Just as North America had the outlying New York, where fighters with HIV and Hep were fighting with no regulation, Australia had the outlying state of Western Australia. Back in 2013 former premier Colin Barnett (Liberal) enacted one of the odder prohibitions in the sport’s history – WA allows mixed martial arts bouts to take place, but only if they are in a ring. He did so against the safety advice of the government’s own Combat Sports Commission.
Rings are made to keep upright strikers in a confined area. They are not designed nor are they capable of keeping grappling athletes confined either standing up or on the ground. Thus the ring is far less safe, with endless cases of fighters getting injured, sometimes seriously, from falling over or between ring ropes. A ring is like a seatbelt, it’s a good precaution when driving on the road. If you are racing, the stresses are higher, and you need a helmet. The WA government ignorantly took away the helmet.
Earlier this year they rescinded the prohibition the prohibition on the cage, opening the way for UFC 221 in Perth. Unbelievably, the Australian Medical Association of WA has now attacked the move.
UFC president Dana White was asked at the UFC 217 weekend to respond. He did a little political Jiu-Jitsu, pointing out that the ban has been good for business, maintaining pent-up interest.
The fencing is there for safety, so that people can’t fall out while they’re fighting, said White to Liam Croy for Australia’s TheWest.com.au. What do I think [about the AMA WA]? I think they’re ridiculous.
The great part about the hold-outs like that, they make it even better. So when we finally get into New York, Madison Square Garden – think about all of the big events and all of the big acts that have come here – we’re number one by like $8 million as far as gate goes. And this weekend we’re going to be number three. So we’re number one and number three at Madison Square Garden in New York – and hopefully we’ll come back and take number two here soon.
These guys kind of do my job for me when they hold out like this and then there’s this built-up excitement and anticipation for us to come. That’s much like what’s going on in Perth right now.
UFC 221 will now place in Perth, Australia on Feb. 11. The fervent hope there is Australia’s first UFC champion Robert Whittaker will appear on the card, but a unification fight with new middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre might shift the fight to Canada.
