Fight promoters cheered the passage of a bill to legalize mixed martial arts in Connecticut, predicting that the oft-controversial but fast-growing sport could help generate millions of dollars in new tourism revenues.
However, several people involved in the sport have voiced concerns that a provision of the bill could deter promoters from bringing fights to Connecticut. The bill was passed June 5 by the state Senate after having been passed in May by the House of Representatives.
Mixed martial arts, or MMA, features unarmed combat that can involve different techniques from various martial arts disciplines. MMA fights are currently permitted within the territories of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Indian tribes, but not in the remainder of the state.
Prior to the bill”™s passage, Connecticut and New York were the only two states to prohibit professional MMA fights. As of June 12, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy had yet to sign the bill into law.
Under the bill, promoters would be liable for the health care costs associated with fighters”™ injuries. That differs from other states”™ policies, which generally require promoters to insure their fighters during the fights themselves but not to cover their health care costs.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), which is among the world”™s largest MMA promoters, is reviewing the legislation, said spokesman Steven Greenberg.
“UFC already does quite a bit for their fighters,” Greenberg said. “They are ”” as far as I know ”” the only MMA promoter that provides all of the athletes under contract with an accident policy” that covers everything from training to the pre-fight routine to the fights themselves.
Should Malloy sign the bill, Greenberg said Connecticut would be the only state among those that allow professional MMA fights to require promoters to cover fighters”™ health care costs.
For now, though, UFC”™s priority is that Malloy gives MMA his blessing.
“UFC is looking at (the health care provision) now, but the main objective from UFC”™s perspective is that Governor Malloy signs it into law,” Greenberg said.
Malloy”™s approval is not a foregone conclusion. He told reporters at a June 6 press conference in Hartford that MMA is “not my bowl of porridge,” saying that he dislikes the sport but that he hadn”™t decided on whether or not to sign the bill.
“If I sign the legislation I will not be attending an event, either at the casinos where it”™s currently allowed or any other facility,” Malloy said. As of the beginning of last week, Malloy had yet to make a decision on the bill, said spokesman Andrew Doba.
Promoter Rob Haydak said his organization, Cage Fury Fighting Championships, already has a representative scouting out potential locations for fights in Connecticut.
“For us, Connecticut is certainly a market that we have our eye on,” said Haydak, president of CFFC, which is based in New Jersey. “Any time a market opens itself up to MMA, the local economy and the state is looking at an infusion of millions of dollars.”
Haydak said he wasn”™t aware of the Connecticut bill”™s health care provision, but said CFFC currently insures fighters for each event. “We”™re very familiar with the insurance process and our underwriters do a fantastic job to make sure the fighters”™ safety is paramount.”
Gladius Fights, an MMA promoter based in upstate New York, is organizing a professional MMA event in Berlin, N.H., later this month. Greg Williams, a co-promoter for the event, predicted there would be a “quick rush to put MMA fights on in Connecticut.”
In the past, promoters would look to states like New Hampshire, where professional MMA fights are legal and regulated, or states like Vermont, where MMA is not regulated but not illegal, for event locations, Williams said.
“Now that Connecticut has opened up, I”™m sure there”™s going to be a rush to put on some shows in places like Hartford, New Haven (and) Bridgeport,” Williams said.
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