For some, the idea of MMA in Ireland conjures up images of street brawlers going at it in an octagon but while the quality of fights may have been poor initially, Ireland now boasts an ever improving base of fighters.
Considering our small population and the fact that MMA was slow to catch on, we have already punched considerably above our weight. Irish fighter Tom Egan took on John Hathaway, an up and coming British fighter in the UFC, when it came to Dublin in January last year. While Egan lost on that occasion he remains one of Ireland’s brightest MMA stars and could yet make it onto the UFC’s books.
Yet despite Egan’s achievement, one of Ireland’s most highly ranked fighters is in fact of the fairer gender. Ash ‘the bash’ Daley is ranked fourth by the World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts for her weight class and has nine victories and no losses on her record.
With a fighter of the calibre of Daly it’s unfortunate that many organisations do not promote female fighters and overcoming this may prove her toughest challenge. Nonetheless, Daley has been able to fight regularly in Ireland and in larger shows in the UK such as Cage Rage.
Ash ‘The Bash’ Daly doing here thing:
Setanta Sport has recently pledged to broadcast a Cage Contender event for the second time, which is further evidence of MMA going main-stream. Cage Contender V will take place on Saturday 24 July in the National Basket Ball arena in Tallaght.
The event will feature three title fights and Ash ‘the bash’ Daley will defend her unbeaten run against Lithuanian Julia Borisova. If the event proves a success for Setanta Sports it may mark the beginning of a new era for Irish MMA. Fighters will have a higher profile and the door will be opened for sponsorship deals and other additional revenue streams.
Despite this surge in growth, MMA in Ireland is often misunderstood and detractors in the media have labelled the sport as excessively violent and brutal. One of the most vocal opponents has been Joe Duffy, Liveline host on RTE Radio 1.
An MMA debate took place on his show back in January 2009 when a caller expressed concerns about the sport. While some of the points raised were valid (such as fighter safety), the obvious lack of knowledge by the commentators damaged their credibility and incensed many MMA fans.
Despite the negative publicity, the question for those involved in MMA is how to move the sport forward by maintaining its continued growth while ensuring fighters are protected.
Governing Body
Many feel that the introduction of a governing body whose function would be to regulate and sanction events and fighters is one possible solution. To date, promoters have organised shows individually and usually do an excellent job managing the shows and protecting the fighters. However, there is little obligation on them to introduce many of the requirements placed on promoters who are regulated by governing bodies.
Requirements such as drug testing, medical tests, common rule sets, procedures for sanctioning illegal behaviour, standardised fight scoring, using suitably qualified referees and safety procedures will all add credibility to the sport and may go along way changing people’s attitude towards MMA events in Ireland.
The lack of a governing body may be a small complaint at present, but as MMA grows from strength to strength it will become more necessary.
Barry Ogalsby, head coach of Informed Performance reflected during an interview on ‘Punching and Crunching’, Ireland’s first MMA radio station, that in MMA’s early days there were very few avenues for competition. He went on to say that things have since changed considerably and that fighters could now get two matches a month if they wanted.
Moreover, Dana White said during a UFC expo in May that the UFC would return to Ireland in 2010 – which means another opportunity for Irish fighters to prove there merit against the world’s best.
By Stephen Barry
