Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Monday, July 22, 2013
Live to Fight: The New York MMA Community Steps Up For People with Life Threatening Illnesses!
WHO IS LIVE TO FIGHT?
Founded in June of 2013, Live to Fight, Inc., fights relentlessly for those in the martial arts and mixed martial arts community who are suffering from life threatening illnesses. Live to Fight Inc. is a not-for-profit organization founded by Kristen Brown, cancer survivor, dedicated martial arts fan, ractitioner and journalist. She is joined by an accomplished board of directors.
WHAT THEY DO Live to Fight Inc. raises money and offers additional support for people in the martial arts and mixed martial arts community suffering from life threatening illnesses. Funds will be raised by offering various events for the general martial arts/MMA community including benefit instructional seminars led by professional fighters and high level martial artists and an annual MMA fashion show.
JOIN THE FIGHT
Make a donation, volunteer, host a seminar, become a Live To Fight sponsor, and join the fight! Do you or someone you know need help?
Visit the Live to Fight website for more information
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
"New York Mixed Martial Arts" is Now on HULU!
After a very long wait with many road bumps, our feature documentary New York Mixed Martial Arts, is now on HULU and HULU Plus (no commercials)!
Big thaks to everyone who helped this project including (I know I will forget people) Producer Stephen Koepfer, Director Kahleem Poole, Executive Producer Rob Terlizzi, Reggie Hinds, Robert Billings, Bradley Desir, Miguel Rivera, Paula Romero, Justin Klein, Jim Genia, Eddie Goldman, Dean Murray, Tyga Maclin, Steve Kardian, Steven Katz, Peter Lampasona, Matthew Kaplowitz, Mike Hauben, New York City Councilman Joel Rivera, Mike Straka and all the fighters that appeared in the film: Josh Barnett, Gesias Calvacante, Fedor Emilianenko,Tara LaRosa, Nestor Marte, Bas Rutten, Oleg Savitsky, and Frank Shamrock!
Spread the word! Educate the people and legislators of New York!
*Please note there is a currently a slight saturation problem in the credits of the streaming version of this film. This probl;em is being corrected presently. The Film's content is fine!Please enjoy and let us know what you think!
Learn more about our film at www.nymmafilm.com
Visit our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/nymmafilm
Follow us on Twitter @NYMMAFilm
Big thaks to everyone who helped this project including (I know I will forget people) Producer Stephen Koepfer, Director Kahleem Poole, Executive Producer Rob Terlizzi, Reggie Hinds, Robert Billings, Bradley Desir, Miguel Rivera, Paula Romero, Justin Klein, Jim Genia, Eddie Goldman, Dean Murray, Tyga Maclin, Steve Kardian, Steven Katz, Peter Lampasona, Matthew Kaplowitz, Mike Hauben, New York City Councilman Joel Rivera, Mike Straka and all the fighters that appeared in the film: Josh Barnett, Gesias Calvacante, Fedor Emilianenko,Tara LaRosa, Nestor Marte, Bas Rutten, Oleg Savitsky, and Frank Shamrock!
Spread the word! Educate the people and legislators of New York!
*Please note there is a currently a slight saturation problem in the credits of the streaming version of this film. This probl;em is being corrected presently. The Film's content is fine!Please enjoy and let us know what you think!
REVIEWS
Anyone who cares about the future of
MMA in New York State needs to watch this eye-opening film to discover
who and what is keeping MMA out of Madison Square Garden.
Beyond the politics, however, this is a moving portrait of athletes in exile - men and women who are forbidden to engage in the sport they love in their own city.
-Mike Tucker, Director, Fightville & Gunner Palace
Beyond the politics, however, this is a moving portrait of athletes in exile - men and women who are forbidden to engage in the sport they love in their own city.
-Mike Tucker, Director, Fightville & Gunner Palace
New York Mixed Martial Arts shows the audience the fiery yet kind heart of the sport's culture and dares them not to like it.
- Peter Lampasona, US Combat Sports
This is an important piece of work, and every aspect of it works together to create a coherent piece of engaging story-telling that hooks you into this world and transforms the viewer from an outsider to an insider in the span of an hour.
