Jay Hollywood Is Building Only Fights Federation Around Fighters, Trust and a Different Kind of Fight Story
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Only Fights Federation founder and promoter Jay Hollywood is not trying to become the next Dana White.
He is trying to build something fighters actually want to come back to.
That philosophy stood at the center of Hollywood’s appearance on the JMA Podcast with John Murray and Jeremy Fairhurst, where the New Jersey promoter opened up about launching Only Fights Federation, the challenges of running amateur MMA under one of the stricter state regulatory systems in the country, the lessons learned from his first two events and the deeply personal reason combat sports mean so much to him.
Only Fights Federation, or O.F.F., has already begun establishing itself as a fighter-focused regional MMA promotion in New Jersey. Its official website describes the organization as an independent MMA promotion “built for fighters,” with a model that directs portions of ticket and stream purchases back toward athletes through fighter bonuses. Its second event, O.F.F. 2, took place July 18, 2026, at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
For Hollywood, however, the promotion is about more than building fight cards.
It is about creating an environment based on trust.
From the Barber Chair to the Promoter’s Table
Before Only Fights Federation, Hollywood spent decades developing another type of business.
He has worked as a barber for roughly 25 years, and he credits that experience with shaping how he approaches promotion.
The connection may not seem obvious at first, but Hollywood sees the two jobs similarly.
Customers tell a barber what works and what does not. Fighters, coaches and fans do the same thing with a combat sports promotion.
Hollywood listened.
After O.F.F.’s first event, one piece of feedback stood out immediately.
People needed better seating.
Rather than dismiss the criticism, he treated it like a business problem that needed solving.
That approach became the template for the second event.
“People said, ‘Hey, look, I think you should fix your seating. I think you should fix how many fights you have,’” Hollywood told JMA. “I kind of just took it with a grain of salt and started working at each problem.”
The first O.F.F. card ultimately featured only five fights.
Hollywood said he had invested close to $50,000 into the event, making the reduced card a stressful introduction to MMA promotion.
Still, the event did enough financially to allow the organization to move forward.
By the second show, Hollywood noticed something had changed.
Fighters knew what Only Fights Federation was.
More importantly, they knew how the promotion treated its athletes.
“We’re Here to Stay”
Hollywood believes the biggest difference between the first and second O.F.F. events came down to credibility.
The first show asked fighters and fans to trust a new promotion.
The second came with proof.
“They saw what we were doing for the fighters,” Hollywood said. “They saw that they responded well to it. They liked how we treated them.”
That reputation helped make matchmaking easier the second time around.
Only Fights Federation now publicly promotes itself around a fighter-first model, including a bonus structure connected to ticket and pay-per-view purchases.
Hollywood’s version of “fighter-first” goes beyond marketing language.
He talked about providing food and drinks backstage, assisting athletes with hotels and medical expenses when possible, personally communicating with fighters and keeping in touch with competitors even after losses.
He does not want someone to walk into his event, fight and disappear into a spreadsheet.
“I introduce myself to every fighter,” Hollywood said. “I want to know what’s going on with them.”
That personal approach comes naturally to someone who spent years working face-to-face with clients.
The difference now is that the people sitting across from him are often preparing to step into a cage.
Promoting MMA in New Jersey Comes With Extra Challenges
One of the most revealing parts of the podcast concerned the realities of operating an amateur MMA promotion in New Jersey.
Hollywood described a system with firm deadlines, medical requirements and limited flexibility once an event begins.
New Jersey’s State Athletic Control Board publishes a dedicated amateur MMA ruleset that governs areas including event registration, weight classes, weigh-ins, cages, fighter equipment and medical requirements. The rules also explicitly state that fighter health and safety take priority over economic considerations.
Hollywood described the experience more simply.
When the opening bell rings, it no longer feels entirely like his show.
The commission is in control.
He recalled learning during his first event that extended delays between bouts were not an option simply because the card had been reduced.
“Run the show or I will end your show,” Hollywood remembered being told.
That lesson stuck with him.
New Jersey also differs from neighboring states in several areas that matter to promoters and fighters.
According to the state’s published amateur rules, contestants receive only a one-pound allowance over their designated weight class, and the commission maintains strict control over official weigh-ins and bout approval.
Hollywood said that inflexibility cost his first show multiple fights when athletes failed to meet the necessary requirements in time.
Instead of complaining about the system, he has tried to learn it.
“You know what we got to do,” Hollywood said. “We got to figure it out.”
Why Build Only Fights Federation in New Jersey Anyway?
Hollywood was repeatedly warned that New Jersey would not be the easiest state in which to learn MMA promotion.
He considered the warnings.
Then he did it anyway.
Why?
Because New Jersey is home.
Hollywood already operates other business ventures in the state and hosts a tattoo convention at the same DoubleTree venue used by O.F.F.
For him, learning the difficult system made more sense than immediately leaving for an easier regulatory environment.
“I’d like to learn how to do this on my own home turf,” he said.
The long-term ambition is growing.
Hollywood acknowledged that hosting an event at one of New Jersey’s casinos would be a significant milestone.
Atlantic City remains one of America’s historically important combat sports markets, and Hollywood believes a casino event could become a future goal if the promotion continues developing.
He is not rushing toward it.
He wants O.F.F. to arrive at that level when it belongs there.
