‘New York Bad Ass' Phil Baroni's entrance to a fight is fabled for it's extravagance.

Flanked by a duo of scarcely clothed, statuesque blondes and adorned in a sleeveless, sequined robe which drapes along the metallic ramp, he incites both cheer and scorn in equal measures. Sauntering toward the cage with all the affected posturing of a Shakespearean villain, Baroni shifts his hulking frame to the rhythm of an obnoxiously pounding baseline.
 
Dense black sunglasses cover his eyes from the combination of strobe and pyrotechnics that mark his arrival. He holds for a moment. The shades and spangled gown are slowly removed, revealing a T-Shirt which is promptly torn from his body. He postures once more, and is ready to fight.

It is a performance that has little changed in nearly a decade of competition.  Baroni, in that time, has managed to amass the mediocre record of 13-11. It is an excellent entrance though.
 
On June 6, 2009, the pantomime of Phil Baroni arrived at the Scottrade Centre, in St. Louis, Missouri, with typical resplendence. Buoyed by an improvement in form correlating with a drop in weight, the 'NYBA'  carried hope that an unfulfilled career at Middleweight, could be redeemed in it's twilight at Welterweight.
 
Baroni,  3-0 at 170lbs, was rewarded with a fight against prominent Strikeforce welterweight contender, Joe ''Diesel'' Riggs. The fight produced little of the fireworks promised throughout the promotion. The pair traded takedowns and transitions during the opening rounds, before the fight was decided by a factor always problematic to the aging Baroni: fitness. 

A chronic lack of conditioning appears to have followed him through the weight classes. As the fighters entered the third, he was little more than a impressively defined heavy bag, with only his granite jaw, ensuring the fight lasted to a decision.

There was no doubt of the result. Riggs was the unanimous victor and Baroni was left to wear the disconsolate look of a man beginning to doubt himself for the first time.

Baroni began his Mixed Martial Arts career on  August  5, 2000. Driven on by the potent blend of an immaculately sculpted frame, honed through years of amateur bodybuilding, and that specific strain of self-confidence which seems inherent to all New Yorkers, the Long Island native won his opening three fights comfortably,  proving an exciting and combustible character both inside and outside of the octagon.  
 
A consummate exhibitionist, endowed with a preening nature and brash wit, Baroni instantly distinguished himself from his peers. He was a modified throwback, incorporating the Pit Fighting persona of pioneers such as Tank Abbott and the legitimate technical acumen required of the time. (He is  former Two-Time All American collegiate wrestler and holds an amateur pugilist record of 17-0)

As such, Baroni polarised fans of the sport. Whilst some appreciated his cavalier aggression and embellished arrogance, others viewed his distasteful interviews and garish entrances as gimmicks akin to the theatrics of professional wrestling. Either way, Baroni was a personality, and before the era of the Ultimate Fighter this was a valuable commodity in MMA.

Baroni's time in the UFC, could be seen as a microcosm for the failings and successes he would suffer and enjoy throughout his career.  A debut victory against a limited Curtis Stout was promptly followed by an uncomfortably close decision loss to Olympic Silver medallist Matt Lindland.

Ever the embodiment of inconsistency, Baroni would prove victorious in his next two fights, including a career defining demolition of former UFC middleweight champion Dave Menne, in just eighteen seconds. Immediately following the stoppage, Baroni ascended the cage, declaring himself ‘The Best Ever', before boundlessly informing all those ringside that he wanted Lindland and was indeed, 'The man'....