-The Fight Nerd, thefightnerd.com
It is a rare glimpse inside MMA, but it is a gem at the same time because it will open your eyes and help you understand that this sport is so much more than punches, kicks, and choke holds.
-Shawn Baran, TheGarv.com
Thumbs up for New York Mixed Martial Arts documentary!
-Jim Genia, MMAConvert.com
It's going to be a great ambassador for the legalization movement...they clearly debunk the no holds barred myth that is associated with the sport
-Beth Hurrle, Bloodyelbow.com
New York Mixed Martial Arts beautifully captures the essence of what it is to be an MMA fighter in New York.
-Anil Melwani, MMA.us
This is an important piece of work, and every aspect of it works together to create a coherent piece of engaging story-telling that hooks you into this world and transforms the viewer from an outsider to an insider in the span of an hour.
-The Fight Nerd, thefightnerd.com
It is a rare glimpse inside MMA, but it is a gem at the same time because it will open your eyes and help you understand that this sport is so much more than punches, kicks, and choke holds.
-Shawn Baran, TheGarv.com
Thumbs up for New York Mixed Martial Arts documentary!
-Jim Genia, MMAConvert.com
It's going to be a great ambassador for the legalization movement...they clearly debunk the no holds barred myth that is associated with the sport
-Beth Hurrle, Bloodyelbow.com
New York Mixed Martial Arts beautifully captures the essence of what it is to be an MMA fighter in New York.
-Anil Melwani, MMA.us
Learn more about our film at www.nymmafilm.com
Visit our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/nymmafilm
Follow us on Twitter @NYMMAFilm
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Down Again in 2013
Most following this blog are probably well aware by now that Speaker Sheldon Silver once again blocked NY MMA legislation from being voted upon on the Assembly floor. So, New York now has the dubious honor of being the only place in North American where pro MMA is banned. Thanks for nothing Sheldon; your ridiculous partisanship and corruptibility has once again trampled the will of the majority in the Assembly as well as a majority of New York's voters. The democratic process is dead in Silver's Assembly.
Here are several accounts of this year's failure:
June 24, 2013 Despite heavy sponsorship, MMA bill dies in committee - Legislative Gavette
June 18, 2013 New York State Assembly Shoots Down MMA Bill - NY Post
This disingenuous argument is what gave Silver the ammo to hold the bill back from a vote:
June 10, 2013 Assembly Democrats team up to take down mixed martial arts bill - NY Daily News
Here are several accounts of this year's failure:
June 24, 2013 Despite heavy sponsorship, MMA bill dies in committee - Legislative Gavette
June 18, 2013 New York State Assembly Shoots Down MMA Bill - NY Post
This disingenuous argument is what gave Silver the ammo to hold the bill back from a vote:
June 10, 2013 Assembly Democrats team up to take down mixed martial arts bill - NY Daily News
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Editorial Support for NY MMA (Courtesy of MMA4NY)
Selections from Upstate & Downstate NY Newspaper Editorials
April 29, 2013
Mixed martial arts is legal in 48 of 50 states*. But not in New York. It’s not for lack of support. Far from it: The latest bill to clear the state Senate has 64 Assembly co-sponsors (almost a majority itself), not to mention encouraging words from Gov. Cuomo. But Speaker Silver has never allowed a vote.
As a consequence, millions that might flow into Madison Square Garden or the Barclays Center now go to Newark’s Prudential Center. Shouldn’t New York get a slice of that pie?
That would be especially valuable upstate. Venues from Albany to Syracuse to Rochester all stand to benefit from the audiences, revenues — and jobs — that these events generate. Just think of the Canadians who would flock to Buffalo for a fight featuring fellow Canadian St-Pierre.
Rochester Democrat & Chronicle
May 30, 2013
New York’s status as one of only two states yet to sanction professional mixed martial arts events is a dubious one — and it’s costly*. As the end of the 2013 session nears, the Legislature should finally give America’s fastest growing sport a fair hearing.
For the fourth time, the state Senate overwhelmingly voted this year to permit MMA. Outdated arguments against legalizing the sport, which too often boil down to individual fancy, should no longer block the matter from reaching the Assembly floor.
While this page consistently stands against coarse culture and violence, today’s productions by organizations such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Bellator are a far cry from the no-holds-barred brawls of decades past.
