Training for Warriors

On the heels of the news that Chuck Liddell's memoir is a New York Times Best Seller, comes news of another upcoming MMA book release. In early March, Harper Collins will release "Training for Warriors," authored by New Jersey-based strength coach Martin Rooney.

Rooney has worked with the NY Jets, Giants, and many top NFL Draft prospects in addition to working with Renzo Gracie's top fighters in the IFL, UFC, and Pride. The book translates MMA skills to other sports and workout routines. MMA cross training has become quite the rage recently, particularly in college and professional football.

Liddell Cracks NYT Best Seller List

Chuck Liddell's memoir, Iceman, is number nine on the New York Times Best Seller List for Hardcover Nonfiction. This is the book's second week on the list, it debuted at number nine last week.

"MMA is the new big realm in publishing right now," Gersh Literary Agent Margaret O'Connor recently told FIGHT! Magazine (SEE: MMA Goes Hollywood). "The sport is becoming part of the cultural zeitgeist, it's infused in popular culture. It's not a direction comparison, but seven or eight years ago there was this huge flurry of books on the personalities of the WWE. This is like the next wave."

O'Connor is currently working on books with Randy Couture, Sean Sherk, and Rich Franklin.

“It’s opening up a whole new arena in publishing. It’s very exciting," O'Connor said. "This reaches a part of the market that doesn’t typically buy books, males 18-34. They usually go out and buy DVDs and Xbox games, but like with Randy Couture’s book, this is the one book that they will buy. So this is appealing to that part of the market, they’re looking for something that speaks to them.”