Promoters prep formal plea to fix new N.Y. fight law
LOCAL promoters are putting together a formal response to the new laws governing mixed martial arts and boxing in state laws they insist will negatively impact the amount of boxing shows held in New York.
Saturday is the deadline for the general public to post comments on the New York State Athletic Commission website concerning the new legislation passed in April and signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The bill legalized MMA in the state for the first time since 1997, but also raised insurance requirements to levels boxing promoters say they can’t afford.
Included in the new regulations are an increase from $10,000 to $50,000 in medical and death benefits and a more controversial measure that requires promoters of boxing and MMA to have $1 million of insurance in the event a fighter suffers a traumatic brain injury.
Joe DeGuardia of Star Boxing, Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment and Pat English, manager of numerous boxers including the late Arturo Gatti are among those hoping to persuade the commission to adjust the insurance requirements and address other issues in the new law.
“The problem is the legislature already wrote certain things into law,” DeGuardia said. “These are things that I don’t think were properly vetted by the boxing community. Right now, they’re claiming the [NYSAC] has found companies that are willing to underwrite the insurance and make it where you can do big shows in New York. But it’s going to reduce the overall number of shows because it triples the costs.”
It’s the grass roots, smaller shows that will be impacted most, shows like the ones DeGuardia has staged at the Paramount Theater and DiBella’s popular Broadway Boxing series.
“If it costs me three times as much to do shows here, can I still do shows? Yeah,” DeGuardia added. “Will I still do shows in New York? Yeah. But will it be the same number of shows I’ve done? No. I’ll have to bring them to different locations outside of the state.”
Boxing is in limbo until the situation is addressed. For the first time in years, there are no major boxing events scheduled in New York for the remainder of the year, though certain dates are on hold in the hope a resolution can be reached.
The UFC is one of the few companies that can afford the new insurance requirements. It will make its debut in the state Nov. 12 with UFC 205 at Madison Square Garden and is also planning a UFC Fight Night for Dec. 9 in Albany. Those could well be the only two sanctioned combat events in the state for the remainder of the year.
The impending shutdown of boxing comes at a time when the sport has experienced some resurgence in the city with consistent shows being promoted by Star Boxing, DiBella Entertainment, Top Rank Inc., the Premier Boxing Champions series and Brooklyn Boxing.
The PBC and Brooklyn Boxing are coming off a successful event last Sunday in Coney Island, at which 5,000 fans were in attendance and six million viewers watched on NBC. Welterweight contender Errol Spence scored a spectacular sixth-round knockout over Leonard Bundu and Brooklyn’s Heather “The Heat” Hardy scored a majority decision win over Shelly Vincent in a televised bout that showcased women’s boxing.
Hardy, a fixture in New York boxing, is concerned about her future in the state, where she is a top draw.
“Honestly, it kind of terrifies me,” she told The Post. “I’m a New York fighter. Where do I go now? What is my place with DiBella Entertainment if he’s not going to be promoting fights in New York City? At least I got a little exposure being on television, so maybe I can fight on some other cards around the country if that has to be my only option.”