Mixed martial arts is still caged in the New York State Assembly, as supporters and opponents once again battle over legalizing the professional sport.
The state Senate has approved the legalization of the controversial sport for the third year a row. Similar legislation in the Assembly has died in committee each time. But this year, the measure has gained its most support ever, with 64 Assembly co-sponsors. And both supporters and opponents see the sport making political progress.
“It’s gaining support, it’s gaining momentum,” said Assemblyman Samuel Roberts, D-Syracuse, who supports the bill.
Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli, D-Syracuse, an opponent of the measure, agrees at least about the momentum. “The issue of mixed martial arts has gathered quite a bit of momentum as an accepted sport in addition to the revenue that it generates,” said Magnarelli, in an email statement. “I am not in favor of this activity, but I understand New York state along with other states considering legislation based on the revenue aspect. I continue to take a look at it for this reason.”
Professional mixed martial arts, the combat sport that pits two fighters against each other inside a cage, has been illegal in the state of New York since 1997 largely because of concerns over fighter safety and the sport’s violence. Supporters argue that the sport has evolved with more protections for fighters since 1997. And they predict economic benefits for New York if the sport is legalized. A movement to legalize the sport in New York has grown steadily over the last four years as the popularity of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the sport’s premier corporation, has exploded into a multi-billion dollar franchise.
New York and Connecticut remain the only two states in which professional mixed martial arts is illegal. Amateur mixed martial arts, though illegal for many years, has since been brought back in the state of New York.
Opponents do not approve of the violent aspects of mixed martial arts. Blood is a common sight within the sport, as fighters wear only an athletic supporter and small gloves covering their hands as protection.
Even Assemblyman Roberts, a mixed martial artist himself, acknowledges that the violence appeals to a large portion of the fan base. “What’s selling is the blood and guts,” he said. “That’s what’s selling. I’m a supporter, but I still have concerns. My concerns are the safety of the competitors.”
The economic revenue is a large reason for his support, Roberts said.
In one example of that potential for revenue, Lorenzo Fertitta, CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has pledged that he will hold four events per year in the New York in the first three years the sport is legalized. That includes three in upstate. He has targeted Buffalo, Syracuse and Albany as potential locations.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship would sell more than 85,000 tickets and generate more than $1 million in direct state revenue from ticket sales alone, Fertitta said, by hosting events in the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, the Times Union Center in Albany and one venue in New York City.
“And that does not begin to count the state and local sales tax revenue from concession and merchandise sales at the arenas, parking, hotel rooms, restaurants, and other expenditures by Ultimate Fighting Championship fans,” Fertitta said. “It also does not count the income tax revenue from the union workers who will be employed at those venues.”
A 2009 study conducted by the Ultimate Fighting Championship found that a single event in New York City would add as much as $11.5 million in new economic activity.
Fertitta and others maintain that the sport’s safety regulations have been improved drastically since the ban in 1997. There are now pre-fight MRIs, CAT scans and medical testing for fighters. Ringside doctors are present at Ultimate Fighting Championship events, drug testing is required and there are now weight classes to ensure the fairness of matchups between fighters.
Comparing today’s mixed martial arts to the version that was banned in 1997 is unfair, say supporters. Mike Mucitelli, a professional mixed martial artist from Syracuse, likened it to comparing football today with football back in its primitive stages.
“We can’t judge the NFL today by where it was years ago when it started,” Mucitelli said. “There’s not people going out there with leather helmets and metal mouthpieces and no pads smashing into each other with the goal posts in front anymore. That’s the same thing as judging UFC by where it was 20 years ago.”
Complicating the politics of legalization in New Yorks is an ongoing feud between the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 in Las Vegas. The Culinary Union objects to some business practices of the Fertitta family, which also owns 18 casinos in Las Vegas. The Culinary Union and one of its affiliates, an organization called UNITE HERE based in New York City, have lobbied heavily in the state of New York against legalization.
That has made New York something of a proxy battleground for the Las Vegas dispute. On April 23, for example, both the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the union’s UNITE HERE group were in Albany to lobby lawmakers on their differing perspectives.
The Culinary Union office in Las Vegas did not return three calls requesting interviews for this story.
As of late April, the bill to legalize professional mixed martial arts remained in committee in the New York State Assembly. The 2013 legislative session runs through the end of June, and Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-New York, has until that time to decide whether to bring the bill to the floor for a vote.
(Michael Cohen is a senior newspaper major.)
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