The United States House of Representatives’ Committee on Energy and Commerce has added an entry for a hearing on MMA to its website. Taking place next Thursday, December 8th, at 10:00 a.m. ET, it’s titled “Mixed Martial Arts: Issues and Perspectives.” While Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma), a former MMA fighter and the sponsor of the bill that would add MMA to the Ali Act, is on the committee, the hearing is not focused on the Ali Act. Instead, according to an email from Mullin’s office, next week’s hearing “will provide a deeper dive into the sport as a whole.”
Timing is the most interesting part of the story right now, as this was announced just two days after the MMA Athletes Association made its own announcement about its formation (as well as the news coming out Friday night, where it will be buried, relatively speaking. There has also been little chatter about the Ali Act and MMA since Mullin’s last media tour several months ago.
This is a developing story and we’ll bring you more details as they’re available.
