It’s been over a year since British Columbia appointed their new athletic commission. Previously the province did not have a commission, the city of Vancouver had their own.
When the newly appointment crew made their debut, there were many critics. The mixed martial arts scene had been so used to what MMA BC had done for them, that bringing the new boys on board, just plain old changed things up.
After sitting through my fair share of amateur mixed martial arts events, I have come to the conclusion that the ruling for these young (and sometimes old) combatants is a complete joke.
In the past, the only major difference in ruling between the amateur and professional ranks were elbows to the head of a grounded opponent and knees to the head while standing. With the instatement of the British Columbia Athletic Commission came a whole new rule set. They have now adopted something that they like to call “Novice” and “Advanced” amateurs — if you are in the novice rankings (which means three fights or less) then you are not allowed to throw punches to the head of a grounded opponent.
Almost each and every undercard at an event goes to the judges scorecards. This is due to the fact that when a fighter rocked his opponent he was able to take him down, but he could not do any real damage on the ground. To make matters worse, one could have his opponents back and unless that fighter made a major mistake, it would be very hard to lock in a submission. There is no way to open up the neck, because you can’t punch the face to move the arm.
That is just one reason why the rulings suck.
What about the fact that a fighter can only have one corner enter the cage in between rounds. I have seen this for amateur MMA, which makes some sense, but professional fighters only having one corner is a complete joke. That one corner man (or woman in some instances) has to carry all of the tape, ice and everything else — all while trying to give his fighter tips and clean up his face. How do you expect a fighter to get the best from his corner when the same guy is trying to be a jack of all trades?
If that wasn’t enough the British Columbia Athletic Commission conducts drug testing on a “random basis” and at random events.
Fast forward 17-months and the Office of the BC Athletic Commissioner is looking for your input and suggestions on how the rule-set could be changed. To see their updated rules, click HERE.
If you, or anyone you know would like to be a part of the change in the MMA rules, then contact the commission at [email protected]. The deadline for submissions is November 28, 2014. As stated on their website, the Commissioner will review suggestions before finalizing and posting updated rules for use in amateur combat sports. It is anticipated that final rules will be posted in early 2015.
Until new rules are posted, the current versions remain in effect.
