Statement from Larry Hazzard on 12-6 elbow ban origin story
“The intent of the 12 to 6 elbow rule was to ban a very specific strike.”
Then New Jersey State Athletic Commission head Larry Hazzard was a central figure in the establishment of the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. A three-time NJ state golden gloves competitor, with black belts in karate and jiu jitsu from the legendary Moses Powell, Hazzard was as close to a mixed martial artist as it got at the time.
A controversial prohibition on 12-6 elbows was part of that rule set, and exists to this day. An origin story has circulated since – that the ban was a way of allowing elbows (defined as “forearms”) in the sport, by defining an “elbow” solely as the 12-6 elbow. The concern over the 12-6 elbow was reportedly sparked by an advising physician who had seen the technique in a karate ice breaking demonstration.
However, in a recent statement to the Luke Thomas Sirius show, Hazard discounted the importance of the story, focusing instead on the need for approval by the then Medical Advisory Board Chairman, who was an ENT surgeon:
The intent of the 12 to 6 elbow rule was to ban a very specific strike.
That being a 12 to 6 strike to the head of a downed opponent whose head was flat against the canvas. The Medical Advisory Chairman at the time was concerned about the lack of ability for the head to turn to the side or move back upon impact (unlike under combat sport strikes to the head). It seemed that the head would be pushed directly back against the canvas, into the foam padding and into the solid wood floorboards. The head might also then bounce back into the point of the elbow. The concern was the great possibility of facial fractures due to the number of bones in the area, along with increased potential for eye injury.
Any talk about ice breaking or board breaking demonstrations concerning us is silly and patently false.
I was a black belt in both karate and jiu-jitsu myself well before the implementation of this rule; and the agency was in close consultation with Jeff Blatnick, around and near the time of the rule’s consideration.
As we were trying to sanction the sport and get the sport back on the PPV platform at the time, it seemed prudent to err on the side of caution and safety for this new sport.
