Jade Morris is a girl who is firmly on her feet. An events and marketing manager with over 10 years experience, Jade is a widely known face in the UK MMA scene due to her position as a presenter for Bay TV. She has interviewed UFC fighters Lyoto Machida, Ross Pearson, Nico Musoke, Rosi Sexton and Mark Munoz and is an accomplished model/actress. Revgear have decided to sponsor Jade for her professionalism and great attitude towards MMA.
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Hi Jade. Welcome on board to Revgear. You've already told us a little about yourself, but we're keen to ask, what got you involved in MMA? Thank you, it’s great to join the Revgear family! I have been following MMA for a while and it was actually my cousin who first introduced me to the sport; he owns a MMA clothing store in Australia and has every UFC dvd out there. He explained the history of MMA, the different fighting styles and of course the UFC. We watched some of Chuck Liddell’s greatest moments and that was it I was hooked with the sport and I knew I wanted to get involved with it. MMA is a growing sport in the UK and it is exciting to be a part of that and help put more UK fighters in the spotlight. I approached Bay TV with the idea of doing an MMA show as they where looking for new ideas for their TV channel. To which they replied if I can prove there is a following in the UK then they will do it. Looking back it was a bit of a bold move but I was determined and I marched into the Liverpool MMA Gym Next Generation and asked the head coach if I could interview his fighters and help promote them. They were so friendly and easy to work with; I worked firstly with Danny Roberts for Cage Warriors 57 and our interview got thousands of hits. Since then I have been invited backstage to work at Cage Warriors, Bamma and the UFC interviewing the likes of Mark Munoz, Lyoto Machida, Rosi Sexton, Mike Wootten and Paul Daley. What do you like most about your role in the MMA world? Honestly… I love helping the fighters promote themselves. There are a lot of great fighters out there but they just need the right platform and that is what I am trying to do. I have a lot of respect for fighters as they are great athletes and sometimes fans forget just what the fighters have to put themselves through and what they sacrifice for the sport. That is why I started directing fighter diaries too so fans could see what goes on behind the cage and everything leading up to their fights. Who was your favourite fighter to interview/meet? Mark Munoz! He is the nicest and most humble guy I have ever met! I got the chance to interview him ahead of his fight against Lyoto Machida for UFC Fight Night in Manchester and I was completely starstruck! I really can’t say enough nice things about that man he is a true champ and a great role model for the UFC. What was your best experience so far in MMA? My best experience so far was finally getting the opportunity to watch the UFC live in the UK! As dedicated UK fans will know it’s one thing to watch the fights on your laptop at 5am… but to be at the fight live and be no more than 10ft away from ‘The Octagon’ is the best experience I’ve had. The atmosphere from the crowd was amazing and the fights certainly didn’t disappoint. Revgear sponsors professionalism and you are certainly a professional when it comes to presenting MMA shows. However, you also have interests in the acting and modeling world? What should someone know about you outside of MMA? To speak in MMA terms I guess you could say I am very well rounded! I have a degree in Public Relations and have worked in event management for over ten years; I’ve been lucky enough to work all over the world on many sports and music events. I’ve always loved anything to do with backstage sets, be that film, music or sport. I went to a performing arts school studying acting and worked in film, radio and theatre. I also enjoy directing and screenwriting so I moved to New York and directed five short films and gained a Filmmaking Diploma from The New York Film Academy. When it comes to modeling I worked with a few different photographers and my latest work was a sunset shoot in Australia, which was a lot of fun! I met the photographer backstage whilst he was filming a Fashion TV event and he asked if I would do a shoot for him. This ironically enough led me to get a role as ring girl for Australian Boxing Championships! Have you ever trained MMA? If yes, tell us about it, if not, would you ever want to? I used to do a bit of kickboxing but that’s it! Although I am just about to start Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai with UFC Veteran and Black Belt Jason Tan who runs The MMA Academy in Liverpool. He is also Mike Wootten’s (Team Rousey- The Ultimate Fighter) head coach so I know I am in good hands! What do you think of UK MMA as a whole? How far have we come since you started presenting? I think MMA is growing in the UK and since I have started presenting I have noticed that it is getting a lot more media attention now. We are still in the early stages of course but we have a lot of great British fighters now coming through and showcasing their talent on UK promotions such as Bamma and Cage Warriors. When the UFC signed a contract deal with BT Sports I think that is what catapulted MMA as it has made the UFC more accessible to UK fans. As I mentioned before you really have to be dedicated to wait up until 5am to watch fights on your laptop like I did but it has been so much easier to watch now. I really like what BT Sports has done to promote the MMA world further such as ‘Beyond The Octagon’, which gives fans an insight into the sport and the fighters. Lorenzo Fertitta recently stated that they want to focus on the UK next year, which is very exciting! With the UFC recently hosting a female versus female Ultimate Fighter, do you think females are well represented in the UFC? Well put it this way… everyone knows who Ronda Rousey is right? She is a superstar even outside of MMA! Although Ronda doesn’t always seem to get a good rep you can’t deny that she has put women’s MMA on the map! That includes Miesha Tate who is also a role model for women’s MMA. The UFC have created a great platform for female fighters and have just launched a women’s strawweight division. If that isn’t enough they have also announced they will have an all women’s season of The Ultimate Fighter! Some women we've spoken to haven't approved of ring-girls as MMA becomes more modern. You've worked as one so your insight would be great. What do you think of ring-girls? Personally I think ring-girls are great! No matter how ‘modern’ MMA becomes having ring-girls is all part of the MMA structure! It would be a shame for that to change! Favourite fighter? I have to mention Chael Sonnen… I swear that man will run for president one-day haha! But my favourite fighter is Urijah Faber! His fighting style is so explosive and he is just so exciting to watch in the UFC. Team Alpha Male are on fire at the moment and are getting even better with Duane Ludwig there! I think Urijah is a great role model for the sport and he has a lot of time for his fans, which is nice to see. Favourite food? Steak and sweet potato mash! Favourite way to unwind from such a busy schedule? When I’m not working I enjoy relaxing and watching the UFC fights… in my Onesie with a cup of tea! That probably just made me less cool haha! I’ll admit I also love watching Here Comes The Boom! Kevin James makes me laugh every time! Plans for the future? To continue working in the MMA scene and help it grow!….............................
Thanks very much for talking to us. Revgear is excited to have you on board!
