In financial trouble? Call Dana White and the UFC to help get you out of debt! At least that’s what New York Governor David Patterson intends to do.
MMA Inching Closer and Closer To Regulation In New York
↵↵Gov. Paterson is set to propose legalizing ultimate fighting and its controversial steel-cage matches to help wrestle the state’s fiscal woes.
↵Madison Square Garden and upstate venues have supported the idea in hopes of hosting its events. An Ultimate Fighting Championship league match scheduled for Newark in March sold out last week.
↵Paterson, who has said the state faces a deficit of up to $9 billion, is looking for ways to generate revenue without raising taxes or borrowing and will reveal his proposal in his 2009-10 budget plan Jan. 19, sources told the Daily News.
↵Supporters say legalizing the sport would result in millions of dollars for the cash-strapped state - not just from the matches but also the economic impact on hotels, restaurants and other businesses.
↵A study done in 2008 by the Ultimate Fighting Championship organization estimated one event would generate $11.5 million in economic activity in New York City and $5.2 million in Buffalo. Ultimate Fighting Championship estimates there could be two or three events a year in New York.
↵↵With backing from high-ranking politicians and a ten figure state-wide debt, the move to regulate Mixed Martial Arts in the Empire State appears to be closing in on a reality. I can see it now... UFC 124: Lesnar vs Fedor, live from Madison Square Garden!
↵What, too much to ask for? A guy can dream, right?
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