Below is a copy of a press release we put out today.
For Immediate Release
Mississippi Announces Sanctioning of Mixed Martial Arts
(January 26, 2005 Carthage, Mississippi) Today, Mississippi State Athletic Commissioner John Lewis notified SportfightingUSA in writing that the sport of Mixed Martial Arts would be sanctioned in the State of Mississippi.
“Effective January 1, 2005 the Athletic Commission began the regulation of submission fighting in Mississippi.” The letter continued that the rules approved by the MSAC are the Unified Rules of the Mixed Martial Arts.
“Rob and I are elated at this development and see it as an important step in its continued progression in the mainstream. We asked the MSAC to sanction the FFC prior to our first show in 2001, but an earlier iteration of the MSAC didn’t feel that they had the statutory authority to supervise the sport. However, recently appointed Commissioner John Lewis is very familiar with the sport, and was able to obtain an opinion from the State Attorney General’s Office that he felt gave him the necessary mandate to add it to the list of unarmed combat events they currently supervise” said SportfightingUSA President Lee Coates.
“We are very much looking forward to working with Commissioner Lewis and the rest of his staff to insure safety and growth of the sport. This is something we have wanted and worked toward for a long time. The Commission sanctioned our recent Kickboxing event, Kings, and I have to say they were a pleasure to work with.” Said FFC and Kings President Rob Braniff