Not being a fan of kick-ass, no holds barred UFC/MMA fighting, I had no idea that gun-related companies sponsored UFC fighters and bouts. Evidently, one of our least favorite ranges, The Gun Store in Las Vegas, is a prominent supporter. I also had no idea that Fox Sports had recently signed a deal to air UFC events. But Fox has taken a look at UFC sponsorships from gun-related business – and also knife, ammo and hunting-related firms – and banned them. . .
We go to the source for the latest on UFC and MMA, namely cagepotato.com:
Starting January 23rd, Ammo To Go and The Gun Store, among others, will no longer be able to sponsor fighters. When contacted by CagePotato in hopes to better understand the reasoning behind the less than popular decision, the UFC said only that “These are rules set in place by Fox” — who declined to comment.
We all knew that concessions were made in order to secure the FOX deal, but did we really think it would come to this?
And themmacorner.com reports:
The Gun Store, based in Las Vegas, has sponsored numerous fighters in recent years, from heavyweight Shane Carwin to lightweight Spencer Fisher. The location has also hosted prominent fighters such as light heavyweight champion Jon Jones (pictured), UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture and MMA legend Wanderlei Silva.
The decision has left some UFC participants scrambling to replace the income lost from the ban. A call to Fox Sports for comment was not returned. It seems clear that political correctness has wheedled its way into even this obscure corner of the sports world. The Fox Sports brain trust – a group few would have suspected of being anti-gun – appears to have decided that firearms-related sponsors are beyond the pale, amidst all that uber-macho, smashmouth action.
