The UFC reportedly brings in more profit than all other MMA and boxing promoters in the world COMBINED. John Nash of BloodyElbow reports on UFC finances with more detail than any other journalist I am aware of. I will simply let the above fact and the below tweet speak for themselves.

The PFL is an MMA promotion that tries to separate themselves from the pack by having a regular season, playoffs, and seasonal champions in MMA. Real sport with merit dictating advancemnt, not promoter whims. This week, however, the PFL meddled with this format bringing its integrity into quesiton. By way of background Natan Schulte and … More Is the PFL’s “Season” Format Totally Made Up?

This weekend an event in Calgary is being promoted called “The Canadian Knightfall Championships“. Never heard of this? Basically people dressed in full armour with weapons bludgeoning each other. Have a look at the below tweet for reference. Is this legal? Let’s break things down. Like with any novel ‘combat sport’ in Canada the ‘prize … More The Questionable Legality of Knight Fighting

Perhaps no area of MMA regulation receives more public attention than judging. This month a US based athletic commission is rolling out major changes to MMA judging that can go a long way in creating better accountability for officials. Presently all the public (and athletes and their managers) receive are a judges score. 10-10,10-9, 10-8 … More Major MMA Judging Reform Coming June 17

Interesting data was shared by Anthony Cummings, the Director of Colorado Combative Sports Commission, in a regulatory hearing this week. Anthony notes that in 2021 their commission implemented continuing education for officials. Something that is not the industry norm. Split decisions (decisions where officials disagree on who the bout winner was) were drastically reduced as … More Data – Continuing Judge Education Drastically Improves Consistency in MMA and Boxing

In the aftermath of Tim Hague’s tragic death during a boxing bout in Edmonton the City ‘paused’ all combat sports events. This ‘pause’ has now been lifted. Interestingly they are only green lighting large scale shows with promoters needing to secure a venue with a capacity of at least 5,000. A strange stipulation hoping to … More Edmonton Lifts “Pause” for “Large Scale” Combat Sports

Nate Diaz is scheduled to box Jake Paul this summer in Texas. The fighters have agreed to VADA anti-doping testing. VADA is a private anti doping contractor who largely tests for the substances banned by the World Anti Doping Agency. With one key exception. They don’t test for cannabis. Texas, like any US State, has … More Let’s Talk Nate Diaz vs Jake Paul, VADA, Texas and Cannabis

Two years ago decorated kickboxer Joe Schilling knocked out a patron named Baloba at a bar. He was sued. He claimed self defence. Below is the footage which speaks for itself. Schilling argued he believed he was about to be attacked and used force to defend himself. The court agreed finding that he was protected … More Joe Schilling Beats Assault Lawsuit Using Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” Law

One of the most promising regulatory trends in the last year are numerous State, Tribal and Provincial athletic commissions sharing key information with the industry about concussion and CTE which are some of the biggest occupational hazards professional fighters face. It makes perfect sense that regulators, who are in charge of health and safety issues, share this … More South Carolina Athletic Commission Shares CTE and Concussion Information With Fighter Community!

While there is some data suggesting brain injury rates and severity may be lower in MMA than in boxing, there is no reason to believe that the brain rattling from MMA does not lead to the disease. There is a growing list of proven and suspected cases of CTE in former MMA athletes. Researchers have … More MMA Legend Frank Shamrock Pledges Brain For CTE Research