The Muhammad Ali Boxing Revival Act is one step closer to becoming law.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Renaissance Act by voice vote during its Tuesday legislative session after a half-hour of debate. It now goes to the Senate. If it passes there, it will go to President Donald Trump, who will potentially sign it and become law.
If the bill becomes law, the biggest change to the Revival Act will be to allow the creation of United Boxing Organizations, better known as UBOs, as an option for boxers in their careers.
In the current boxing system, the law requires the separation of promoters, who organize fights, from sanctioning bodies, which deal with rankings, titles and selection of fighters. The Revival Act would allow UBO to handle all of these matters in a one-stop-shop format, similar to what the Ultimate Fighting Championship is in MMA. The revival bill would only regulate boxing, not MMA.
Supporters of the bill, including UFC CEO Dana White and his promotional team Zuffa Boxing, former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson and the Association of Boxing Commissions, praised it as another choice for fighters. They pointed to better health care for all fighters, including mandatory physicals and brain and eye tests, one belt for each sanctioning body in each weight class and a $200-per-round minimum for all fighters.
These supporters emphasize that the addition of UBO will not replace the structure of professional boxing, but will provide fighters with another type of opportunity to choose the career path that is best for them.
“I hope that when it passes, there won’t be just one UBO. I hope that there will be a dozen UBOs in this sport, if not more,” Rep. Brian Jack, R-Ga., who wrote the bill, told ESPN on Tuesday night. “The more interest, the more innovation, the more opportunities for boxers and fans, the more opportunities to enjoy a sport that once inspired greatness.”
Critics of the bill say it could harm fighters and reduce protections afforded to them under the two original Ali Acts – the Professional Boxing Safety Act of 1996 and the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act of 2000 – because it could shift the balance of money-making from fighters to promoters.
The Revival Act has also drawn criticism from promoters and others in the boxing community who say White is trying to amend the Ali Act so that his boxing company, Zuffa Boxing, can operate similarly to the UFC, which controls player selection, rankings, titles and contract offerings. The UFC has faced two antitrust lawsuits from fighters who alleged wage suppression and monopolization tactics. The organization settled one lawsuit for $375 million.
White responded with the same arguments as some members of Congress, claiming that UBOs were simply offering a choice.
The bill was initially passed in January by a 30-4 majority of the House Education and Workforce Committee. Nine House members spoke on the bill Tuesday and only one, Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., opposed the legislation.
“UBO organizations proposed under [the Revival Act] “will replicate a model that has been extremely lucrative in other, non-boxing mixed martial arts worlds that operate with little legal or economic protection for fighters,” Courtney said.
He then pointed to concerns about how these organizations, which he did not name, are using long-term forced-arbitration contracts, preventing fighters from filing breach of contract lawsuits and waiving class-action rights.
Top Rank founder Bob Arum criticized the law in a December letter to Congress, questioning why UBOs should be exempt from the compliance rules under which non-UBOs must operate. Arum also expressed concern about the bill removing fighter protections if a boxer joins UBO.
Courtney and two other House members encouraged the Senate to continue amending the bill to strengthen it. Rep. Virginia’s Bobby Scott, who supported the bill, suggested that the Senate could include provisions prohibiting “contracts between UBO and boxers from including clauses prohibiting class actions or requiring the submission of disputes to private arbitration.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, R-Minn., who proposed amendments to the bill in committee, supported the bill but also called for “greater financial transparency, stronger antitrust laws and stronger protections against forced contracts.”
An addition to the bill introduced in March also allows the Association of Boxing Commissions and the Ringside Medical Association to set baseline health and safety standards for each state across the sport. These would include annual medical examinations, brain, eye and heart tests, and blood tests every six months. It would also require more regular testing for players over 40.
It would also give the Association of Boxing Commissions the ability to certify judges and officials for fights. Currently, only state sports commissions can do this.
“You have a lot of options here. Players can take one path or another if this bill becomes law,” Jack said. “They can join UBO or an existing sanctioning organization model. Why not give fighters that choice?”
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