Iowa Senate votes to deregulate ultimate fighting
Posted: Friday, March 30, 2007
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- The Iowa Senate has voted to end state regulation of mixed martial arts fighting, a move backers say shields the state from liability if someone is injured or dies in an event.
The bill, approved 35-12 on Wednesday, now heads to the House.
Its lead sponsor, Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, said the measure comes forward because senators cannot agree whether to ban the sport, known as ultimate fighting, or modify its regulations.
"We've begun to realize the real danger of this sport," he said.
Mixed martial arts is one of the fastest growing sports in the nation. Advocates have long argued that a state which deregulates the sport without banning it are powerless to stop fly-by-night organizations from staging events within its borders.
Marc Ratner, the vice president of governmental affairs for UFC, the sport's largest organization, said it's the "most nonsensical" decision he can imagine.
"I think this is very shortsighted. Somebody will get hurt there because there a lot of underground shows that need to be regulated."
Sen. Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames, voted against the bill because he would rather see the state ban this kind of fighting.
"That's not a sport. It is a barbaric, disgusting, degrading and subhuman activity that really has no place in the state of Iowa," he said.
Ratner said the UFC could never stage an event in a state without regulation, adding that Iowa is an international hotbed for the sport.
The bill, approved 35-12 on Wednesday, now heads to the House.
Its lead sponsor, Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, said the measure comes forward because senators cannot agree whether to ban the sport, known as ultimate fighting, or modify its regulations.
"We've begun to realize the real danger of this sport," he said.
Mixed martial arts is one of the fastest growing sports in the nation. Advocates have long argued that a state which deregulates the sport without banning it are powerless to stop fly-by-night organizations from staging events within its borders.
Marc Ratner, the vice president of governmental affairs for UFC, the sport's largest organization, said it's the "most nonsensical" decision he can imagine.
"I think this is very shortsighted. Somebody will get hurt there because there a lot of underground shows that need to be regulated."
Sen. Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames, voted against the bill because he would rather see the state ban this kind of fighting.
"That's not a sport. It is a barbaric, disgusting, degrading and subhuman activity that really has no place in the state of Iowa," he said.
Ratner said the UFC could never stage an event in a state without regulation, adding that Iowa is an international hotbed for the sport.
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Chris Brown wrote on Apr 2, 2007 6:16 PM:
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