• Few clouds
  • 79°
    Few clouds

sponsored by Edina Realty

  • Comment

Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia, like one big 'fighting' family

Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia embraces MMA

Posted: March 16, 2012 - 9:28pm
Back | Next
Nikki Glomski handled her sister Jo while wrestling at the Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia building on Front Street in Brainerd this week.   Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
Nikki Glomski handled her sister Jo while wrestling at the Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia building on Front Street in Brainerd this week.

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) — a combination of boxing, wrestling, karate, jiujitsu and kickboxing among other combat styles — tends to get a bit of gruff for being “excessively violent.” But Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia (FAFIA), an MMA training center located in downtown Brainerd, is proving that the newly popularized sport is just as much about family as it is about fighting.

“We’re really just a giant and somewhat dysfunctional family,” said Alicia Nauheimer, whose fiance Steve Foslien owns and operates FAFIA. “You see how hard they train, and how much time is put into it, you become so close to everyone involved.

“We’ve become a family, watch each others kids, bring the kids to the gym and overall just really care about each other...watching them fight has brough that to us.”

Foslien, who hails from California, moved his MMA aspirations from Dallas to Brainerd just over three years ago. Starting from humble beginnings in his longtime friend, Christopher Santiago’s sister’s basement in to the building on Front Street that FAFIA is now housed in, the space allows everything from merchandise, to watching and of course actual training, as Foslien’s vision has now become a reality.

“This has been my passion and my livelihood for as long as I can remember,” said Foslien, who began his MMA training at the age of 8. “We’ve grown so much over the past three years, going from just a couple fighters on a (competition) card to nine for our latest (Savage Entertainment) upcoming event in April.

“And while we’re mainly an MMA school for guys who want to fight in the cage, lately we’re picking up a lot of moms and kids which has been awesome.”

FAFIA offers four different options outside of MMA training, with FAFIA (for adults interested in learning and training for MMA) lil’ FAFIA (MMA courses for kids 4-16), women’s power hour (self-defense and kickboxing) and men’s jiujitsu/boxing/self-defense. A little bit of something for everybody.

“FAFIA is really specifically designed for people looking to get in to cage fighting,” said Foslien, who has a purple belt in jiujitsu. “We do a lot of take down defense and cardio to train how to keep standing up and throwing punches.

“In our women’s class we do a lot of kickboxing, as that seems to be what they really want to do but we like to mix it up and do something new and different each time, especially trying to focus on getting out of a physically dangerous situation.”

“And then we’ve got 10-12 children in our lil’FAFIA right now, with our youngest being a four-year-old girl. They have a lot of fun in there, Matt Thurstin, one of our MMA fighters teaches that course and the kids have a great time with him.”

Apparent from the moment two lil’FAFIA members walked in to the studio, Nicki and Jill Glomski, was the amount of fun to be had by all ages.

“I love playing dodgeball in class,” said Jill with a giant grin on her face and who quickly added, “except when (Matt) Thurstin cheats!” To which he replied, “I don’t cheat I’m just that good.”

  • Comment

Comments (153)

Add comment
ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here and for following agreed-upon rules of civility. Posts and comments do not reflect the views of this site. Posts and comments are automatically checked for inappropriate language, but readers might find some comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules, click the "Flag as offensive" link below the comment.
Cidder
339
Points
Cidder 03/22/12 - 11:27 pm
1
3

So much functional illiteracy on display here.

Dear proponents of human dog-fighting,

Please take some time out of your busy schedule of punching each other in the head to learn some basic second grade grammar.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 03/22/12 - 11:52 pm
3
1

Whether you think I have

Whether you think I have correct grammer or not doesnt matter, you still read what I say and understand my words...any other child like pokes you would like to make?

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 03/23/12 - 12:15 am
2
1

Hi, this is Steve Foslien, I

Hi, this is Steve Foslien, I own the Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia. I understand there are a lot of mixed feelings, sad, angry etc. Please try to remember that at the top of this page there is a picture of two little girls smiling and having fun in their martial arts class. If you don't respect the fighters and what we do, please respect the women and children of our school. After reading the paper this week, I think it is really easy to understand the public's misconception of our school. For example, the name, The Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia, this all started with three close friends that had nothing to do with their time outside of working at McDonald's and playing video games, who looked up at a Playstation 2 poster on the wall (which we still have hanging in the back of our gym) the name of the video game was "Mafia." That's right, this gym was started by a couple of video game nerds that were taking private jiu jitsu lessons for two weeks. :-) Please take the time to stop and think a little bit for the kids, thank you.

