PIONEER VILLAGE — One firefighter at Zoneton Fire fights more than just fires.
Blake Alvey, a recent addition to the department, is also pursuing a career as a mixed martial artist.
The long road toward a professional MMA career will lead to a short drive on March 29, when Alvey will compete on the card of Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) 180 at Broadbent Arena in Louisville.
This will be Alvey’s seventh fight, coming in with a 4-2 record. He will represent Future of Fighting, a team coached by Area 502 MMA owner Phillip Perkins.
“LFA is mostly professional (fighters), with a few amateurs on the card,” Alvey said. “It’s one step down from Ultimate Fighting Championship. This is a pretty big deal for me.”
Raised in Louisville and now a Taylorsville resident, Alvey began his full-time firefighting career in December. The firefighter job was suggested by Marcus Hudson of Full Moon Martial Arts in Okolona, who previously worked with Alvey at Area 502.
“It’s hard to work, train, and pursue an MMA career,” he said. “The reason I chose Zoneton is that was where the firefighter school was available.”
Alvey previously worked as an entry-level motorcycle mechanic, then worked on cars for Wal-Mart.
“I liked the aspect of working with my hands and solving problems,” he said. “Firefighting is similar. It’s something I thought would be entertaining, but also a respectable and responsible career.”
The MMA bug first bit Alvey at age 14, when he first considered pursuing a career.
“It sounded cool,” he said. “I saw myself as a superhero. I loved athletics but I was never the biggest guy. I ran half-marathons at age eight. I never found another sport where it made sense to pursue it.”
In fact, Alvey considered his three reality checks in life to be “MMA, high school graduation, and firefighting.”
“The kind of person you have to be in MMA is the type of person I want to be,” he said. “I was always more insecure, but now I’ve learned the lessons. I can do anything in the world if I put myself in the right mindset. I have been given a life’s purpose.”
At age 20, Alvey was a student during the Covid Pandemic era, stuck at home and missing out on some of the fun school events.
“I was faced with hard questions about what to do,” he said. “I was passionate about MMA, it excites me, and I believed I was the kind of person that it takes to be good in MMA. This is where I want to be in life. Down to its core, it’s both my passion and my purpose.”
When Alvey first began training with Area 502, he took his initial lumps like every other new contender.
“They introduced me to it, and they tore me up,” he admitted. “Then I figured out about size, I learned techniques and developed size.”
Alvey’s first official match took place in front of family and friends, including his parents, Bob and Stacy. At the time, the victory at the end was his proudest achievement, a “fairy tale moment” in his career.
“There’s an energy in the room when you watch someone walk out,” he said of the matches. “It’s like a man test. At the end, when I won, I saw my family jumping up and down, celebrating. My parents were proud to see that I accomplished it by myself. Now they’re all the way on board. Mom is a little more supportive… she’s my biggest fan.”
Still at amateur status entering his seventh match, Alvey admitted it was better to remain as such for the time being while continuing to learn and master the art of MMA performance.
“I’m learning more at the amateur level,” he said. “Once you go pro, you can’t go back. Pros are fighting to feed their kids, it’s more survival and more brutal. I’m just waiting it out to get as much experience as I can. I’m waiting for my opportunity.”
Alvey said LFA was one step below UFC, which is considered the premier MMA league. LFA features cards throughout the United States and internationally.
“Amateurs on their cards are more rare,” he said. “This is a pretty big deal for me. Broadbent Arena will be the biggest arena I’ll have fought in.”
Future of Fighting is a local promotion with a handful of MMA fighters and five-star boxers. Alvey said the team provided a solid coaching foundation for everyone involved. His initial training with the promotion involved jiu jitsu techniques.
“My foundation is as a grappler,” he said. “I have since developed a better striking style. I’m more like a war general… I consider myself as more of a strategist.”
Alvey is confident in his skills and excited to compete in such a major event in front of essentially a hometown crowd. He hopes the moment will become another personal highlight, as big as his first experience in the octagon.
“You have to be 18, and I had planned on this since I was 15,” he said. “I trained and sacrificed all through my teen years. I turned 18 a week before my first match. My opponent tapped out in the first round. I looked out and noticed everyone that’s ever cared for me in the crowd, losing their minds. That’s a moment I’ll never forget, the satisfaction of that moment.”
LFA 180 is scheduled to begin at 6:30 pm on March. 29 at Broadbent Arena. Alvey’s contest will be a featherweight bout against Hayden “Honey” Russell, who enters the match with a 2-0 record.
Tickets are available for purchase at ticketmaster.com/event/1600603163220921?did=alvey.
Alvey is officially sponsored by Upper Kuts Barber Shop and Gary Muncy Muscular Therapy, and is accepting further sponsorships. For more information, email alvey.investments@gmail.com.