LOS ANGELES – California State Athletic Commission executive director Armando Garcia hopes to make amateur mixed martial arts a reality by the end of this year.
At an informational meeting for promoters held Tuesday in Los Angeles, Garcia released a rough draft of proposed rules for non-professional competition. It was the second meeting on the subject since the CSAC began regulating MMA in March of 2006, designed to get feedback from the MMA industry on the shape of the new program.
Most of the proposed rules were similar to those in place for professional MMA in California, with a few notable exceptions.
Participants would be divided into eighteen separate weight classes, starting at flyweight (111.9 pounds and below) and ending at maximumweight (250 pounds and above). Fighters with less than 10 fights would be limited to three three-minute rounds. Fighters with 11 or more fights would be allowed up to five two-minute rounds upon approval of the commission.
Elbows and forearms to the head of a grounded opponent would be prohibited, as well as upkicks, neck cranks, hammer locks, slamming, and heel hooks.
Despite the revocation of many common techniques in today’s MMA, there was surprisingly little feedback from the promoters on hand. Garcia admitted he was taken aback by the silence that followed the suggestions.
“It’s been slow in coming,” Garcia. “I’ve been pushing this thing left and right, and there’s little to no feedback at all. People just sit there and they look at me and hear me talking, and go ‘great, great, great,’ and I’m asking (for feedback) and nobody says anything.”
The final draft of the amateur rules will be completed next week and presented for the commission’s approval as early as June. If approved, the program will likely take effect by December of 2008 or January of 2009.
