UFC targets Copps, ACC venues
April 30, 2009
John Kernaghan
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/Sports/article/557446
The bloody and high-profile wing of the mixed-martial arts world has its sights set on Copps Coliseum.
"We're bullish on Ontario and Hamilton and Toronto," says Marc Ratner, vice-president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Mixed-martial arts events other than kickboxing are outlawed in Ontario, but Ratner said the UFC will begin a campaign in the next month to get the highly-popular shows sanctioned for Copps Coliseum and the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.
The UFC will lobby government regulators and promote the sport through the media, stressing that it is safe and comes with an economic punch. That move comes as the first pro kickboxing event in Ontario since 2002 is planned for Saturday in Burlington.
Meantime, the movie Fighting, which chronicles the world of underground fighting, is enjoying big box-office numbers. That all points to a growing appetite for violent combat. And it's not surprising, says Brock University sociology professor Dan Glenday.
"We're talking about a demographic of mostly men 20 to 35 who understand they must be politically correct day to day but can let the beast out for these events, then put it back in the cage when it's over."
That uncaging is very good business. Ratner said the Las Vegas-based organization generated $4.8-million in sales last week in its second visit to Canada. The Montreal event produced an economic impact of between $8 and $10 million, he claimed.
Ratner, who handles government and regulatory affairs for the UFC, stressed Ontario, and specifically Hamilton and Toronto, is missing out on that economic activity.
He said UFC staff noted large blocks of ticket-buyers from Ontario among the 19,000 at Montreal's Bell Centre last week. That included Ken Hayashi, Ontario's Athletic Commissioner.
Hayashi did not respond to calls about his attendance but a spokesperson for the Ministry of Small Business and Consumer Services, which oversees that athletic commission, said he attended as a private citizen at his own expense.
Hayashi has repeatedly resisted the idea of the UFC operating in Ontario, citing Canada's criminal code. He has said the code limits the sanctioning of professional events to boxing and kickboxing, and has noted even the latter is a stretch with kicking permitted above the waist.
Quebec and Alberta interpret the code differently and sanction mixed-martial arts.
Mark Skafs of the Ministry of Small Business and Consumer Services said the hybrid combat sports are not being reviewed but ministry staff are monitoring how they are conducted elsewhere.
Ratner noted education about the safety of the sport is a key element of the UFC campaign. He points out many legislators and regulatory officials don't understand the mixed martial arts practiced by UFC is much safer than the independent shows run in 1990s.
The UFC is still working on similar lobby efforts in New York State and Massachusetts, stressing safety and the economic impact of their shows.
Ratner lobbies legislators while UFC president Dana White does high-profile media gigs. He recently appeared on the CBC's The Hour to tout his sport.
Mixed martial arts like UFC events combine boxing, kickboxing and wrestling but permit punching an opponent and chokeholds while on the mat.
The canvas is often a bloody backdrop, with the spray from wounds visible and fighters sometimes wrestling in their own blood.
The UFC has moved in the past to ban blows to the crotch and referees seem to take extra caution in stopping fights.
The UFC argues it is less dangerous than pro boxing because boxers take multiple blows to the head in training as well as bouts.
The ultimate fighting group has an ally in the Canadian Boxing Federation, the pro fight group which is folding mixed martial-arts under its wing.
"UFC is bloodier and looks uglier but it is probably safer," said CBF executive Ed Pearson.
A 2006 study at Johns Hopkins University found lower incidence of knockouts in mixed martial arts but warned close scrutiny on safety must be maintained.
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