California Bill Would Create Pension Fund For Retired MMA Fighters

By Tom Joyce | Center Square contributor, The Center Square California

February 27, 2023

(The Center Square) - A California bill (Assembly Bill 1136) would establish a pension fund for professional mixed martial arts fighters. The bill, sponsored by Assemblymember Matt Haney, D-San Francisco, was introduced into the state Assembly on February 15 and may receive a hearing on the Assembly floor as soon as March 18.

The state already has a pension fund for retired boxers. However, no states offer a pension fund for MMA fighters; professional MMA fighters are not members of unions or player associations in the United States.

"We know that this is an incredibly popular sport," Haney told ESPN. "It's a sport that's growing and it's also one that can be dangerous, and people put their bodies on the line for our entertainment. And as fans, we appreciate it, but we should make sure they're taken care of when they retire."

The bill has support from the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) and many retired MMA fighters, including UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey.

"You have a much shorter window [in MMA] because your body takes so much more of a heavier toll," Rousey told ESPN. "And the difference with these kinds of combat sports, with all this contact and the neurological injuries involved, you don't know the day that you've taken one hit too many. You're going to find out that you crossed that threshold many decades later when you no longer have that extra income.

"It's when you're dealing with the repercussions of that career is when you no longer have that income stream."

If the bill passes, $1 from each ticket sold to attend MMA events in the state will go into the pension fund. Each year, the state would cut checks to retired fighters age 50 or older who had had a certain number of professional fights in California. Haney told ESPN it will likely be around 13 fights.

"I hope to see a lot of other states replicate this type of model," Haney told ESPN. "I hope to see us find ways to grow the amount of revenue that we can put in. We've had a good set of conversations with some of the promoters, and hopefully, we can get them to be more invested in it as well, and ultimately they can make even larger contributions to this fund."

If the bill becomes law, the CSAC will write the regulations for the fund and create a distribution method. The state has paid 171 checks to boxers from the state pension fund since 2012. "The average check has been for about $19,000," according to ESPN.

"I can't think of a single reason why all of these fighters who are literally fighting their hearts out and putting their lives on the line to entertain people haven't had this support already,” Rousey told ESPN. “And I'm really keeping my fingers crossed -- if I could cross them because they're so damaged from fighting -- that this will pass."

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