Michigan, one of a handful of US States which allow but do not presently regulate amateur mixed martial arts, is seeking to pass legislation changing this. This overhaul comes two years following the death of an amateur fighter in an unregulated Michigan event. The proposed legislation (Senate Bill -0152) as passed by Senate on October 22, … More Michigan Seeks To Regulate Amateur Mixed Martial Arts
Update December 18 – today the Supreme Court of Canada published their full reasons for judgement. A link to these can be found here. ______________________________________ I have previously suggested that PED use can amount to fraud in the world of combat sports and a cheating athlete can be exposed not only to regulatory consequences but … More Supreme Court of Canada Says Doping = Criminal Fraud in Sports
There are many documented cases of injury in MMA due to the profound dehydration that comes with rapid extreme weight cutting. Perhaps the most dangerous risk is that of increased brain trauma and death that comes from being exposed to strikes while not being fully hydrated. As this industry wide practice is becoming better recognized … More British Journal of Sports Medicine – Add Hydration Requirement to MMA
Update October 27, 2015 – Marc Raimondi at MMAFighting reports that there are indeed settlement discussions between Diaz and the NSAC making it appear that entry of a final order is being stalled to explore a non-judicial resolution to this saga. Update October 15, 2015 – the NSAC’s Bob Bennett responded to my inquiry unfortunately … More A Graceful Way Out of the Nick Diaz Fiasco for the NSAC
MMA fighter Nick Diaz resonates with the public. After being banned from combat sports for 5 years by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a controversial positive marijuana reading following UFC 183, there was an outcry of support for Diaz and criticism of the NSAC. Perhaps the most interesting of which (in addition to securing … More Nick Diaz White House Petition Crosses 100K Threshold – What Will This Mean?
In my ongoing effort to highlight safety studies addressing combative sports, a thesis paper was recently published by the University of Ottawa’s Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences reviewing factors associated with head trauma in professional MMA. The author analysed data from Fightmetric reviewing 7,134 rounds in the UFC, WEC and Strikeforce from 2004 – 2014. … More Study Links Increased Risk of Brain Trauma in MMA to Fighter Age and Time Between Bouts
Update October 29, 2015 – Today the WSOF released the below ruleset for this tournament Earlier today it was announced that the World Series of Fighting plans on hosting an 8 man, one night elimination tournament at the Comerica Theater in Phoenix, Arizona on November 20, 2015. This announcement comes shortly after recent failed plans to … More A Legal Breakdown of the WSOF’s Planned Arizona One Day 8 Man MMA Tournament
Given that CTE is being linked to duration and severity of contact and further that the KO rate by punches in MMA increased tenfold after gloves with conventional wraps became the norm in the sport, should MMA and other striking sport athletes use ‘padded’ hand wraps to reduce brain trauma while sparring? An article published … More Study Suggests Use of “Padded” Hand Wraps to Reduce Brain Trauma In Sparring
Earlier this year Zuffa, the UFC’s parent company, sued Wanderlei Silva alleging Defamation and Business Disparagement after Silva stated that the UFC had engaged in “fixed fights“. This week, as first reported by John Nash, Silva fired back seeking to dismiss the lawsuit. Perhaps the most interesting argument Silva raised was expanding on what he … More Wanderlei Silva Fires Back in UFC “Fixed Fight” Defamation Lawsuit
In the latest article addressing injury issues in combative sports, a study was published last month in the Journal of Neurotrauma studying cognitive impairment from boxing. The study, titled Chronic Effects of Boxing: DTI and Cognitive Findings, used Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Diffusion Tensor Imaging to study brain trauma among 10 boxers (9 active and 2 … More Study – Mileage is One of Biggest Factors for Brain Trauma in Boxing
Combat Sports Law 