Tuesday, August 17, 2010

The Op Ed piece on the provinces flip flop on MMA


On Saturday morning Consumer Services Minister Sophia Aggelonitis announced that the provincial government plans to make professional mixed martial arts events legal in Ontario.

Now that we’ve had a few days to digest the news, let’s take a minute to see it for what it is — an interesting development and nothing more.

I’m not trying to downplay the sport’s rapidly growing popularity. A few times a year I’m even one of those dropping 50 bucks on a UFC pay-per-view telecast.

It just seems to me that folks on both sides of the MMA debate (along with everyone in the middle trying to understand it) could use a dose of reality.

The reality is Saturday’s decision is noteworthy but not earth-shattering and probably won’t change the sports landscape here. And despite rumours the UFC has already booked the Rogers Centre for March 26, 2011, UFC Canadian director Tom Wright said it’s not that certain.
“That (date) is news to me, and frankly I would know,” Wright said. “No date has been chosen and no venue has been chosen. We’ve got a lot of work to do before we put on a show in Toronto.”

Sure, the ability to sell out the Rogers Centre will be a money-maker for both the UFC and the provincial government. And Saturday’s announcement must feel historic to those in the grassroots MMA community.

But in the bigger picture it isn’t that significant. It simply is what it is: namely, a chance for the province to tax everything from ticket sales to hotel rooms while scooping 2 per cent of live gate revenues.

It will be a windfall for local businesses, with estimates of the economic impact from a UFC event ranging from $6 million to $23 million.

For Ontario MMA fans, it’s a chance to see the sport’s biggest stars without having to leave the province.

Hardly a turning point in pro sports history. And that’s fine. Saturday’s announcement doesn’t have to foreshadow something more important, like an explosion in the sport’s grassroots popularity or even a jump in MMA programming on TV. Those things are happening already.
Over the past five years, MMA gyms have sprouted across the GTA, and between Rogers Sportsnet, the Score and the Fight Network, MMA programming is available daily.
All this developed before the government moved to legalize MMA — evidence that the sport’s popularity is already entrenched and growing and that this latest announcement won’t affect the trend either way. Nor will it prompt a flood of MMA shows.

Another hard reality is that fight cards are costly, complex events in this province.

While most jurisdictions require fighters pass a medical exam within 90 days of a fight, Ontario requires one within 30 days. As a result, if a fighter has to pull out of a bout, the stringent standards make replacing him difficult, leading to cancelled fights and cards. In addition to paying the fighters, Ontario requires a security deposit equal to the entire evening’s purses. A larger outfit like the UFC can handle that cost, but fledgling promoters will struggle with it.

If you’re trying to pinpoint why Ontario hosted only seven pro boxing shows last year, just follow the dollars.

So when the province amends the Combative Sports Act — a process that could last into 2011 — the new rules will mostly benefit the UFC.

Once or twice a year the UFC will fill the Rogers Centre or the Air Canada Centre, giving fans something to celebrate and detractors something to lament.

Then the UFC crew will pack up and head to its next event while a few intrepid local promoters will try to fill the gaps with smaller shows.

Some will succeed, more will likely fail.
But, whether you love the sport or hate it, if it’s not the UFC, you probably won’t even notice.