Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts Revised
As reported in an excellent piece by MMAJunkie.com, the Association of Boxing Commissions has adopted revisions to the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. The change that has gotten the most press is an amendment to the "no strikes to the back of the head" rule taking some aspects of the "mohawk" rule (no strikes along the center line of the head running towards the spine) and the "headphones" rule (no strikes at any location that would be behind a pair of headphones worn on the head). The new rule uses the mohawk interpretation towards the top of the head but then widens the prohibited striking area towards the base of the neck.
Another rule change is the prohibition of "12 to 6" elbow strikes (striking downward with the point of the elbow). This is a reversal from changes the ABC made to the Uniform Rules of MMA in 2008 when it acted to eliminate the restriction against such a move.
Although ABC's MMA committee hopes that the revisions to the Uniform Rules will be adopted, well, uniformly, state athletic commissions are free to reject any or all of them. For example, although the ABC changed the breakdown of weight classes in 2008, most commissions (and the UFC) kept the MMA light heavyweight class at the traditional 186 to 205 pounds.
One thing that makes universal adoption more likely than in the past is that the rules changes were created by the ABC committee on MMA rather than the ABC itself. The MMA committee, which was adopted in 2008, largely in response to complaints about the proposed new weight classes, counts as its members the directors of many of the most influential state athletic commissions.
It would greatly benefit the sport of MMA for all states to adopt the modified rules. Even if a particular commission disagrees with a particular rule change, having a common rule set makes it easier for fans to understand what is happening, it makes it easier for officials to oversee matches, and it makes it safer for the fighters.
