Small step for Boxing...

[digipoi]

Lets hope this one gets passed....

Senate Approves Bill to Increase Government Oversight of Boxing

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate approved legislation Wednesday that would create a federal agency to oversee professional boxing.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the bill's author, has criticized fight promoters for taking advantage of young boxers and chastised state boxing commissions for conflicts of interests and for not ensuring the objectivity of fight judges.

Boxing is the only major professional sport in the country without a central regulatory authority. There is no other major professional sport in which the rules and regulations vary so widely, the General Accounting Office said in a report last year.

The legislation would establish a United States Boxing Administration within the Labor Department. It would license professional boxers, promoters, managers and sanctioning organizations.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., dropped his objections to the bill after McCain agreed to allow the agency to regulate HBO, Showtime and other cable TV networks when they act as fight promoters.

"This is a multimillion-dollar industry and it needs federal oversight," Reid said in the Senate Wednesday.

The bill requires fighters to be tested for infectious diseases and medical records to be kept on all boxers. It also sets safety standards that state boxing commissions must enforce, including an ambulance and doctor at each fight.

It would give the USBA the power to investigate misconduct, including subpoena power, and to suspend or revoke boxing licenses after conducting hearings.

Similar legislation has been introduced in the House.

Heres the actual Bill for anyone who wants to read it. Too much legal jargon for me, Ill just wait for summarys.

Professional Boxing Amendments Act of 2003 (Introduced in House)

Edit/ Darn the Link keeps changing...

Edited April 1, 2004 by digipoi

[....]

I hope this goes through....Boxing needs a mommy to make sure everyone plays fair.

[darkcrad]

wat about ufc???!?!

[....]

wat about ufc???!?!

Um...what about it? Boxing is an art, UFC is backyard wrestling with half the brains.

[Dave Veteran]

Um...what about it? Boxing is an art, UFC is backyard wrestling with half the brains.

Hardly. UFC may have been that way during the early years, but evolved tremendously in the late 90's becoming a much more complicated contest than boxing is. Thanks to one family, the Gracies.

[....]

Hardly. UFC may have been that way during the early years, but evolved tremendously in the late 90's becoming a much more complicated contest than boxing is. Thanks to one family, the Gracies.

I guess we agree to disagree. UFC is moronic ape-like combat.

[Spyder Veteran]

lol *insert the monkey noises here*

[digipoi]

I guess we agree to disagree. UFC is moronic ape-like combat.

Definitely takes more skill to become a boxer. Especially on the professional level.

[....]

Definitely takes more skill to become a boxer. Especially on the professional level.

Yeah, you need an iq slightly higher than a grape, which weeds out the UFC competitors.

Anywhoo, digi, how likely is this going to happen...the legislation, that is?

[digipoi]

Yeah, you need an iq slightly higher than a grape, which weeds out the UFC competitors.

Anywhoo, digi, how likely is this going to happen...the legislation, that is?

At the moment, Im not quite sure. Can only hope for the best, wouldnt make sense to not protect these fighters. Ill follow up on it when I have some time and post it here. Works been killing me lately.

[....]

Thanks for the news, though...we need more boxing threads here.

[Boffa Jones Veteran]

Hey hey, UFC is great, not even close to as good as pride fighting, but its a much more interesting sport(to me), with so many different styles.

[BMac]

Definitely takes more skill to become a boxer. Especially on the professional level.

I don't want to flame digi or boog but you guys are out of your league on this one. UFC and all of MMA is far more developed then Boxing. Not only does it encompus the standup sparing but it provides arts such as wrestling, ju-jitsui and many other forms of combat. In the beginning the UFC was led by ape like imbeciles such as Tank Abbott but is now led by incredible atheletes such as Mikro Cro Cop and Wanderlai Sylva. If you watch one of the more recent events you would recognise that the sport has changed tremedously and growing in popularity where as boxing is going down the drain.

[digipoi]

I don't want to flame digi or boog but you guys are out of your league on this one.  UFC and all of MMA is far more developed then Boxing.  Not only does it encompus the standup sparing but it provides arts such as wrestling, ju-jitsui and many other forms of combat.  In the beginning the UFC was led by ape like imbeciles such as Tank Abbott but is now led by incredible atheletes such as Mikro Cro Cop and Wanderlai Sylva.  If you watch one of the more recent events you would recognise that the sport has changed tremedously and growing in popularity where as boxing is going down the drain.

Ill watch MMA style fighting as well as K1/Kickboxing etc. I really do enjoy watching "most" of it. Dont know, I get bored with the ground and pound stuff. Looks like school yard brawls to me. Now, the jiujitsu side, I can appreciate because its the most technical part of that sport. Not taking anything away from the athlete, no, they train pretty darn hard.

All in all, proof is in the ticket sales, look at how much money is generated from one boxing card compared to one UFC card, then come tell us Boxing is going down the drain. Shoot, Im going to try and make it to watch the DeLaHoya vs. Hopkins fight in September and my seats will cost me at least $500 a pop. And those wont be ringside either. The difference is they "can" sell them for those prices.

[BMac]

Ill watch MMA style fighting as well as K1/Kickboxing etc. I really do enjoy watching "most" of it. Dont know, I get bored with the ground and pound stuff. Looks like school yard brawls to me. Now, the jiujitsu side, I can appreciate because its the most technical part of that sport. Not taking anything away from the athlete, no, they train pretty darn hard.

All in all, proof is in the ticket sales, look at how much money is generated from one boxing card compared to one UFC card, then come tell us Boxing is going down the drain. Shoot, Im going to try and make it to watch the DeLaHoya vs. Hopkins fight in September and my seats will cost me at least $500 a pop. And those wont be ringside either. The difference is they "can" sell them for those prices.

It takes time to change. UFC/MMA is in its infancy. It's only 10 years old. Boxing has a much longer history and has already made it mainstream. UFC is pushing for mainstream acceptance and with appearances of shows like Last Call with Carson Daily and the Jimmy Kimmel show the sport is growing drastically. Remember back in the old days of idiots like Tank Abbott the sport almost died but it stayed alive through the Internet and such.

My best example to prove the potential of MMA is over in Japan. The Japanese are very educated in all aspects of the sport and they sell out every pride event with crowds of over 60,000 people. MMA is a pop culture over there and is catching on in North America now.

If there was ever a time for MMA to boom its now as the boxing world is experiencing a lapse in marque fighters. Plus all the phony weigh-in's the true fans are being to look at the sport as a joke.

From a personal prespective I like both MMA and Boxing but find the current talent in Boxing lack luster and boring. Events like UFC, K1 and Pride are beginning to attract more people and the fighting styles are fresh and captivating. All in all I think my point still stands that Boxing is in some serious trouble if the don't find an answer soon and the MMA world is waiting to capitalize.

[Boffa Jones Veteran]

Cro Cop is crazy. Quinten Jackson is like a cool tito, and poor poor shamrock...

[BMac]

Cro Cop is crazy. Quinten Jackson is like a cool tito, and poor poor shamrock...

All of your statements are true. I was shocked that Quinten can beat Chuck but Tito couldn't. And as for Shamrock he and Kimo better have a strong match in June or that will be a weak card.