Former MMA Fighter Subdues Knife-Wielding Attacker in Viral Video

Retired MMA fighter Javier Baez
recently stopped a knife attack with his bare hands—and made it
look effortless.

Baez was attacked by a knife-wielding stranger in the parking lot
of his apartment complex in Cutler Bay, Fla., last Wednesday. The
34-year-old deftly avoided an attack before slamming his attacker
to the pavement and locking in an arm-triangle choke. The knife can
then be seen falling out of the hands of the assailant, identified
as 50-year-old Omar Marrero.

Miami-Dade police subsequently arrested Marrero who now faces two
felony charges. Baez told multiple news outlets that the attacker
had aggressively approached his car with a 14-inch knife before
brandishing another foot-long knife to attack him. From there it
was all reflexes for the former bantamweight from MMA Masters gym
in Florida. Baez told CBS Miami:

“Guy was out there screaming on the phone, literally was fighting
for a while with some woman. He tapped on my door window. I told
him to leave me alone, and then he came at me with a knife. I told
him to leave me alone. I’m calling the cops. I hope he doesn’t
break my window. That’s all I cared about.”

About the ease with which he subdued Marrero, Baez said, “Second
nature. When you practice every day, you don’t think about it. Put
his belly to the floor, put my knee in his back, and called the
cops.”

However, Baez wouldn’t suggest that an untrained person try the
same thing. His advice: “Stay in the car and call the cops… or
drive away.”

Baez started his pro MMA career in 2011, going 5-0 in his first
five outings with all wins by stoppage. He then went to a split
draw followed by two losses, the most recent coming in 2018 against
future
Legacy Fighting Alliance and
Cage Warriors Fighting Championship slugger Diego
Silva.