A Promotion Without Amateur Contracts
Hollywood may have revealed the clearest expression of his promotional philosophy when the discussion moved toward fighter contracts.
He does not want to lock amateur athletes into restrictive deals.
“I’m not contracting nobody,” Hollywood said. “I’m not forcing nobody into an amateur contract.”
His reasoning is simple.
Amateur fighters need opportunities.
If another promotion gives one of his athletes a useful matchup, Hollywood wants that fighter to take it.
He specifically discussed encouraging competitors to fight elsewhere rather than treating every neighboring organization like an enemy.
That philosophy also shapes his relationship with other promoters.
Hollywood spoke positively about working with Dead Serious MMA founder Frankie Perez, whose organization has provided a cage for Only Fights Federation events.
Rather than treating cooperation as weakness, Hollywood sees it as practical.
Regional MMA becomes healthier when promotions can work together without forcing fighters to choose sides.
“I don’t want to steal fights,” Hollywood said. “I don’t want to play sides.”
For fighters trying to build experience before turning professional, that approach could prove particularly valuable.
The Fight That Showed Hollywood What O.F.F. Could Become
Through the first two Only Fights Federation events, one athlete has especially caught Hollywood’s attention.
Asher Martinez.
Hollywood singled out Martinez’s matchup with Maris Bates during the second O.F.F. event as one of the best fights the promotion has hosted.
Martinez had already earned a performance-of-the-night distinction during the first event.
Against Bates, Hollywood saw something different.
The matchup became competitive enough that he struggled to determine who was winning before Martinez eventually secured a third-round submission.
Hollywood described Bates’ boxing as particularly effective and believed Martinez had been seriously tested.
That is exactly what a regional promotion needs.
Not simply athletes collecting easy wins, but competitive fights that show promoters, coaches and larger organizations what each fighter does under pressure.
Hollywood also said some of O.F.F.’s fighters had begun attracting attention elsewhere.
For him, that is not a threat.
It is evidence that the platform is doing its job.
Why Jay Hollywood Never Became the Fighter
Late in the interview, the conversation changed completely.
Hollywood revealed that he was born with osteogenesis imperfecta, a rare genetic condition commonly associated with fragile bones.
He said his body does not produce collagen normally and that he has suffered more than 85 broken bones during his life.
Much of his childhood involved hospitals, wheelchairs and repeated injuries.
That history explains his unusual relationship with combat sports.
Hollywood loved fighting.
He trained.
He boxed when he was younger.
But competing seriously carried consequences that most athletes never have to consider.
“I kind of found a gym and started doing recovery stuff and getting my life back on track,” Hollywood told JMA. “I actually fell in love with MMA. I just can’t do it.”
That limitation eventually became part of the motivation behind Only Fights Federation.
Hollywood cannot experience combat sports exactly the way his fighters can.
He can give them a stage instead.
“I like being able to give these guys an opportunity that I kind of don’t have,” he said.
That statement changes the meaning of the promotion.
O.F.F. is not simply another business experiment.
It allows Hollywood to participate in the sport he loves through the opportunities he creates for others.
Thinking Through Conflict Instead of Fighting Through It
Living with fragile bones also affected Hollywood’s personality.
Physical confrontation was never something he could casually rely on.
Instead, he learned to think through situations.
He describes himself as non-confrontational and tries to understand the person on the opposite side before escalating conflict.
That philosophy follows him into business.
Hollywood does not want promotional feuds.
He does not want dirty politics.
He does not want to manufacture enemies because that is supposedly how combat sports work.
“The fighting’s in the cage,” he said.
If the regional MMA business ever becomes something he considers fundamentally dishonest or toxic, Hollywood said he would rather leave than become part of it.
That may be an unusual statement from a promoter.
It also explains why his focus continually returns to fighters, coaches and fans instead of competitors and market share.
“Life Sucks for Everybody in Some Way”
Near the end of the JMA Podcast interview, Murray asked Hollywood what he would say to someone feeling limited by circumstances outside their control.
His answer came from experience.
“Life sucks for everybody in some way, shape, or form,” Hollywood said.
For him, the challenge was his bones.
For someone else, it could be family problems, addiction, money, illness or something entirely different.
The danger, he believes, comes when people convince themselves they are the only person struggling.
“If they knew that it was happening to everybody in some way, shape, or form, it might be easier to push through.”
There is no guaranteed formula.
There is no single decision that fixes everything.
Hollywood’s advice is simply to continue moving.
Only Fights Federation Is Still at the Beginning
Only Fights Federation has held just two events.
Hollywood knows exactly what that means.
There is plenty left to prove.
But the promotion has already developed an identity.
It wants competitive regional MMA.
It wants athletes to feel valued.
It wants fans to leave entertained.
And it wants fighters to be free to grow, even when that growth eventually takes them somewhere bigger.
Hollywood does not talk like someone chasing a quick exit or trying to become a celebrity promoter.
“I’m a barber that really likes throwing shows,” he said.
That may ultimately be one of Only Fights Federation’s biggest advantages.
Hollywood approaches promotion the same way he approached the barber chair: listen to people, solve problems, treat customers well and build a reputation one interaction at a time.
Only now, instead of sending someone home with a fresh haircut, he is sending fighters into a cage.
And judging from the progression between O.F.F. 1 and O.F.F. 2, the experiment is only getting started.
For more information about upcoming cards, fighter applications and tickets, visit the official Only Fights Federation website.
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