Steve Foslien
Owner of The Brainerd Lakes Fight Mafia
218-825-3829

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/23/12 - 02:15 am
4
1

"Dear proponents of human

"Dear proponents of human dog-fighting,

Please take some time out of your busy schedule of punching each other in the head to learn some basic second grade grammar."

Cidder,

Your vast knowledge of everything wows everyone yet again. I can't understand why someone of your self proclaiming caliber, continues to negatively troll a newspaper articles comment section such as this one. Perhaps taking that superior brain of yours to a more productive forum would better suit your needs for the personal satisfaction you are looking for?

Cidder
339
Points
Cidder 03/24/12 - 09:56 pm
1
2

Human Dog Fighting is a blight on our town.

As has been demonstrated by what one of the pit-bulls did out at Zorbaz.

Not one single proponent of human dog fighting has stepped up to denounce what happened. Not a single one.

Instead, it is all excuses and twisted reasoning.

Not ONE single adult from the cage fighting club has been willing to step up and admit the obvious. A crime was committed by one of their members.

What a dishonorable and shameful example to provide for the young people of this community.

You folks go ahead and raise your children to fight each other in blood smeared cages. Teach your children that it is ALWAYS the fault of someone else. Teach them to never face up to consequences. Teach them to blame everyone else all the time.

The rest of us will raise our children to be honorable, strong, honest and decent people.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/24/12 - 01:15 am
3
0

First him, then the group, now the parents?

Cidder, you really are special aren't you? You absolutely refuse to accept how and why things happened that night. You are stuck on the fact that he was trained in MMA and persistantly try to push the problem on the others (You must secretivley work for the dispatch huh?). Why should anyone in that group denounce what happened? Was it their fault?

The obvious? It doesn't take being a rocket scientist to know how things went, when it blaitenly says it in the paper. Did you even read my other post? Or was that to simple for your advanced mind to understand? I mean the victim even admit to being drunk and following Will out, not leaving him alone.

Now your going to try the desperate angle of telling parents how to raise their own kids. Really? How many different things are you going to blame this on? First him, then the group, now the parent? Read Camels paragraph while your at it genius. Sounds like your still living in the 70's. You think your on some kind of high horse when it sounds like your riding a donkey. Good job on the self thumbs-up btw.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/24/12 - 03:30 am
3
0

"What a dishonorable and

"What a dishonorable and shameful example to provide for the young people of this community.

You folks go ahead and raise your children to fight each other in blood smeared cages. Teach your children that it is ALWAYS the fault of someone else. Teach them to never face up to consequences. Teach them to blame everyone else all the time.

The rest of us will raise our children to be honorable, strong, honest and decent people.

" -- Cidder.

You must be a politician or the worst hypocrit I've seen.

Go tell that to the parents of the drunk guy who couldn't stay out of the lives of a couple with a child. That's real honorable, decent and respectful there.

Yes, parents of tomorrow. Please teach your children how to not stay out of the lives of another couple, please teach them not to quit when they should and please teach them to overly consume alcohol and expect no consequences from their liquid courage actions they can barely remember. According to your perspective the victims parents should be at blame then.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 03/24/12 - 12:49 pm
2
0

@Cidder

Did you not read what Steve Foslien posted? Hello...anyone in there? You keep changing your argument just to have one...there is no problems with our kids, and blood smeared cages? Obviously you've never been to an event, its not every fight that results in blood, or even a KO, SUBMITTED means they were not knocked out, research Jiu Jitsu a little bit, then talk to me.

Cidder
339
Points
Cidder 03/24/12 - 10:14 pm
1
2

Again...not one single shred of honor.

The courts have a way of dealing with people who break the law.

This silly little "fight club" will be out of business within 6 months.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 03/25/12 - 12:14 am
2
0

@Cidder

Not only will we be open 6 months from now, but we will be here, and bigger, for years too come, but thank you for all of your attention and enthusiasm towards our business :-) We have a lot of families and students that attend our gym, as a new business, we are gaining a lot of new students, and have been since we opened.

STFUAlready
0
Points
STFUAlready 03/25/12 - 01:21 am
2
0

@Cidder

I'd hate to hear what you think about our military!