New York residents, for their part, have worked around lawmakers. Several of MMA’s most captivating stars, including Rochester native Jon Jones, train and live in this state. Their fans are among the thousands who pour across state lines to see their idols compete in spots like Newark, N.J., and Toronto. Let’s keep their dollars here.
Mixed martial arts is an acquired taste. It is a combat sport that includes boxing, judo, wrestling and kickboxing. But honestly, is mixed martial arts really so much more violent than pro football or boxing, which are legal despite leaving scores of former players to cope with head injuries, arthritis and other chronic disabilities?
Critics of violence in contact sports might better argue against youth football than mixed martial arts, if they're really concerned over the consequences to human health.
One of the apparent voices of dissent working behind the scenes in Albany is Culinary Workers Local 226, a 60,000-member union based in Las Vegas.
"The sport is ubiquitous now," said Morelle, who once was a student of karate himself. "The days of cordoning off the state of New York and not exposing the people of the state to it – that question has come and gone. ... It's here to stay."
We agree. Like it or not, New York, this form of entertainment is indeed here to stay. Let's make it legal, and regulated.
April 25, 2013
Millions of Americans know UFC's mixed-martial arts from television and matches in arenas across the 48 states where its fights are legal*. The sport has grown in popularity, especially among young men, and its events bring in hundreds of millions of dollars a year in revenue and other economic activity. But the sport—which is heavily regulated by state athletic commissions—remains illegal in Connecticut and New York. The reason? Union politics in Nevada, of all places.
The bill has passed the state Senate four years in a row only to be bottled up each time by Mr. Silver. Assembly Majority Leader Joseph Morelle is the bill's lead supporter and he has 63 co-sponsors out of 150 members. But even he can't get a vote past Mr. Silver, who won't explain his opposition.
Meanwhile, Mr. Silver's obstinance is costing the New York economy, which could benefit from as many as 50 bouts a year. UFC estimates that only two fights, in Manhattan's Madison Square Garden and Buffalo's HSBC Arena, could generate as much as $16 million in business for the Empire State. The economically bereft upstate could use the jobs in particular.
April 24, 2012
Every year for the last three, the state Senate has passed a bill that would end the ban on mixed martial arts in New York. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has opposed the measure on the grounds that MMA is too violent, and has kept it from coming to a vote in his chamber. It’s time he gave up the fight.
MMA, also known as “ultimate fighting,” is no more violent or dangerous than a handful of other sports that are legal in New York. These include football, hockey and boxing. Yes, there’s a health risk to participants, but no more so than in boxing, where the blows tend to be concentrated on the head. In MMA, they tend to be distributed all about the body. And fighters quickly end up on the ground, grappling like wrestlers. So the risk of head injury from MMA appears to be even less.
MMA is shown regularly on cable TV, so it’s not like banning it from New York’s arenas will keep kids from seeing it. What it will do is deprive businesses and the state of money and workers of jobs.
*Please note that since the writing of this editorial, Connecticut has legalized MMA. NY is now the only state with an athletic commission that bans professional Mixed Martial Arts
Be sure to follow MMA4NY on Twitter @MMA4NY, The Coalition to Legalize MMA in NY @sambosteve, and New York Mixed Martial Arts @NYMMAFilm
Monday, June 3, 2013
UPDATED ACTION ALERT! Assembly Dems Conference MMA Bill Next Week!
Assembly Democrats are conferencing the MMA bill next week (June 11th)! Originally scheduled for June 4th the conference was postponed one week with yet another pessimistic statement by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who has stonewalled the legislation for years in the Assembly:
On the heels of the New York Assembly postponement, the Connecticut legislature moved legalize MMA. Aside from New York, Connecticut was the only state with an athletic commission that banned MMA. New York now stands alone in North America.
Assembly conference postponement and Speaker Silver's negativity aside, things look even more grim for New York as the legislative calendar ends on June 20th. If there is a sliver of chance that we get MMA this year, we MUST call your Assembly Representatives ASAP and tell them we want regulated professional MMA in NY!
Join our coalition and MMA4NY in getting the word out!
