Today we’d like to introduce you to Jair Martinez.
Hi Jair, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
As a child, I had a tremendous admiration for all sports (still do) and truly all I would watch on tv as the older I got was just sports. I would beg my dad for cable tv because I would glue myself watching every single sports show I could but in particular I was highly attracted to boxing and soccer. Soccer was just because I played it mostly all my life and boxing was always around because we know that a large part of the Hispanic community we follow many boxers and glue ourselves to our TVs for the huge, per se “Mexican fights” during the time, and not only that I loved watching Mike Tyson fights for what he represented in the ring. My mother did not allow fully me to train for boxing nor watch the sport as we can understand where mothers come from and well that did not stop me from watching the fights behind her back as well, I would always collect magazines read them, and study the sport and do my own notes, I would even pretend I would commentate a game or a fight as I was a reporter and I still do.
I eventually was able to train in a boxing gym in my late teens and had a some fights in the amateur atmosphere and when it got to the point that I knew I was a bit late to go any further for either boxing and soccer, I told myself why not continue what you always wanted to do and become something in media. As we know the digital media era has sparked like a wildfire in the last 5-7 years and I saw the vision of myself wanted to be a platform where I could display my abilities and continue to grow and expand a page I am with. With no type of background of journalism I took this road on my own, knowing there’d be challenges but I knew what I signed up for.
At first, I started locally doing shows in the Dallas Fort Worth area as a reporter and just going here and there with no experience on what to do but I took it upon me to become something. I would watch reporters on YouTube/TV (this is the honest truth) like Marcos Villegas, Pedro Silva, David Faitelson to name a few and I would just try to learn from them and try to add more own flavor. While doing local media for boxing, an opportunity came to do be an editor/writer to cover the sport of soccer, which I took and enjoyed it but noticed that the era of writing articles isn’t the same as years before, so I switched to do graphics for the page. Along with that, I was able to be part of a website in Mexico, where I would write for the sport of boxing but again, I notice the work for writing isn’t as rewarding as I visualized, I wanted to be more in the interaction part as that was my main goal. While that was occurring for me, the opportunity came to be integrated with Fight Hub TV, I did not think twice because it was a goal for me to join the page as I kept up with it for many years, so as corny as it sounds, it was like a dream come true. Along with that, I started doing commentary for local boxing events as various people could see how I display myself and study the sport of boxing. I truly enjoy all of this, but it has been hard work and a lot of behind scenes, and I’m not fully content.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not one bit, like the saying goes, if it comes easy you usually let it go the same way. With the heavy rise of digital media, it is hard to stand out and be noticed because it’s so saturated and competitive that you have to work extra hard to given the opportunity or better yet be given the time to interact with the professional athletes. I remember “friends” telling me why would I even bother to do all this work if a chance to be part of something is slim, but I didn’t take those comments into consideration because well with everything doubt always knocks on the door, but it is up to us to listen to it. (Corny I know but it’s so true) As well, fighting for an opportunity to be added to a high profile page you have to stand out like a sore thumb or them finding you is like a needle in a hay stack. Many times I got turned down or told we’d get back to you and well it never came around but I am thankful for the “Yes’s and the No’s” because without those I am where I need to be today.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
With Fight Hub Tv, I currently serve as a boxing reporter traveling to different events across the nation and well also outside the country when the opportunity is presented. I currently conduct interviews with fighters, trainers, promoters, and much more. Not only doing the interviews in English but as well in Spanish to feed the Spanish audience as we know that the Hispanic community is fully attached to the sport of boxing. I truly love every single minute of chatting with fighters as I try to dive deep on what is crossing their mind as they are in the ring with another human being that is trying to knock their head off. On top of that, it’s not just doing the interview, it is also is making sure the questions that I posed are not so common and vague because we can lose our audience when people watch it on the channel. So, prepping the days before is a must! As well, making the work on going up on YouTube its own beast where you have to make sure we can have the audience watching the video. All of this I learn and have guidance by Marcos Villegas who is the founder of the page and the particular person that I’m so grateful & thankful for. Hard-working individual without a doubt. Every moment is a learning opportunity with Marcos thats a fact!
Along with that, I specialize as well aiding the page in the social media aspect because as we know it, social media is where the world revolves now in days. The interaction with our following is a MUST!!! It might seem easy to some but it’s not just uploading but uploading content that keeps the audience engaged and making sure they are attracted to the page. It takes time as cliche as it sounds. I also help in creating graphics along with the team through Adobe Photoshop as during the pandemic while we were locked up, I didn’t not want to waste my time entirely so I told myself what other “Work hat” can I have to make myself even more useful. So, I spent hours on YouTube to learn how to play with Adobe photoshop. It was either doing that or learn how to become a DJ haha. Glad I chose Adobe!
I also aide a soccer page that is dedicated to focus the attention of the Mexican soccer league, which the audience in the US has a high market, so from time to time I attend soccer practices of various teams, take pictures, do end result graphics and conduct interviews with the little gap time we are given.
I just started doing commentary, the opportunity rose up organically and well I said why not take the challenge, so I proudly do it for the local promoter, Hector Vazquez.
What matters most to you? Why?
What matters the most to me is various things, for an example making sure I pure the best content for the page so our fans/followers get a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes and understand more profoundly on the sport that we are covering. I want people to see that I represent a full successful page, Fight Hub Tv, where we cover the sport inch by inch. Yes, the traveling, the meeting your once upon a time hero’s is a plus but to me overall I want to earn the respect by fans, fighters, promoters and networks.
I also try to ask questions that keeps the athletes engaged and feed the audience a little more about them, which if you are a fan of the sport, you will be glued to the interview! Hoping, right? I want the interviews to be so organic that it seems like the fighter is really my friend not just a casual talk. Having a dialogue that flows naturally is also my ultimate goal. Overall, We want the audience to understand a little more on why a boxer threw a certain punch or also why a soccer team played a certain way and capitalized on the win. In English or Spanish, I truly do my best to dissect different aspects of the event and what was the outcome.
Finally, what matters to me is being creditable and have people tune in to the channel and make sure they capture the content we deliver them, because we pour our hearts to this. Once a fight is done we are up until 3 am making sure we have the content that everyone needs. We are the last one leaving the building so this matters to us a lot. Coming from humble beginnings from a family of immigrants I hope I am a model to other people that want to achieve their goals, it doesnt matter if its being a reporter or anything else they want to do. If I can do it so can you, and believe me I am not fully settled in this journey. I am barely getting started!!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.fighthubtv.com/
- Instagram: @fighthubjahir
- Twitter: eltrionline
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/fighthub
Image Credits
8 Moments Photography
DAZN Boxing
Fight Hub TV
El Tri Online