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/25/12 - 01:50 am
2
1

anauheimer.....I can't

anauheimer.....I can't tell...is he setting himself up to blame the law next if Will is not given a 1st degree? And why is he only responding to you? My little brain wants to grow Cidder. Where is my answer to this?

"What a dishonorable and shameful example to provide for the young people of this community.

You folks go ahead and raise your children to fight each other in blood smeared cages. Teach your children that it is ALWAYS the fault of someone else. Teach them to never face up to consequences. Teach them to blame everyone else all the time.

The rest of us will raise our children to be honorable, strong, honest and decent people.

" -- Cidder.

You must be a politician or the worst hypocrit I've seen.

Go tell that to the parents of the drunk guy who couldn't stay out of the lives of a couple with a child. That's real honorable, decent and respectful there.

Yes, parents of tomorrow. Please teach your children how to not stay out of the lives of another couple, please teach them not to quit when they should and please teach them to overly consume alcohol and expect no consequences from their liquid courage actions they can barely remember. According to your perspective the victims parents should be at blame then.

If you don't have answers for the responces from the retardidness that comes from your brain down to those little fingertips of yours. You should probably just not comment at all.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/25/12 - 02:02 am
3
1

@STFUAlready

Yea no kidding huh?

This guy could trip over his own two feet and say it was the guy across the streets fault for looking at him.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/25/12 - 02:29 am
3
1

"The courts have a way of

"The courts have a way of dealing with people who break the law.

This silly little "fight club" will be out of business within 6 months."

-- Cidder

You are now officially the dumbest person on this article to me. Can I please please, pretty please read from you ATLEAST another 5 more times your incoherent, off subject reasonings as to why the group itself is going to suffer? Or get in trouble for one person? What can the law do to that group? What can anyone do to the group? I'm sick of saying it.

Man, If I had thought patterns like yours, I would have to run myself as fast as I could, head first into a brickwall.

Wolfire
0
Points
Wolfire 03/25/12 - 10:43 am
3
1

@ cider

Since mma is dog fighting I would hate to see what military, hunting, boxing, wrestling, football, etc. More people get severely injured, and live a much shorter life in the dangerous world of football. Unlike your dog fighting that you enjoy these people live lives and go to work, enjoy friends and family, are regular every day americans doing a sport on thier own time with thier own free will. I also noticed that you condone and are alright with all other sports, and thier "off field" issues. You don't mention anything about a athlete from any sport committing a violent crime and holding thier team, and sport accountable. You need to quit blaming society for your failure of life and try changing your own.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 03/25/12 - 12:41 pm
2
1

@wolfire

"You need to quit blaming society for your failure of life and try changing your own."

So true in this persons case and many others.

Wolf, he thinks he is fooling someone. The guy is either a friend of the victim or the person from the Dispatch. He is the only one going 100% for one side. I have to give myself a reason to continue checking this article, and it's solely to see his comments so I can laugh each day and respond.

He is picking and choosing who he responds too now. Shows his character has nothing left. Either it's that or I'm on ignore lol.

iloverescues
0
Points
iloverescues 03/26/12 - 08:56 am
2
1

@ Cidder

The truly biggest blight on our society is people who's minds are so closed they refuse to accept anything they don't agree with. Obviously you can't even open your mind enough to learn the difference between a puppy and a human adult. Like it or not, MMA is the fastest growing sport in the world right now. Since you've made it apparent you actually know very little about it, you're probably unaware that there are also other gyms in the area with fight teams. This is not the only one, neither they nor the sport are going away. From a business standpoint, the easiest thing to do here would have been for them to throw Will under the bus, but this group has love and compassion for all of their members that trancends above and beyond the easy way out and I don't see how you can fault them for a moral code most families should (but many don't) have. Maybe, if at some point in your life you had people around you who loved and cared about you so unconditionally, you wouldn't be so bitter.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 03/26/12 - 11:52 am
2
1

@iloverescues

Couldn't have said it better myself! That was nice to see, thank you! It is true, we are not leaving Will to stand alone, especially during the hardest time of his life!

Cidder
339
Points
Cidder 03/28/12 - 10:12 pm
1
1

LOL!

I confess!! I have never been punched in the head by my parents!

It's just so NORMAL to punch each other in the head. That's just true LOVE! What a great family! Teaching kids to live in cages. Teaching kids to hurt each other.

