Sports Illustrated

I’ve been reading Sports Illustrated since forever. Or at least looking at it. Even before I was old enough to appreciate the prurient spectacle of the annual swimsuit issue (see an example, at left), I loved the pictures in this magazine. Talk about a publication that was true to its name — SI illustrated the world of sports in high definition long before the television technology existed.

And growing up as a sports fan who aspired to be a writer, Sports Illustrated was a natural place to gravitate toward to nurture and satisfy that yearning as well. I read Frank Deford and Robert Creamer in those pages, and later Rick Reilly and my old Boston Globe friend Leigh Montville. SI has always been the place to go for great sportswriting.

So how cool was it to be brought on as the mixed martial arts columnist for the online version of Sports Illustrated? (Yes, I wrote for the website, not the print pub, but chose to use the magazine cover here for obvious reasons.)

I had been writing about MMA for an upstart website called The Faster Times and also had contributed some features and fight-night coverage to ESPN Boston. The MMA editor at SI.com liked my work, had an opening and invited me on board. It didn’t take me long to accept the invitation.

You can read every word I wrote for SI.com (well, at least my final six months’ worth) by clicking here. Or you can sample some selected contributions below:

Au Revoir, Josh: St-Pierre jab stops Koscheck’s jabbering, to the delight of Montreal.

All Saints Day: St-Pierre has more than the crowd in his favor at UFC 124.

He’s the Ultimate: Reality show winner Brookins might not be instant star, but give him time.

Dan is the Man: At 40, Henderson shows he still has it with Strikeforce KO.

Choice Viewing: UFC and Strikeforce give fans two TV options.