Former UFC fighter Nate Quarry has claimed that Oklahoma Republican Senator-elect Markwayne Mullin is looking to reintroduce the Ali Expansion Act in 2023.
The Ali Expansion Act was first introduced in 2017 by Rep. Mullin, who fought and won three times as a professional mixed martial artist prior to the start of his political career. The proposal came as a means to expand the original Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act of 2000 by ensuring it encompasses a wider range of fighters and sports.
The initial act applies to boxing and boxers only, enforcing legal framework on elements such as contract length, the structure of deals, and financial disclosures that fighters must be presented with by promoters.
In essence, the act is designed to achieve three main objectives — to ensure safety and promote the welfare of boxers by eliminating unjust exchanges, to aid commissions in regulating events and forming rankings, and to promote the sport whilst maintaining its integrity.
With MMA and the fighters competing in the sport not under the protective banner of the Ali Act, many believe that the UFC, as well as promotions like Bellator and PFL, have long benefitted from the freedom to add more exploitative measures to its contracts.
In regard to the UFC, the sport’s leading organization has kept finances on the down-low and also utilizes a number debated contractual clauses. That includes the champions clause, which allows the promotion to extend the length of a fighter’s deal should they hold a title at its culmination.
With that in mind, and with his desire to see a third-party control titles and rankings, Rep. Mullin introduced the Ali Expansion Act to Congress a number of years ago. And while the bill wasn’t passed at the time, the former fighter-turned-Senator-elect is seemingly looking to revive his push for reform.
This week, former 10-fight UFC veteran Quarry took to Twitter to reveal Rep. Mullin’s plan to reintroduce the Ali Expansion Act in 2023 following his election to the Senate this year.
“BREAKING: Just got word from Senator @RepMullin that he’s looking to reintroduce the Ali Expansion Act from the senate side of things in 2023.”
What Impact Could MMA’s Inclusion In The Ali Act Mean?
At the time of the bill’s first introduction, Rep. Mullin told MMA journalist Ben Fowlkes that the act, and specifically the limitations it places on organizations when it comes to acting as both promoters and sanctioning bodies, is needed to prevent promoters from using factors such as titles and rankings to coerce fighters into one-sided agreements.
“The way it works right now, if you get a UFC contract, it’s a take-it-or-leave-it mentality,” Mullin said. “The UFC controls the rankings system. You control the rankings system; you control the fighters. Because the only way you’re going to fight at the top level is if you get ranked by them.
“This language specifically says that a third party will have the jurisdiction to have a true rankings system. Then if you’re fighting for a championship belt, you’ll know it’s because you deserve it, not because the guy above you wouldn’t sign a contract slanted toward the organization and not the fighter.”
The successful passing of the Ali Expansion Act would notably take a major step towards preventing organizations from favoring fighters based on their star power and granting opportunities based on that. With that, fighters could be assured that their performances and hard work are more accurately rewarded.
Currently, the UFC has the power to influence rankings, as well as handing titles to fighters or stripping them of gold. The promotion has also been accused in the past of removing fighters from their respective division’s top 15 during contract negotiations.
With the Ali Expansion Act, third-party oversight would undermine much of the power that the UFC and other promotions wield, as well as boosting the leverage fighters have.
However, the Ali Act certainly hasn’t been supported by everyone, and a number of possible drawbacks have been identified.
In boxing, for example, athletes have complained about the failure of some promoters to provide complete financial disclosure, as well as an apparent relaxed enforcement of legal framework in many instances.
Some have also suggested that the proposed reforms could impact the UFC’s ability to pit ‘the best against the best’. The promotion currently has the power to match-make in whatever way it sees fit, which is often praised in contrast to boxing, where the Ali Act is often said to contribute to an ongoing struggle to match the sport’s top fighters against one another.
Unsurprisingly, the UFC has long pushed back against the Ali Expansion Act. During a 2017 hearing, UFC executive Marc Ratner appeared on behalf of the promotion to argue against the act.
As well as making note of the point surrounding the UFC’s ability to put on the best fights, Ratner insisted that MMA fighters are treated the same as boxes in regard to regulatory standards.
In a subsequent tweet this week following the revelation surrounding Mullin’s intentions, Quarry also made note of previous reports that the UFC lobbied for the bill’s rejection through the use of its financial power.
What do you make of calls for MMA to be included in the Ali Act?