Amateur Mixed Martial Arts Rules & Regulations

Split or Different Style Events

Cards split between professional and amateur matches shall be left at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions.

National Database Event Registration

All Promoters are required to register in a timely manner, their event in advance with the Association of Boxing Commissions designated national record keeper, MMA.TV, and receive approval from this agency for each specific requested bout.

Weight Classes of Amateur Mixed Martial Artists

Amateur mixed martial artist shall be divided into the following classes:

1. Flyweight (125 and under) with not more than a 10 pound spread
2. Bantamweight (126-135)
3. Featherweight (136-145)
4. Lightweight (146-155)
5. Welterweight (156-170)
6. Middleweight (171-185)
7. Light Heavyweight (186-205)
8. Cruiser Heavyweight (206-230)
9. Heavyweight (231-265)
10. Super Heavyweight (over 265)

Weighing of Mixed Martial Artists

Weigh in will be determined at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions.

Cage

All amateur contests will take place in a cage or ring left at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions. All rings must adhere to a minimum of five ropes as a standard safety precaution.

Equipment

The appropriate equipment shall be approved at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions.

Specifications for Bandages on Mixed Martial Artists' Hands

All mixed martial arts contestants shall be required to gauze and tape their hands prior to all contests. Bandages and tape shall be placed on a contestant's hands in the dressing room in the presence of the inspector and, if desired, in the presence of the chief second of his or her opponent. Under no circumstances are gloves to be placed on the hands of a contestant until the approval of the inspector is received. Substances other than surgeon's tape and soft gauze shall not be utilized. Example: pre-wraps shall not be used.

Mouth Pieces

(a) All contestants are required to wear a mouthpiece during competition. The mouthpiece shall be subject to examination and approval by the attending physician. (b) The round cannot begin without the mouthpiece in place.

Protective Equipment

(a) Approved shin guard with instep pads, supplied by the promoter, and in good condition, must be worn by all contestants. (b) Female mixed martial artists may wear a chest protector or other properly fitted sports bra during competition. Chest protectors shall be subject to the approval of the Commission.

Gloves

(a) The gloves shall be in good condition for all contests or they must be replaced. (b) All contestants shall wear gloves at least six ounces supplied by the promoter and approved by the commission. No contestant shall supply his or her own gloves for participation unless approved by the commission.

Apparel

(a) Each contestant shall wear mixed martial arts shorts, biking shorts, or kickboxing shorts. Shorts must be approved by the inspector or commission representative. Shorts with a grip panel are not permitted. Shorts with metal parts are not permitted unless properly covered. (b) Gis, shirts, and biking pants with a grip panel are prohibited during competition for male Contestants. Female competitors must wear rashguard shirts. Male contestants may wear rashguards. (c) Shoes are prohibited during competition.

Appearance

The Commission may prevent any contestant from competing in any match or event due to the contestant's personal hygiene, length of head hair, length of facial hair, or any other aspects of personal appearance that may present a hazard to the safety of the contestant or their opponent, or that may interfere with the supervision or conduct of the event.

Round Length

All amateur bouts will consist of no more than three, 3 minute rounds with a one minute rest period in between rounds.

Stopping a Contest

The referee and ringside physician are the sole arbiters of a bout and are the only individuals authorized to enter the fighting area at any time during the competition and authorized to stop a contest.

Judging

(a) All bouts will be evaluated and scored by three judges. A commission approved 10 point system of scoring shall be the standard for bouts. (b) Judges shall evaluate mixed martial art techniques, such as effective striking, effective grappling, control of the fighting area, effective aggressiveness and defense. (c) Judges shall consider the amount of successful Executions of legal takedowns and reversals in evaluating effective grappling. Examples of factors judges can consider are the takedowns from standing position to mount position, passing the guard to mount position, and bottom position fighter using as active, threatening guard.

Scoring the Foul to be Performed by the Scorekeeper

Fouls may result in a point being deducted by the official Scorekeeper from the offending mixed martial artist's score. The Scorekeeper, not the judges, will be responsible for calculating the true score after factoring in the point deduction. Only the referee may assess fouls.

Novice Division vs Advanced Division Rules

Amateur Mixed Martial Arts bouts shall be contested using either "Novice Division Rules", designated for fighters who have competed in less than (2) bouts, or using "Advanced Division Rules" for fighters who have competed in more than two (2) verifiable bouts regulated by a recognized commission or state approved sanction body and subject to commission matchmaking approval. The difference between Novice and Advanced division rules is as follows: It is a foul to strike to the head of a grounded fighter in a Novice division bout. In an Advanced division bout it is legal to strike the head of a grounded fighter.

