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In the wake of a controversial decision in the main event of UFC 247, the Kansas Athletic Commission is set to experiment with a major change. According to a recent announcement, the KAC will be offering open scoring in mixed martial arts.
With open scoring, there will be “real-time” scores that will be shown to the fighters, broadcasters, and fans.
“I come from outside of the combat sports world,” Kansas boxing commissioner Adam Roorbach said, via ESPN.com. “But I’ve been a sports fan my whole life. It always mystifies me why the fighters and fans don’t know what the score is until the end. No one has ever given me a good explanation as to why.
“Our sport is moving forward; it’s not moving backward. When you look at other sports, almost all of them are [older than MMA]. We’re gonna be going through more changes over the years.”
The decision will allow more transparency throughout the fight and will let fighters know whether they are ahead or behind on the judge’s scorecards.
The changes will start on March 1.
From the report:
Beginning March 1, the KAC will offer MMA promoters the option for “real-time” scoring, Kansas boxing commissioner Adam Roorbach told ESPN on Monday. After every round, the score of the fight will become public knowledge — told to the fighters’ corners, the broadcast team and the fans in attendance. Currently in MMA, the scores are read only at the conclusion of a bout that goes the distance. Roorbach said the use of real-time scoring is up to the promoter and the commission will be flexible to the promoter’s desires. It doesn’t have to be used at all; it can be used for some fights and not others; and the scoring information can be given only to select people in between rounds.
Of course, the UFC doesn’t make too many trips to Kansas so it could be some time before we see the changes made on the big stage, but Invicta FC is based out of Kansas so we will see the changes implemented sooner rather than later.
Do you think open scoring in MMA is a good move? Sound off in the comments section below with your thoughts.
