Zuffa myth

Definition

Zuffa myth is the shorthand title applied to the mis-attribution of responsibility for the "maturation" of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and the development and adoption of the "Unified Rules" which have been widely adopted by state athletic boards in the United States to govern Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) competitions.

The term was first coined by Jeff Thaler, an independent journalist covering MMA competitions in a June 20 2006 article.

According to the Zuffa myth, the UFC began to institute rules imposing fouls, creating weight classes, empowering referees to stop fights, and standardizing a judged point system to decide matches only after the purchase of the UFC from SEG by Zuffa, LLC. Further, Zuffa, LLC prompted the sanctioning of MMA fights by The New Jersey and Nevada athletic associations.

UFC actually held its first New Jersey sanctioned event (UFC 28) on November 17 2000, prior to the January 2001 purchase by Zuffa. New Jersey subsequently adopted the "unified rules" on April 3 2001. These rules were in part based on those already in place in other jurisdictions which had previously sanctioned UFC events (such as Iowa, which sanctioned UFC 21, an event that could be considered the first "modern" UFC event, since nearly all rules "inside the ring" matched UFC standards current As of 2007, and later embodied in the "unified rules"). UFC 21 was held on July 16 1999.

There is debate as to whether the Zuffa myth is a product of intentional deception aimed at the media covering the UFC, or merely a convenient shorthand version of history. In any case, Nick Lembo, counsel to the New Jersey Athletic Control Board, has been known to follow up directly with media organizations that make use of the Zuffa myth version of events in their coverage.