Charles Lewis, Jr

Charles Lewis founded TapouT in 1997, prompting a whirlwind life that intersected the birth of a sport. Selling TapouT apparel out of the trunk of his car during road trips throughout California, a hot bed of mixed martial arts in the late 1990s, Lewis took on the superhero persona of “Mask" as he donned war paint on his face and wore outlandish comic book outfits. Mask's vision quickly came to represent hardcore aspects of MMA fandom at a time when the sport floundered under political pressure. The history of MMA cannot be told without mentioning Charles “Mask” Lewis, or the era in which he emerged. On March 11, 2009, Lewis was killed by a drunk driver in Newport Beach, Calif. To honor his contributions, the sport's dominant promoter, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), posthumously inducted "Mask" as the first and only non-fighter into the UFC Hall of Fame.

Inside MMA on Mark Cuban's HDNet television network combines the strengths of the best news and sports programs on television to go deeper into the world of mixed martial arts than any other show can. A combination of talk, highlights, analysis and in-depth reporting allow the show to cover the fighting world from every angle. Since its inception in 2007, “Inside MMA” has pioneered mixed martial arts coverage and is credited with helping one of the fastest growing sports in the world continue it’s massive growth and gain mainstream acceptance. Award winning sports reporter, Kenny Rice, co-hosts with former UFC heavyweight champion and King of Pancrase, Bas Rutten, as they welcome the biggest personalities in MMA. The humor and enthusiasm of Rutten and his years of experience as a premiere fighter and coach compliment Rice and his hard-nosed journalistic style that doesn’t shy from the many controversies that surround the sport.