HBO's 'Real Sports' looks at War Machine-Christy Mack, domestic violence in MMA

HBO’s “Real Sports” tonight takes a look at domestic violence in MMA, and fighter War Machine and former girlfriend Christy Mack’s sad tale is featured prominently.

The show airs tonight at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HBO, and replays are available throughout the week.

“Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,” an influential monthly newsmagazine show that’s won numerous Sports Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award, has released a preview of the segment, dubbed “Outside the Cage.” In it, Mack (real name Christy Mackinday) discusses an infamous incident with War Machine.

The former UFC and Bellator fighter allegedly attacked Mack and a male companion, Corey Thomas, at the porn star’s Las Vegas home in August 2014. Prosecutors say War Machine (formerly Jon Koppenhaver before a legal name change) brutally beat Thomas, leaving him with a broken nose and dislocated shoulder, and then turned his attention to Mack, who suffered a broken nose, a fractured orbital bone, a lacerated liver and two knocked-out teeth. She posted some horrifying photos after the alleged attack.

Here’s the full segment description from HBO:

Last summer, just as news of Baltimore running back Ray Rice’s violent assault on his fiancee in a hotel elevator was about to make headlines, a far more brutal domestic violence attack involving a pro athlete had just taken place. But the beating that nearly killed former adult film star Christy Mack, allegedly at the hands of the MMA welterweight known as War Machine, flew largely under the radar. High-profile sports like football and boxing, the father of all fight sports, have long dealt with athletes’ domestic violence toward women. But the newly minted American combat sport Mixed Martial Arts, which showcases the world’s most violent athletes, has largely escaped mainstream scrutiny of its fighters’ conduct. REAL SPORTS correspondent David Scott investigates domestic violence among pro MMA fighters and efforts by MMA organizations to address it, and talks to Christy Mack, who for the first time tells the harrowing story of what she says was an abusive relationship with a trained professional fighter and the assault that nearly took her life.

War Machine, who’s expected to go to trial later this year on 34 counts related to the incident, attempted suicide soon after his arrest.

War Machine (14-5), who had a brief stint with the UFC from 2007-2008 following his run on “The Ultimate Fighter 6? reality series, most recently fought in October 2013, when he suffered a loss to Ron Keslar in the semifinal round of Bellator’s Season 9 welterweight tournament.

Bellator immediately released the fighter, who’s had a string of legal issues, following news of his latest arrest.