Aggressive Combat Championship 15 Poster

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What Will Happen After the New York MMA Bill Passes, Part 2: Amateur MMA

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When the State Attorney General's Office admitted that the law banning professional combative sports didn't apply to amateur fights, the floodgates were cast open, and New York was suddenly filled with would-be Dana Whites organizing bouts in cages. Some shows were relatively safe affairs, with medical personnel present and trained officials and many of the other trappings of an event held in jurisdictions with state sanctioning. Many more shows were not so safe, with every possible corner cut and fighters literally risking their lives for nothing. But the common denominator shared by all was that, under the 1997 Combative Sports Law, the Athletic Commission could regulate none of them.

Thanks to the MMA Bill soon becoming law, that will all change. Drastically.

What Will Happen After the New York MMA Bill Passes, Part 1: The Timing

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History has been most unkind to proponents of sanctioned mixed martial arts in New York, but the future glimpsed within the shifting sands of the hourglass is more positive than ever. So let's talk about what will happen once the MMA Bill passes and the changes it will bring - specifically, the timing of it all.

New York Fight Exchange 10 Poster

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Victory Road Poster

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Flashback: International Fight Night, Brooklyn's Russian MMA Promotion

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New York teeters on the precipice of drastic change, all set to tumble headlong into the chasm of acceptance, and soon what was will nevermore be – all of which is just a fancy way of saying it’s time to take a walk down memory lane.

If you were in Brooklyn in 2001, and you wandered south of the Belt Parkway to the Russian enclave of Brighton Beach, you might have seen the posters. Colorful posters, taped to lamp posts and hanging in the windows of shops whose awnings bore Cyrillic letters. The posters promised violence, promised heroes to cheer for, promised a slice of the kind of thrills offered by the UFC (which was at the time banned from pay-per-view, but would soon make a comeback in a big way).

The posters advertised something called “International Fight Night”.

The Senate Passed Their MMA Bill Yesterday - Why This Time Around It's Special

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The New York State Senate approved their version of the MMA Bill yesterday by a vote of 48 to 14, making it the eighth time in seven years they've done so (last year they did it twice, with the extra thumbs-up coming after the MMA Bill was overhauled and revised). The Republican-run Senate has never been much of a problem for proponents of the sport - the hold-up has traditionally been in the Assembly, which has yet to vote on their version and whose approval is needed to turn both bills into a law. So big deal, right? The Senate just did what it's always done, and there's nothing to be too thrilled about - right? Not quite. Before you dismiss what happened yesterday as something less than noteworthy, consider the timing of the Senate's actions.

An Interview With New York MMA Pioneer Nardu Debrah

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In the early 2000s, Nardu Debrah was fighting in rings set up in Russian restaurants in Brighton Beach, hotel ballrooms in Midtown Manhattan, and nightclubs off the Long Island Expressway. Nowadays, though, he's an elder statesman of the sport, with a black belt under Renzo Gracie and a school out in Brooklyn - a school that's produced none other than ROC champ and UFC newcomer Randy Brown. 

While Brown was fulfilling his contractual obligations of talking to the assembled media at the UFC on FOX 18 open workouts in Hoboken, N.J., Debrah was kind enough to let me stick a camera in his face and grill him. 

Why would I want to skip over the fresh-faced rookie for a chance to rap with the salty veteran? Because Brown's got all the time in the world to make history, but when it comes to the history of MMA in New York, Debrah long ago made himself an important part of it.

UFC Newark Open Workouts: Sage Northcutt Making the Girls Swoon

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UFC Newark Open Workouts: Josh Barnett Attacked by Luchador

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UFC Newark Open Workouts: Rumble Hitting the Pads

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The UFC Lost in Court Today, But What Does It Really Mean?

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The UFC lost in court today, but it's not as bad as you may think.

More Reason to Be Optimistic That MMA Is Getting Legalized Soon

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In case you already weren't feeling optimistic about professional MMA getting legalized in New York this year because of the governor including it in his budget proposal, Josh Rosenblatt over at Fightland has got something more to lift your spirits. According to a source on the inside, an MMA bill being passed is practically a done deal.

Take it away, Josh:

When Promoters Go Rogue...

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Why Governor Cuomo Supporting MMA Is a Big Deal

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Yesterday, Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled his budget proposal for 2016, and in it he included a provision for sanctioning both professional and amateur MMA in New York.

In case you were unsure, this is a big deal. A very big deal.

To fully grasp why, you need to understand a little history and a little politics.

Combat at the Capitale Poster

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Statement From UFC on New York Governor Supporting MMA

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Statement from

Lorenzo Fertitta, UFC Chairman & CEO

On Governor Including Legalizing MMA in Executive Budget

“On behalf of the UFC and on behalf of all MMA fans in New York, thank you, Governor Cuomo.

“We are very pleased that, as part of his budget proposal, Governor Cuomo has called for legalizing professional MMA in New York – the only state in America where it is illegal – and has asked the State Athletic Commission to regulate both professional and amateur MMA. It’s the right thing to do for fans and more importantly, it’s the right thing to do to help protect the health and safety of athletes.

“Of course, we continue to be strongly supportive of and grateful to Senator Joe Griffo and the New York State Senate, which has passed a bill to legalize and regulate MMA for the last six consecutive years. We also remain supportive of Assembly Majority Leader Joe Morelle, the more than 70 Assembly sponsors and additional Assembly supporters of his bill.

“We will be working with the Governor and both houses of the Legislature to make 2016 the year that UFC and other MMA promoters have the opportunity to bring the fastest growing sport in the world to arenas from one end of the state to the other.”

New York MMA Bill Status Update - 1.13.16

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New York's 2016 legislative session has begun, and with it comes the renewed fight to get the 1997 ban on professional MMA competition reversed via the "MMA Bill".

Top Five of 2015 Countdown - #1: You

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We're counting down the top five most notable aspects of New York MMA from 2015, and we're up to...
#1: You - It was close - so very close - but it didn't happen. That's right, I'm talking about the passage of the MMA Bill, which would have lifted the ban on professional MMA that's been in place since 1997, and it would've taken measures to make amateur iterations of the sport much safer.

However, what did happen is we all got to see how deep and passionate the MMA fanbase is here in New York.

Top Five of 2015 Countdown - #2: The NYFE and Aggressive Combat Championships

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We're counting down the top five most notable aspects of New York MMA from 2015, and we're up to...
#2: The NYFE and Aggressive Combat Championships - It's easy to make a buck as a promoter in New York when you cut corners on fighter safety. The tricky thing is to run a show that is safe - where the officials are trained and the fighters screened and cared for by medical personnel. The promoters who can manage that, and stay in business, well, those are the special ones.