Special Feature
Thomas Gerbasi | Farewell To A King
Just A Few Of The Things That Made The Legendary Combat Sports Writer So Beloved
There’s a famous quote, attributed to everyone from Buddha to the Stoics to Kobe Bryant, that our biggest mistake as humans is believing we have more time. And when it came to my friend Tom Gerbasi, who passed too soon earlier this week, I was definitely guilty of thinking we had more time.
In my defense, it was because he was a ubiquitous presence in my life for the last ten years. Despite the fact that he lived and worked in New York and I worked here in Las Vegas, Gerbasi was the co-worker—the only one—that I dealt with every single day of my tenure with the UFC.
Even on the days he played soccer or ran marathons--two of his favorite pasttimes--I still received at least a small update from him. If he ever took a vacation, it was long before I ever knew him. He was always working, always committed to keeping our train rolling.
Sundays. Holidays.
Every. Single. Day.
Sometimes this meant nothing more than being on a dry, corporate group email that he would send involving athlete statistics. But just as many other times it was a text, a call or a personal email prefaced with my initials “SL!!!!” so he was sure I knew it was a personal message and would open it right away.
MORE GERBASI: The Fighter | Beloved From The Opening Bell | Lessons From A Master | One Of One | One Last Tale For The Legend
Sometimes we talked about work, but many times we talked about rock music, great food and our families, and every single time it was filled with encouragement and laughter.
I feel blessed that the last time I saw him in person was an evening emblematic of my favorite memories of Tom. When the UFC was in New York for the fights, a few of us would meet him at an Italian restaurant that he would carefully scout out ahead of time (he never wanted us to waste our time with inferior eats, whether we were with him or not).
And then over the course of the evening, we’d trade war stories, or more accurately, we’d set Tom up to tell us his best war stories (tales we privately and affectionately referred to as “TG’s Greatest Hits”).
If someone who had never met Tom was with us, as there was on this night, we’d prompt him to tell the tale of his ill-fated 0-1 amateur boxing career. It involved fighting under an assumed name, and getting knocked out so badly that when he regained consciousness, he believed he had fought twice.
READ: Obituary For Thomas Gerbasi
Over the years, this story got longer—and better—every time he told it.
But the moments he really was beaming that night were the ones involved loving accounts of he and his wife, Sonia, looking after their two toddler granddaughters, and all the hijinks contained therein.
While he was rightfully revered throughout his career for his written word, his penchant for oral storytelling was equally impressive. Plot, arc, timing, punchlines…it was all there. Had he chosen a career in standup comedy, it would have been a slam dunk. There are simply not many people who had what he had.
This is probably the umpteenth tribute you’ve read to Tom already, and every last one of them is necessary.
His dedication to his craft, to combat sports and to the UFC has touched lives the world over. Esteemed by his fellow sportswriter peers, lauded by the fledgling writers he mentored, trusted by the athletes he interviewed and loved by everyone who had the chance to know him, no single accolade or eulogy will suffice in explaining his far-reaching impact.
He and I worked hand in hand in writing and curating content for the UFC’s website these past eight years, and despite being in the business of words, they all seem inadequate now. Even if it meant getting those dry corporate group emails, I’d give anything to see his name come up in my inbox again.
Thank you, Tom. I’ll carry you with me forever.
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