The complete set of fouls are below. Bouts between fighters who have more than three fights may be contested using novice division rules. Bouts between fighters with three fights or less may not be contested using advanced division rules.

Fouls for Novice Division

The following are fouls and will result in penalties such as warning, point deduction or disqualification, if committed:

• Holding or grabbing the fence or ropes
• Holding opponent's shorts or gloves
• Butting with the head
• Eye gouging
• Biting or spitting at an opponent
• Hair pulling
• Fish hooking
• Groin attacks of any kind
• Intentional placing finger into any orifice or cut
• Elbow strikes of any kind
• Small joint manipulation
• Strikes to the spine or back of the head
• Heel kicks to the kidney
• Throat strikes
• Clawing, pinching, twisting flesh or grabbing clavicle
• Kicking the head of a downed opponent
• Kneeing the head of an opponent
• Stomping of a grounded fighter
• Abusive language
• Attacking opponent during break
• Attacking opponent under referee's care
• Timidity
• Corner interference
• Throwing opponent out of cage
• Disregarding referee instructions
• Spiking opponent onto head/neck
• Attacking after bell
• Linear kicks to knee joint
• Neck cranks
• Twisting leg submissions
• Spine locks
• Strikes to grounded opponent's head

Fouls for Advanced Division

Advanced Amateur Rules are allowed to be used after a fighter has had two (2), verifiable, amateur fights regulated by a recognized athletic commission, and subject to commission matchmaking approval. All rules for Stage 2 amateur fights are the same as amateur rules with the exception that strikes to the head on the ground are NOT fouls.

The following are fouls and will result in penalties such as warning, point deduction or disqualification, if committed:

• Holding or grabbing the fence or ropes
• Holding opponent's shorts or gloves
• Butting with the head
• Eye gouging
• Biting or spitting at an opponent
• Hair pulling
• Fish hooking
• Groin attacks of any kind
• Intentional placing finger into any orifice or cut
• Elbow strikes of any kind
• Small joint manipulation
• Strikes to the spine or back of the head
• Heel kicks to the kidney
• Throat strikes
• Clawing, pinching, twisting flesh or grabbing clavicle
• Kicking the head of a downed opponent
• Kneeing the head of an opponent
• Stomping of a grounded fighter
• Abusive language
• Attacking opponent during break
• Attacking opponent under referee's care
• Timidity
• Corner interference
• Throwing opponent out of cage
• Disregarding referee instructions
• Spiking opponent onto head/neck
• Attacking after bell
• Linear kicks to knee joint
• Neck cranks
• Twisting leg submissions
• Spine locks

Use of Vaseline, Water and Similar Substances

The use of body grease, gels, balms, lotions, oil or other substances is a violation and is prohibited from being applied to the hair, face, or body. This includes excessive amounts of water being discarded in a manner at the designated time could be penalized or subject to disqualification.

Foul Procedures

If a foul is committed, the referee shall:

• Call time
• Check the fouled mixed martial artist's condition and safety
• Assess the foul to the offending contestant, deduct points, and notify each corner's seconds, judges and the official scorekeeper

If a bottom contestant commits a foul, unless the top contestant is injured, the fight will continue, so to not jeopardize the top contestant's superior positioning at the time.

The referee shall verbally notify the bottom contestant of the foul.

When the round is over, the referee shall assess the foul and notify both corners' seconds, the judges and the official scorekeeper.

The referee may terminate a bout based on the severity of a foul. For such a flagrant foul, a contestant shall lose by disqualification.

Time Considerations for Fouls

Low Blow Foul: A fighter who has been struck with a low blow is allowed up to five minutes to recover from the foul as long as in the ringside doctor's opinion the fighter may possibly continue on in the contest. If the fighter states that they can continue on before the five minutes of time have expired; the referee shall as soon as practical restart the fight. If the fighter goes over the five minute time allotment the fight cannot be restarted and the contest must come to an end with the outcome determined by the round and time in which the fight was stopped.

Fighter Who is Not Fouled by Low Blow but Another Foul: If a contest is stopped because of an accidental foul, the referee shall determine whether the fighter can continue. If the fighter's chance of winning has not been seriously jeopardized and if the foul did not involve a concussive impact to the head, the referee may order the contest continued after a recuperative interval of not more than 5 minutes.

For a foul other than a low blow, the fouled fighter is not guaranteed 5 minutes of recovery time. If deemed not fit to continue by the referee or ringside physician, the referee must immediately call a halt to the bout.

Injuries Sustained During Competition

(a) If an injury sustained during competition as a result of a legal maneuver is severe enough to terminate a bout, the injured contestant loses by technical knockout.

