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New York Could Finally Legalize MMA
New York state is the last remaining holdout in the ban on mixed martial arts, but that ban could be coming to an end.
The controversial sport has repeatedly remained illegal in New York state, despite the skyrocketing popularity of the sport beginning in the early 2000s. Opponents of the ban often cite the potential for massive amounts of revenue from events in Madison Square Garden, the Barclays Center, and points upstate, as one of the most popular fighters in the world--Jon "Bones" Jones, who makes his return to the sport at UFC 197 in April after a suspension for his role in a serious hit-and-run incident--grew up in Western New York.
The New York Daily News reports that Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie will bring the measure to come to the chamber floor for a vote and that 80 Democrats are in favor of allowing the sport to come to New York, more than needed to pass. New York State Senate has repeatedly approved the legalization of the sport, but the Assembly has continuously let it die.
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