Department of Professional Regulation Lauds
Toughman Decision by Rockford Judge
The Director of the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation (IDPR) commended
IDPRs ban on two Toughman events scheduled for later this month in
Judge Perrillos decision is consistent with what people from Gov. Blagojevich to law
enforcement officials to concerned citizens in communities across Illinois have been saying:
Toughman has no place in Illinois, IDPR Director Fernando E. Grillo said.
Under Gov. Blagojevichs leadership, the IDPR on Jan. 14 instituted an emergency rule to the
Illinois Boxing Act closing loopholes that allowed promoters to stage Toughman-type events
throughout the state. The promoter of Toughman brawls scheduled for Feb. 20-21 in Peoria and Feb.
27-28 in Rockford, Adorable Productions, filed suit against the Department seeking a preliminary
injunction to allow the Rockford event.
At least 12 people have died after participating in Toughman contests across the
country, including Stacy Young, a 30-year-old mother of two from Florida who climbed into the
ring at an event last year against an opponent with vastly more experience.
These competitions amount to organized street fights. The participants lack training,
the rules are loose at best and the outcomes are often deadly, Grillo said. We cannot,
and will not, allow Toughman fighting in Illinois.
Randy does this affect MMA in Illinios?
I believe it has led to a crackdown.
Didn't Jeff Curran's show have to be rescheduled and relocated?
i believe currans show is in wisconsin now
MMA has ben banned in Illinois since 1996 . This really didn't stop mma as the shows went underground . Shidokan and Shooto were given permission to have sanctioned events in Illinois . It took my partner at Shooto , Rich Santoro , almost three years to get the ok . Since then , we have been accused of shutting down shows by telling the state they were going on . We have no interest in shutting down shows and if the people making these statements would do some checking they could find out who did it . This is available to anyone who requests it . But it's easier to say this person did this and that person did that .
Currently promotions are checking into getting shows ok'd but (IMO) aren't following the correct routes to do so . This could make it far worse for all involved . I have given suggestions and made the statement several times " the state won't overturn the ruleing unless there is money involed " . There is a cowboy mentality of "we don't want the state to regulate us" . That just isn't going to fly . That is the reason why we are in the situation currently .
Jeff did move his show to Wis.
Some of the people involved in mma here are scared to death of the state . IMO we need the goverment bodies to be part of the sport . Hopefully this would help the sport grow and get rid of some of the shady things that happen (promoters not paying , mismatches ect.) . Let me also add that we will continue to work with the state . If they say we couldn't shows then we wouldn't do shows . That hasn't happend as of yet .
good
I must admit some of the smaller mma shows are ridiculous, there was a vid clip posted on the UG a few months back from a small mma show in the U.S, a fighter was slammed hard on his head/neck and looked in a really bad way, the announcer then shouted "oooh thats gonna leave a mark".. that is worse than toughman right there.