On a given fight night, Joe Martinez cues up the main event of a combat sports card with this classic line: “The judges are ready! The fighters are ready! (Name of host city,) make some noise if YOU ARE READY!” If you’ve had the chance to watch an MMA or boxing card over the years, odds are that at some point, you’ve heard Martinez introduce the fighters.
His workload has stretched beyond the world of competitive violence, however. In his early career, Martinez, an alumnus of Cal State Fullerton, served as the public address announcer for Lake Elsinore Storm home games.