriguing profile is of Jeff Monson, an over-the-hill fighter with a waning career and a master's degree in psychology. He's also a self-described anarchist and fervent anti-capitalist, and he's shy about sharing his beliefs. While the individual profiles vary, Merlino consistently captures the grit, determination, and sheer willpower of these hungry warriors. However, at times, the author is a static storyteller, trudging through repetitious detail and inserting chapters about his own involvement in the gym that read like noncommittal attempts at participatory journalism. A mostly fascinating exposé of the personalities behind the growing business of fighting.

Kirkus Reviews