Find out who your Assembly Representative is and how to contact them here:
NY State Assembly
Not sure what election district you are? Click here
“I know there are a number of women who support it; there are a number of women who oppose it,” Silver said Monday. “I don’t think the women support it, if you took the majority of women in our conference.”
On the heels of the New York Assembly postponement, the Connecticut legislature moved legalize MMA. Aside from New York, Connecticut was the only state with an athletic commission that banned MMA. New York now stands alone in North America.
Assembly conference postponement and Speaker Silver's negativity aside, things look even more grim for New York as the legislative calendar ends on June 20th. If there is a sliver of chance that we get MMA this year, we MUST call your Assembly Representatives ASAP and tell them we want regulated professional MMA in NY!
Join our coalition and MMA4NY in getting the word out!
NY State Assembly
Not sure what election district you are? Click here
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Battle for NY MMA Heats Up as Legislative Calendar Nears End
It has been a busy couple of weeks in the world of NY MMA. Both sides have been ramping up their attacks.
The UFC and several members of the local MMA community hit the road this week for press conferences across the state (Syracuse, Buffalo and Rochester). Assembly Democrats (majority) will reportedly discuss the bill to regulate professional MMA during their closed door caucus within the next few weeks.
Here are some comments in favor of NY MMA from Assemblyman Al Stirpe at the OnCenter/War Memorial press conference on Wednesday May 15, 2013:
Read up on the presser tour in these Syracuse.com and ABC News reports.
Other recent stories on the NY MMA battle include:
-The Economist: No Holds, Barred
-Unions, Lies, and MMA in New York by Peter Lampasona of MMA Frenzy
-An open letter from Zuffa/MMA4NY requesting a place at the table at Governor Cuomo's Tourism Summit
-Dana White: I'm Not Doing Anything in NY Until They Do The Right Thing by Mike Stets of Bleacher Report
The opposition has been far from silent despite majority support for professional MMA regulation from legislators in Albany and New Yorkers across the state. According to Siena's latest poll a majority of New Yorker's favor lifting the ban on professional MMA.
Senator Brad Hoylman continued his push to set up a fighter's health fund in NY with this Daily News editorial. Check out my previous comments regarding his proposed legislation. Similarly, Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee and Senetor Liz Krueger have proposed legislation calling for a two year moratorium on NY MMA until health risks can be further assessed.
Comments by Assemblywoman Margaret Markey, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development (the first hurdle in the committee process for the Assembly MMA legislation) are not promising as she appears not ready to approve the legislation.
As in years past, the NY Catholic Conference threw their oppositional hat into the ring this month.
With the legislative calendar ending in June, we still have a long way to go.
The UFC and several members of the local MMA community hit the road this week for press conferences across the state (Syracuse, Buffalo and Rochester). Assembly Democrats (majority) will reportedly discuss the bill to regulate professional MMA during their closed door caucus within the next few weeks.
Here are some comments in favor of NY MMA from Assemblyman Al Stirpe at the OnCenter/War Memorial press conference on Wednesday May 15, 2013:
Read up on the presser tour in these Syracuse.com and ABC News reports.
Other recent stories on the NY MMA battle include:
-The Economist: No Holds, Barred
-Unions, Lies, and MMA in New York by Peter Lampasona of MMA Frenzy
-An open letter from Zuffa/MMA4NY requesting a place at the table at Governor Cuomo's Tourism Summit
-Dana White: I'm Not Doing Anything in NY Until They Do The Right Thing by Mike Stets of Bleacher Report
The opposition has been far from silent despite majority support for professional MMA regulation from legislators in Albany and New Yorkers across the state. According to Siena's latest poll a majority of New Yorker's favor lifting the ban on professional MMA.
Senator Brad Hoylman continued his push to set up a fighter's health fund in NY with this Daily News editorial. Check out my previous comments regarding his proposed legislation. Similarly, Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee and Senetor Liz Krueger have proposed legislation calling for a two year moratorium on NY MMA until health risks can be further assessed.
Comments by Assemblywoman Margaret Markey, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development (the first hurdle in the committee process for the Assembly MMA legislation) are not promising as she appears not ready to approve the legislation.
As in years past, the NY Catholic Conference threw their oppositional hat into the ring this month.
With the legislative calendar ending in June, we still have a long way to go.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)