Former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton has spoken out on what he sees as one of the biggest issues in MMA – the control promoters have over fighters’ careers, rankings, and titles.

His comments came during a Nevada State Athletic Commission hearing this week, following a similar appearance before the California Athletic Commission earlier this month — both tied to growing discussion around the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act.

The proposed legislation, currently gaining traction after unanimous support in California, aims to expand certain boxing protections under the original Muhammad Ali Act (2000) to other combat sports, potentially including MMA.

Newton told the commission:

I was instrumental in the current UFC lawsuit. A lot of the things you guys spoke about pertain to sport and the governance of sport.

Currently, athletes are not allowed to compete for other promotional titles in MMA, freely, openly, and unfettered.
MMA is the only professional sport in the world where promoters are allowed to control rank and title, while having athletes under exclusive contracts.

Newton urged athletic commissions and legislators to consider reforms that would separate sanctioning bodies from promoters, allowing fighters to compete more freely:

I’d like to see something done in order to introduce independent titles or a sanctioning body or promoters not being allowed to use exclusive contracts with the athletes if the athletes are competing for that promoter’s title.

It creates a monopoly by default, because athletes inherently all have to compete against one another.

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