6 months. 6 months and this blight on our town will be out of business.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 04/01/12 - 01:37 am
1
1

@Cidder

I'll check back in with you 6 months from now ;-)

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 04/02/12 - 01:54 am
2
0

@Cidder LOL

Haha! Another self thumbs-up. How many times are you going to say the same things? I go on vacation and come back to see you posting the same kind of comments. You are the greatest thing to grace this forum section. Since your so self-centered.....

I can only imagine how lucky your children are to have such a smart father, to tell them how to run away from things and not be able to defend themselves. That way when the situation arises for when they have no option but to fight back, hopefully the stench of their urine will ward off the attackers. I feel sorry for your children. They'll probably grow up as fat slobs expecting things to be handed to them, ones who complain about anything and everything because they weren't allowed to experience things of their choice, let alone anything exciting and interesting.

There is a big difference between learning MMA self-defense and just beating on one another.

MMA dead in 6 months in this town? I challenge you and I'll put $1,000 bucks down and reveal myself that it'll still be here in Brainerd.

triumph
0
Points
triumph 04/06/12 - 11:43 am
0
1

Wow

First things first, victim did not "follow" anyone out of the bar. Victim was not even the first person assaulted by so called family man. Family man pushed ANOTHER guy in the bar and victim stepped in to cool things down knowing both parties.
Jokeacality, you know NOTHING. You talk about someone stepping in between parents and causing problems, what are these children with children doing airing their dirty, jealous laundry in a bar drunk?
The whole thing stinks, it sounds like the family man is a pretty decent fella who made a mistake, guys get wound up, especially when ladies and other guys are involved. Unfortunately, family man is a trained fighter and is held to a different standard then everyone else. He can NOT go around punching people drunk in bars, under any circumstances. I hope it doesn't ruin his life.
Camel, I am ashamed of you, if this [filtered word] would have gone down at one of the fine establishments that you work the door so very well at, you would have been slapping these clowns silly, maybe even putting one right over your knee for a spanking. You of all people should not be questioning or bad mouthing any security.
The punch was witnessed by several people and was basically a sucker punch, you don't have to pummel or stomp someone to kill or hurt them critically. Everyone involved is lucky his head hit the ground the way it did or he could be dead.
Enough with the excuses, NO ONE except the idiots involved are to blame.
Cidder, grow up. You are all here for me to poop on. Triumph

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 04/07/12 - 11:51 am
1
0

@triumph

So you were there and saw all this, right? How do you sucker punch someone in the mouth? "Victim" admitted he swung first, what story have you been reading? I think your on the wrong page...

triumph
0
Points
triumph 04/07/12 - 07:05 pm
0
1

@Weinerheimer

You were there? You have NO idea what you're talking about. There is no reason to debate with you, all you do is deflect and make excuses. Your excuses suck by the way. It would be in the family mans best interest to cut ties with all you dummies because you all are really making the situation worse. This is a serious situation, your boy is in big trouble and all you @&$holes are worried about is how it affects the "Fafia" you are most definitely here for me to poop on.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 04/08/12 - 11:15 am
1
0

Everyone, men, women, and

Everyone, men, women, and children are all cared about at our business. To let fools try and say every one of those people is bad now is ridiculous. There are a lot of pieces that come with this that you will never understand, and frankly someone who displays such idiocy isn't worth the time.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 04/16/12 - 11:45 am
0
0

@Triumph

I know nothing? You need to go back and read everything before you try to throw stabs at me. You talk like you were actually there? Well, were you? Probably not. Sounds like you just want to throw your half a penny in, in hopes that someone will find your posts "cool". I wasn't their and admit it. I simply broke down the paper comments by everyone who WAS there, saw it and their testimonies. So throw all the stabs at everyone you want, what was written in the paper was writtten. And for the record, yea their both to blame, but security is to blame the most. Their job is to difuse situations exactly like that, any normal bouncer does NOT let two people ready to go at, close to one another after (read the paper again) one was already escorted out. How was the other able to get outside? And there was no suckerpunch, it blaintenly says it in the paper straight from the victims mouth.

