Man picks wrong man to attack; ex-MMA fighter quickly subdues knife wielder
MIAMI - Cameras rolled during a dangerous knife attack, but what the knife-wielder didn't realize is that the man he was going after was a former MMA fighter.
"He got really mad," shared Javier Baez. "He got a knife and came running at me. Well, the rest is on video."
At four in the morning on Wednesday, November 1, Baez fended off a man wielding a knife. Surveillance footage from an apartment complex parking lot in Cutler Bay showed Baez blocking the jab, picking up the attacker, and throwing him to the ground.
Baez: "Second nature," said Baez. "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."
Miami-Dade Police arrested the attacker, Omar Marrero, charging him with two felonies.
The footage showed the tail end of the confrontation. The arrest report said Marrero at first grabbed a 14-inch knife and began to strike the driver's window.
"Guy was out there screaming on the phone, literally was fighting for a while with some woman," said Baez. "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."
Baez exited the car, attempting to diffuse the situation.
The report described Marrero grabbing a second large knife and running toward Baez, which we saw on the video, attempting to cut him several times.
Gorchow asked Baez how his mixed martial arts fighting background helped him through a dangerous situation.
"I stayed calm, kept my balance, kept my composure," answered Baez. "Didn't bring him down and start beating on. Just took him down.
Gorchow: "What do you suggest others do that may not have your training if faced with a similar situation?"
Baez: "Stay in the car and call the cops... or drive away."