THE RED CORNER
NEWS AND UPDATES FROM THE NORTH STAR ACADEMY OF MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 23rd, 2026
Monday Mindset, Junior Samurai Stripe Challenge, Membership Updates, and Facility FAQ Links all available at the bottom!
Happy Sunday team!
Sending this newsletter out one day early to address the elephant in the room: snow!
We are officially cancelling all classes tomorrow. I feel comfortable making this call given the forecasts are pretty gruesome over the next 24 hours, and the Philadelphia snow emergency extends to 6pm tomorrow.
If we see some relief tomorrow, we may host some open mats in the evening. These will be announced on our Instagram Page !
With that out of the way, congrats to two athletes yesterday who stepped into the competition arena!
First, Mike Swartz jumped into the United Arts in house tournament in Jenkintown. These local events are awesome for developing competitive skills: they’re cheap, they’re local, and they’re quick. The crew in Jenkintown runs a great event. Mike did not medal in his division but taking the initiative to get out there and put it on the line both takes courage, and gives critical experience.
After all, what is expertise if not simply the accumulation of experience?
Second, Makhi Anthony stepped into the Freedom Fighting Ring at the 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia to take on a tough opponent two weight classes up! Makhi fought a grueling three rounds to emerge victorious and captured what I’d call “the perfect fight.”
A perfect fight has four criteria: first and foremost, nobody gets seriously injured on either side. Second, the fighter wins. Third, the fighter is taken into uncharted, wild territory and must dig deep to evolve and overcome. And, finally, the fighter gets to showcase their potential.
Thank you to everyone who supported these athletes, and who continue to support the program here. I am very much a “everyone gets a championship ring” type of coach. For me, the academy is more like a landscape: we all have our roles to play in the ecosystem, and we don’t all get to bloom in the same season, or in the same way. But without the synergy and balance, the ecosystem falls apart. As such it’s always a team effort and a team that gets athletes to the mat or the ring on fight day. But once they step inside, it’s entirely on their shoulders.
Congrats again to everyone! We’ll be back in action as normal on Tuesday one way or another.
Stay warm and I’ll see you on the mats!
–Coach Jackson
You can find this week’s Monday Mindset HERE
You can find this week’s Junior Samurai Stripe Challenge HERE