"your boy is in big trouble and all you @&$holes are worried about is how it affects the "Fafia" you are most definitely here for me to poop on." - triumph

All you @SSholes? Your another one who is calling them ALL @$$holes/jerks etc? You know It's kinda hard to poop on someone when your head is so far up your own @$$ that your eating it first.

triumph
0
Points
triumph 04/16/12 - 12:44 pm
0
0

@practicality

Thank you for showing your stupidity again. I have read every one of your posts, I love the spelling. You must be a real genius with all the big words and stuff. I was wondering why it took so long for you to respond but you must have needed that big book to help you spell all those big words you keep tossing around.
I could care less what people think of my posts you Dummy. I speak the truth, was I there? Not at the exact time of the assault. I was in the parking lot just prior. The people that I have spoken with were there and SOBER.
You should ask yourself, why did the family man and his "crew" park in the parking lot next door to Zorbaz when the Zorbaz lot was half full?
Where was he when the police came as he was only "defending" himself?
Why was he kicked out of the bar?
The kid outside is not even the SAME GUY family man got into it with inside!!! Why would security be looking for him?
Quit defending these idiots. If they want to be tough guys, do it in the gym where it doesn't affect anyone else. There are normal people with families that want to go out and not have to deal with all these pumped up testosterone knuckleheads.
It is not some bouncer or doorman's job to watch these dirt bags so they don't act up or attack someone. It is each individuals job to act like a human being!
If you can't drink and act normal, DON'T DRINK. Practicality, you are a real [filtered word] sticking up for these jerks.
The real truth about what family man and his posse were up to that night is coming out soon and I don't think you will be happy about about defending these clowns.
Once again, I poop on you.

Practicality
1
Points
Practicality 04/27/12 - 04:14 pm
0
0

Triumph

Your trying to rant on to me about how you speak the truth. You obviously haven't read all my posts. Once again I'm stateing what I got out of the papers comments because I wasn't there. You were there prior to the incident but not the time it happened? So you know everything because you talked to people who were apparently there. So what? It's all incidental at this time and has no bearing with my argument here till the hearing is over. If you could take the time to pull your head out of your [filtered word], you'd be able to understand that. And it is each persons job to act like a human being, but [filtered word] happens. So if [filtered word] happens it's not the bouncers job to look after them? LOL! What are their jobs then? I highly doubt Zorbas pays them to just sit on their rears.
So if your right about everything, great good for you. Till then you can keep throwing jabs trying to inflate that head of yours because you hate the whole group, one person doesn't equal a group but I guess your simple math is better than mine. Your argument with me is about the BDD's write-up and what was included in it. Till DBB writes more about the situation all this hearsay means nothing to me.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 05/24/12 - 09:34 am
1
0

Picking. Thats all your doing

Picking. Thats all your doing Cidder. OMG! FIGHT MAFIA GUYS ARE LOOKING AT JUICE!!! Don't need to defend against something petty...how much has the Warriors Alliance contributed? Yeah, they train MMA fighters too! Don't worry, any contributions we make wont be good enough in your eyes anyway, but how about you ask the kids in our kids class about the paper their teachers have to fill out showing they are up to date on their homework, and keeping their grades up? Ask about our 2.5 GPA requirement to stay in the class? Why dont you ask about if those kids are behind in homework who helps them with it? Our fighters. Thats SUCH a bad look, huh? Kids being helped with homework...sheesh. Your rants are entertaining, but extremely transparent.

Anauheimer
159
Points
Anauheimer 05/24/12 - 09:44 am
1
0

We're superheros, that

We're superheros, that explains everything! And P.S....free classes have been offered to the Womens Shelter, but we cant say anything else about it for their safety...call them, and check it out :-) For all the other things with donations, you will just have to wait and see, how does The Disabled Veterans Fund sound? Yep. We are SO evil.

Back to Top

Spotted

Please Note: You may have disabled JavaScript and/or CSS. Although this news content will be accessible, certain functionality is unavailable.

Skip to News

« back

next »

  • title http://spotted.brainerddispatch.com/galleries/543808/ http://spotted.brainerddispatch.com/galleries/543803/ http://spotted.brainerddispatch.com/galleries/543798/
  • title http://spotted.brainerddispatch.com/galleries/543793/ http://spotted.brainerddispatch.com/galleries/543788/ http://spotted.brainerddispatch.com/galleries/543783/
  • title
Today in Photos 05.13.13 to 05.19.13

CONTACT US

  • Switchboard 218-829-4705
  • Report News 218-855-5860
  • Advertising 218-855-5835
  • Classifieds 218-855-5898
  • Circulation 218-855-5897
  • View the Staff Directory
  • or Send feedback

ADVERTISING

SUBSCRIBER SERVICES

SOCIAL NETWORKING