Keith Kizer of the NSAC revealed that instant replays could play a part of MMA sooner rather than later and now the ruling to implement them has been approved by the NSAC. Generally thought of as the industry standard, NSAC mixed martial arts rules are the template for most large organisations worldwide. The usage and implementation of the replays will be judged by the referee and the exact wording of the ruling is: “A referee at the conclusion of a contest or exhibition stopped immediately due to an injury to an unarmed combatant pursuant to NAC 467.718 and after making a decision, may view a replay if available in order to determine whether the injury in question was caused a legal blow or a foul.†The referee's discretion cannot be questionned and hopefully it could resolve issues regarding fights with dubious endings such as Anthony Johnson vs. Kevin Burns and Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic vs. Mostapha Al Turk in which eye pokes may have significantly altered the outcome, especially for those on the receiving end. Purists believe the rule detracts from the real meaning of the fighting sport but as MMA becomes increasingly more regulated, extra rulings increase safety and legitimacy. Five rounders for non-title bouts has also been cleared. It is unclear how many bouts will be given that status but 'superfights' and possibly number-one contender bouts could see the change if camps from both sides agree. It is likely that main card PPV headliners in the UFC will be subject to this change. Bouts like Franklin vs. Wanderlei would have been perfect candidates and it is also another step towards disambiguating results; contesting them over more rounds.
Good idea. Fights like Silva/Griffen, for example, should be scheduled for five rounds. Similar to the Pacquiao/Morales fights going 12 rather than 10.
I know with a lot of fights the winner is all but promised a title shot, but does the UFC have offical title eliminator bouts? If so it would make sense for at least those fights to be 5 rounds.