(b) If an injury sustained during competition as a result of an intentional foul is severe enough to terminate a bout, the contestant causing the injury loses by disqualification.

(c) If an injury is sustained during competition as a result of an intentional foul and the bout is allowed to continue, the referee shall notify the scorekeeper to automatically deduct two points from the contestant who committed the foul.

(d) If an injury sustained during competition as a result of intentional foul causes the injured contestant to be unable to continue at a subsequent point in the contest, the injured contestant shall win by technical decision, if he or she is ahead on the score cards. If the injured contestant is even or behind on the score cards at the time of stoppage, the outcome of the bout shall be declared a technical draw.

(e) If a contestant injures himself or herself while attempting to foul his or her opponent, the referee shall not take any action in his or her favor, and the injury shall be treated in the same manner as an injury produced by a fair blow.

(f) If an injury sustained during competition as a result of an accidental foul is severe enough for the referee to stop the bout immediately, the bout shall result in a no contest if stopped before two rounds have been completed in a three round bout.

(g) If an injury sustained during competition as a result of an accidental foul is severe enough for the referee to stop the bout immediately, the bout shall result in a technical decision awarded to the contestant who is ahead on the score cards at the time the bout is stopped only when the bout is stopped after two rounds of a three round bout.

(h) There should be scoring of an incomplete round. If the referee penalizes either contestant, then the appropriate points shall be deducted when the scorekeeper calculates the final score for the partial round.

Types of Bout Results

The following are the types of bout results:

• Submission by:
  • Tap Out: When a contestant physically uses his hand to indicate that he or she no longer wishes to continue
  • Verbal Tap Out: When a contestant verbally announces to the referee that he or she does not wish to continue
  • Technical Submission: When a submission is executed to its completeness which cause the referee to intervene and stop the contest
• Technical knockout by:
  • referee stops bout
  • ringside physician stops bout
  • when an injury as a result of a legal maneuver is severe enough to terminate a bout
• Knockout by failure to rise from the canvas
• Decision via Score Cards:
  • Unanimous: When all three judges score the bout for the same contestant
  • Split Decision: When two judges score the bout for one contestant and one judge scores for the opponent
  • Majority Decision: When two judges score the bout for the same contestant and one judge scores a draw
• Draws:
  • Unanimous: When all three judges score the bout a draw
  • Majority: When two judges score the bout a draw
  • Split: When all three judges score differently and the score total results in a draw
• Disqualification: When an injury sustained during competition as a result of an intentional foul is severe enough to terminate the contest
• Forfeit: When a contestant fails to begin competition or prematurely ends the contest for reasons other than injury or by indicating a tap out
• Technical Draw: Various scenarios including injuries from intentional fouls or double knockouts
• Technical Decision: When the bout is prematurely stopped due to injury and a contestant is leading on the score cards
• No Contest: When a contest is prematurely stopped due to accidental injury and a sufficient number of rounds have not been completed

Licensing

All Fighters, first and seconds MUST be Licensed with the USMTA (United States Muay Thai Association).

Officials

All officials Must be ABC compliant (Have taken and passed an ABC approved course) and licensed with the USMTA.

Medicals

All fighters must provide the following documents before competing: HepB, HepC, and HIV, also known as Combative 3 bloodwork, and a letter from the fighters PCP (Primary Care Doctor) on a letter head, stating said fighter is healthy to compete.

Insurance

Insurance requirements will be determined at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions.

Ambulance, EMTs, and Qualified Ringside Physician (Medical Team)

A qualified ringside physician shall be present at all events. A qualified ringside physician must be at ringside or cageside during each bout. A qualified ringside physician shall be either a M.D. or D.O.

All promoters must provide an ambulance to be present at all times, from the commencement of the first bout, throughout the duration of the event, and until the last fighter leaves the arena.

There shall be at least two Emergency Medical Technicians present at all times, from the commencement of the first bout, throughout the duration of the event, and until the last fighter leaves the arena.

Promoters License

Promoters licensing will be determined at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions.

Matchmaker License

Matchmaker licensing will be determined at the discretion of the sanctioning Commissions.

Show Date Request

Sanctioning application MUST be submitted no less than 30 days prior to event.

Age

An amateur contest must attain the age of 18 years on the date of the contest.

Rules Meeting

Rules meetings will be conducted by the USMTA Head official at the event.

Consumables Before and During the Contest

Only water or an approved electrolyte drink by the Sanctioning Body may be consumed during the bout. Contestants should not consume energy drinks on the date of the contest. There will be No other drinks than those mentioned in the locker room by anyone at anytime.