Sylvia-Mercer Goes MMA |
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MODular Approach
Career record: 1012-567
Season: 19-5 (#178)
Location:
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Tim Sylvia and Ray Mercer will now meet in a heavyweight mixed martial arts bout at Adrenaline III this Saturday at the BJCC Arena in Birmingham, Ala.
The matchup of former UFC champion and former boxing champion will headline 14 additional MMA bouts in the cage. The event will no longer be regulated.
Originally scheduled as a six-round boxing bout, Adrenaline owner and promoter Monte Cox said he made the decision to re-categorize the match on Thursday.
“I got a call from the Pennsylvania commissioner saying that the boxing match is illegal because we weren’t getting regulated by a U.S. commission,” said Cox on Thursday.
With no regulatory body present in Alabama, the Canadian-based River Cree Combative Sports Commission had agreed to step in and oversee the event.
Cox said he believed he had completed all the necessary requirements asked of him, which included procuring a letter from Alabama’s governor welcoming the Canadian commission into the jurisdiction.
However, Association of Boxing Commissions President Tim Lueckenhoff told Sherdog.com that neither he nor the ABC organization had been approached directly to regulate the bout. Further, Lueckenhoff said he’d thought Sylvia-Mercer would be an MMA contest and not a boxing bout. Lueckenhoff said federal law currently has no jurisdiction over MMA bouts, but laws are in place over boxing under the Professional Boxing Safety Act.
In a press release issued by the ABC on Thursday, the organization denounced the “unwarranted and illegal” boxing match. The release also noted that the River Cree commission, as well as referee John McCarthy, had withdrawn their involvement from the bout and event.
“Canadian boxing commissions are not authorized to supervise boxing matches in the U.S.; and, patently, it is wholly inappropriate for one representative from a Canadian boxing commission, together with an MMA referee, to supervise a boxing match,” said Bruce C. Spizler, chairman of the ABC legal committee in the release.
“I told the promoter I would do it if it was a sanctioned event,” McCarthy told Sherdog.com Thursday. “As soon as it became apparent that that would not happen, I pulled out.”
In March, it had been reported that the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board (NJSACB) said it would not regulate the bout, prompting Cox to move the bout to another venue.
“Everyone thinks I came to Alabama because it’s unsanctioned here,” said Cox, “but why would I go to so much trouble to try and get this event regulated if that were the case?”
Cox also said the Mashantucket Pequot Athletic Commission, which oversees events at the Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut, had agreed to regulate the event in March, but a financial agreement could not be reached with the casino.
The event was moved to Alabama for sponsorship opportunities, Cox said. Cox said he would not be able to procure new regulation for the event in time.
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Post #1 6/11/09 5:32:02PM
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DCRage
Representin' The MA's
Career record: 453-339
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: Maryland
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 TIMMAY!! is gonna destroy Mercer. If the fight even happens.
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Post #2 6/11/09 6:50:41PM
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wrona666
In Full Mount
Career record: 516-324
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: Atascadero, California
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Sylvia-Mercer goes "Freak Show"............This is the most pointless match in MMA history......I'm hoping for a double KO.......
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Post #3 6/11/09 7:08:53PM
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komodo20
MMA Regular
Career record: 852-642
Season: 19-5 (#624)
Location: Long Island,NY
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Why would a mma fight with Tim Sylvia and Ray Mercer make sense. Ray is not a mma fighter he got beat by Kimbo. Ray is a great boxer im not saying he would of won the boxing fight with tim but he had a good shot but he is a older guy now and is not as good as when he was in his prime. I been looking foward to seing the boxing fight between Ray and Tim but I think the mma fight is a joke and wont last over 30 seconds.
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Post #4 6/11/09 7:09:06PM
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tallica62
Belt Contender
Career record: 875-553
Season: 17-7 (#1027)
Location: San Diego
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$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
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Post #5 6/11/09 9:29:19PM
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Banned for cheating
Career record: 309-149
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: south shields
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If Syliva wanted, he could end this fight im the first minute. I just hope he doesnt try to prove a point and end up getting ko'd, so all the MMA noobs can come out and say I told you so
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Post #6 6/11/09 11:11:16PM
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TimW001
MMA Sensei
Career record: 502-330
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: Canada BC
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Still do not care.
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Post #7 6/11/09 11:35:27PM
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gnl68
BANNED
Career record: 192-145
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: hamilton ontario canada
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who woulda thought Mercer ko's Sylvia in 10 seconds 1st rd.
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Post #8 6/14/09 12:54:05AM
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TimW001
MMA Sensei
Career record: 502-330
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: Canada BC
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Posted by gnl68
who woulda thought Mercer ko's Sylvia in 10 seconds 1st rd.
Wow that was crazy. Also, what MMA promoter scheduales a fight opposite UFC on puropse.
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Post #9 6/14/09 1:55:25AM
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The_Metal_Maniac
You Can't Andle My Riddum!
Career record: 1026-562
Season: 17-7 (#1058)
Location: Pittsburgh
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The crash of Tim Sylvia's 6'8" frame to the canvas symbolized his crash out of the top 15 heavyweights. Once again this optimizes the fact that MMA fighters are just that, MMA fighters, not boxers. Imagine if Sylvia fought a Kilitchko or someone just half descent, his head would have been knocked off. No comparison between the sports of boxing and MMA. MMA fighters are specialized in many disciplines but most of them are not great in one particular discipline, boxers devote there whole lives to one thing, punching. LOL way to rep the sport Sylvia. Also Affliction took a blow to there heavy weight division.
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Post #10 6/14/09 1:17:33PM
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cmill21
Heavyweight Champ
Career record: 369-196
Season: 0-0 (#-)
Location: Regina SK
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Don';t know if he'll get cleared to fight Paul now.
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Post #11 6/14/09 2:28:55PM
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