WTF, can't us MMA loving New Yawkers catch a break already?!? Apparently, new New York Governor Andrew Cuomo doesn't give a shit about sanctioning MMA in New York or it's measly $23 million dollars in "economic impact". With a $10 BILLION dollar state deficit, I can see why that would be the case. That's like trying to close a gunshot wound to the head with a band-aid!
Regardless of the economic factors of this situation, it makes absolutely no sense for MMA to still be ILLEGAL in New York state and city. Think about the reality of that last sentence. It is against the law to stage a Mixed Martial Arts event inside the state's borders. That is as hard to digest as what Joe Rogan would make those morons on Fear Factor eat. Seriously, it's mind boggling that one of the most progressive states in the union could be failing so ridiculously in regards to this simple issue. What makes this even worse is the fact that former Governor Patterson completely backed sanctioning. In a personal conversation I had with Patterson, he said he pushed the bill forward and was 100% behind passing it. As he stated to me, "it just didn't make it through". He was very knowledgeable on the sport, saying he was very happy with how it had been "cleaned up" and also even mentioned how CBS and Showtime have backed up Strikeforce and aired their shows on their networks. With Cuomo, we don't really know what we're dealing with. It's hard to tell if he has a political agenda, doesn't know about the sport or just doesn't really give a damn about it at this point. Given the fact that he is the brand new head of the state, I can see why sanctioning MMA would be far from a priority. One thing that is of real concern though is that the Governor's Executive Budget proposes eliminating the salary for the Chair of the State Athletic Commission. Anyway you look at it, it's all bad. In a best case scenario, attending an MMA show at Madison Square Garden looks to still be a long way off.
In the meantime, New Jersey continues to capitalize on Albany dragging their proverbial feet. The UFC has and will continue to hold big shows right across the river, their next one being UFC 128 on March 19th at the Prudential Center in Newark. That card will feature the long overdue LHW title fight between Shogun Rua and Rashad Evans. Strikeforce isnt idly sitting by either. On February 12th they are holding one of their biggest shows to date at the Izod Center in the Meadowlands. It is both literally and figuratively their biggest show since it features ALL heavyweights and is being headlined by MMA living legend, Fedor Emelianenko. We all know that if it was legal, these shows would be happening within New York state's borders. Zuffa put on a nice little dog and pony shown with their press conference at Madison Square Garden last month. What they really did was put the cart before the horse. Pumping over $74K into Cuomo's campaign coffers didn't seem to have the "economic impact" they had hoped it would either. Sometimes money isn't always the deciding factor, just ask the Yankees GM, Brian Ca$hman, and Cliff Lee about that. Zuffa needs to realize this.
It really annoys the shit out of me that every time I walk or take a cab through Times Square I have to see that humongous UFC billboard (pictured below) promoting events I can't go see live in my own city. It's a constant reminder of the virtual insanity of this situation. If you ask any longtime fan of MMA what they think the next milestone of the sport will be, the chances are their response will be to FINALLY have a show at Madison Square Garden. We NEED to have the world's greatest sport in the world's greatest arena in the world's greatest city!
It only makes sense, but apparently sense doesn't seem to matter here. We can only hope that Cuomo wises up and does the right thing!
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