*** TWO THUMBS UP FOR LARRY HAZZARD ***

[Joe Manco]

I got this from The Full Contact Fighter:

"UFC 28 Fighter Meeting
Larry Hazzard Gives a Powerful Pro-MMA Speech

Tonight the UFC held its usual pre-fight meeting for the combatants, their seconds, managers and the press. This time, was slightly different than usual though...New Jersey State Athletic Control Board Chairman Larry Hazzard made a speech welcoming MMA, and the UFC in particular, to New Jersey. Hazzard also warned the fighters and their crew that now that they are licensed by the State of New Jersey as professionals, that they should act the part; reminding them that the eyes of the sporting world are upon them. It was quite clear from his speech that Mr. Hazzard is pro-Mixed Martial Arts. "This is a very, very major venue as far as combative sports is concerned, especially professional boxing. MMA is a relatively new type of athletic competition which I 'PERSONALLY' endorse. [this statement was met with a rousing round of applause] Hazzard continued, "I endorse it mainly because I am very familiar with the martial arts, but this form of competition has not been accepted universally--or I should say nationally...and it certainly hasn't been accepted universally, and I am an advocate of it[MMA], and I am an ally; however I must take an opportunity to caution you and remind you. We are only interested in the highest levels of competition, therefore it's incumbent on all of you especially when you compete here in this state, to be in top-notch condition because we will not tolerate any second rate competition here...and it's good for the sport! So you should take it as a personal challenge to help to promote this sport, because we are in the infant stages [of MMA]...and the state of Nevada right now is considering giving you the opportunity to compete there, and much of that is dependant upon the report that they get from me here in New Jersey. Now, I want to remind you that our main goal and our mission is not for anyone to be getting hurt...it's to give you an opportunity to demonstrate and exhibit your skills...but our main goal is the health and safety of the combatants. That's why all of you know, that you had to go through a pretty extensive battery of medical examinations in order to participate here in this state." [The fighters had to spend almost the entire day traveling to and from the hospital, as well as undergoing everything from bloodwork to eye exams to CAT scans.] Hazzard went on to give a powerful motivating speech in favor of the sport--not the type of thing we are accustomed to from Athletic Commissioners in dealing with Mixed Martial Arts."


What a break for for MMA!!!

Yours truly,

Joe

[Evilution]

That's cool stuff. Do you think MMA will ever be accepted and popularized enough that it will be shown on basic cable like normal sports? I think we've a long way to go to see that yet.