''Tapout'' was an American
reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
series that focuses on the world of
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
. The series premiered on Versus, which is now
NBC Sports Network
NBCSN was an American sports television channel owned by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It originally launched on July 1, 1995, as the Outdoor Life Network (OLN), which was dedicated to programming prim ...
, on June 3, 2007, before moving to its regular Wednesday night timeslot beginning June 6. The series follows
Charles Lewis, Jr. - "Mask",
Dan Caldwell - "Punkass", and Tim Katz "SkySkrape"
of the
Tapout clothing and gear line, as they travel around the country in search of promising MMA fighters to develop and possibly sponsor. Each episode follows the training and development of one fighter, culminating in a fight at a professional MMA event.
As the series progressed the focus broadened to encompass not just the scouting of new talent but also the efforts of the Tapout crew to build their business, including day-to-day operations and the inter-relationships between the crew members and other Tapout employees.
On March 11, 2009, Charles "Mask" Lewis was killed in an automobile accident in
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island, Newport ...
. A female companion was ejected from the car and taken for medical treatment but Lewis was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of a second car, believed to have been traveling alongside Lewis's car, was arrested on charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.
Season 1
Season 2
References
External links
Official NBC Sports MMA website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tapout (Tv Series)
2000s American reality television series
2007 American television series debuts
NBC Sports
Mixed martial arts television shows