The Moncton Boxing and Wrestling Commission has been making some astounding decisions lately.
It was just a few weeks ago when the strange news was released that the Moncton Boxing and Wrestling Commission suspended three parties for, well, no apparent reason and suspended MMA in the city for a period of six months.
Steve, John and Mike Williams (the Williams Trio) were suspended by the commission much to their dismay. They didn't even know they were suspended and in fact found out through the media.
They immediately sought legal representation and hired the services of G. Robert Basque, who I had the chance to speak with about this incredibly strange scenario.
Basque made himself available to myself and Marc-Andre Drolet, a very good friend of mine who owns TopMMANews.com. You may have heard Drolet on my Fan 590 radio show as he is a frequent guest on my show, due to his incredible knowledge of the sport.
Drolet shares some of the facts surrounding this story on his site and chronicles the various events that have taken place with this crazy story.
Basque told us both that:
Ironically enough, the ridiculous morotorium on MMA in the city has also been pulled and all is supposedly back to normal.
I have met my fair of commissioners, and notice a stark contrast between many of them. There are those that walk the walk and those that talk the talk. I have contacted the commission on several occasions, a small-time operation in comparison to their counterpart in Vegas, and have never once received a response. This after shaking hands with many of their members who all blatantly professed to me that anything I ever needed was just a phone call or e-mail away.
I've had many other commissioners do and say the same, but when I do call them, I get an immediate response. Keith Kizer (Vegas) and Dale Kliparchuk (River Cree) come to mind as very media-friendly parties who always come on the record and go above and beyond to accommodate all media that contact them.
By staying in the dark and not communicating with the media, commissions like those in Quebec and Moncton put themselves at risk to criticism. When I do my own research, I contact as many parties as I can, be it the commission, the fighters, promoters, managers and many well-educated fans within the area.
What's not surprising is the amount of negative comments I generally receive from people that feel a certain sense of oppression from their local commissions. Comments like "they are a joke", "complete tyranny", "they are ruining MMA", etc are all common statements I get when I am simply trying to do research.
It's difficult for me to disagree with the local frustration as dealing with unprofessional government associations like this is not the favourite part of my job. I take pride in getting as many sides of a stor, so I, and my readers can make their own decision on a topic, as to who is right, wrong or simply to make their own comments about it.
Do I think these commissions are a joke? No, they are not, but they have an obligation to make sure they sanction and regulate the sport according to the Unified Rules of MMA, and that their communication structure need be addressed to make sure they get the word out accordingly.
I suggest taking pride in what they are doing. Act as if you are big time, as opposed to proving you are small time.
