Extreme Fighting Championship bantamweight champion Faeez Jacobs has not let the lockdown get to him.
As always, the man is on his grind, growing and showing that passion for mixed martial arts and his people – despite the Covid-19 pandemic that has brought the world to a halt.
“Regardless of what, I am taking advantage of this time to level-up things that don’t get my attention when normal life is happening, and I am super happy for the way things have been going for me,” says the Mitchell’s Plain-born athlete who hardly allows things to get him down.
He has been very active on social media, interacting with his fans and friends and has also recently got on board the new Fight to Fame concept.
The EFC King – who recently beat Nkazimulo Zulu for the 60kg belt – has come on board the African leg of the Fight to Fame show in a trainer, actor and production assistant capacity to help the promotion of the product.
Designed to create Hollywood movie stars out of real-life combat sportsmen and women, Fight to Fame offers combat athletes another opportunity to utilise their skills as combat athletes outside of traditional fighting promotions such as the EFC or UFC.
“I think Fight to Fame is a really cool idea,” says the Fighterz Inc. mixed martial artist.
The product which is being rolled out to 200 countries and regions across the globe will see fighters enter a reality show where they will compete and be subjected to several assessments and training.
The winners will then be given roles in major action films, creating a new generation of fighting action heroes such as Jet Li or Steven Segal.
“It has the potential to be quite a big show in South Africa. SA athletes will get an opportunity to do something different. Every martial artist draws some sort of inspiration from martial arts movies. So I can see a lot of people being interested,” says Faeez who is a big fan of Hollywood and combat icon, Bruce Lee. “A reality show that ends up in a contract to star in a movie, that is quite an idea.
“This is a chance to make history, because how many actual African athletes have starred in Hollywood movies as action heroes? For local athletes, this is an opportunity of a lifetime. Who doesn’t know Michael Jai White or Scott Adkins.”
For those of you who are not aware, Michael Jai White and Scott Adkins are action movie stars/combat athletes who took part in films such as Never Back Down and Undisputed II.
“If Scott Adkins decides tomorrow to take on an MMA fight, it’s going to be huge, so I think there is an opportunity to jump back and forth from acting to fighting and vice versa,” says Faeez.
“There are times when fighting has a slow period, during that period you need things like this to keep building and growing your brand. I think it’s epic.”
The Fight to Fame business model is wrapped around a #BMS (Blockchain, Movie and Sports) design. Basically, fans and the public can buy tokens to enter these Fight to Fame events and also use them to vote for their favourite contestants. Faeez (7-2), is yet to have his first title defence shot in the EFC since winning the belt in August last year.
The rangy and explosive athlete has been in top form and continues to grow as a MMA athlete. Since taking the throne of the bantamweight division, lots of fighters have been thrown in the hat to contest Faeez for the title. Nothing has been confirmed yet.
However, names such as Sylvester Chipfumbu, Irshaad Sayed, Jake Hadley and even Igeu Kabesa have been mentioned.
For more details on how to register for the FighttoFame, check out www.fighttofame.com