The Impact of New Judging Criteria on 10-8 Scores in MMA

Home , 2012 in UFC, Chris Leben, John McCarthy (referee)

Journal of Sports Analytics xx (2021) x–xx 1 DOI 10.3233/JSA-200478 IOS Press

1 The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8

2 scores in MMA

∗ 3 Paul Gift 4 Associate Professor of Economics, Graziadio Business School, Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA, USA

5 Abstract. This paper investigates the impact of changes in judging criteria on 10-8 scores in Zuffa-owned mixed martial 6 arts (MMA) promotions. Utilizing a differences-in-differences framework, the 2017 liberalization of 10-8 scoring criteria 7 in the Uniﬁed Rules of MMA is examined across various judge groups. Findings suggest that traveling judges and Nevada 8 judges – those most likely to be at the forefront of the regulatory evolution of the sport – had already liberalized their 10-8 9 scoring one year prior to the effective date of the new criteria. Other judges appear to have effectively implemented the new 10 criteria since January 2017 with 10-8 probabilities on par with traveling and Nevada judges. The effect of an earlier change 11 in judging criteria is also examined in Nevada. Results suggest the numerous and distributed regulatory agencies involved in 12 the sport of MMA were effective in the implementation of new policies for scoring rounds.

13 Keywords: Judging, mixed martial arts (MMA), policy effectiveness, regulation, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), 14 Zuffa

15 1. Introduction rounds. A boxing match can be scheduled in even 34 increments of 4–12 rounds, with the number of 35 16 “[Traveling judges have] figured out the criteria rounds increasing as boxers approach championship 36 17 they’re judging off, caliber. Title fights are generally 12 rounds while 37 18 and no matter where they are or where they go, non-title fights are typically 10 rounds or fewer. 38 19 they’re using that criteria.” MMA bouts, on the other hand, are typically three- 39 20 – John McCarthy, Bellator commentator, round affairs, while title fights are scheduled for five 40 1 21 COMMAND head instructor rounds. 41 In a three-round fight, a judge’s decision to score 42 22 The “10-Point Must” system in mixed martial a round 10-8 instead of 10-9 – doubling the reward 43 23 arts (MMA) is a legacy scoring system from box- for winning the round – can easily be the difference 44 24 ing whereby judges award 10 points to the winner between a fighter earning a 28-28 draw instead of 45 25 of each round and nine points or fewer to the round losing 28-29 when the opponent wins the other two 46 26 loser. First appearing in the Ultimate Fighting Cham- 2 rounds. And the decision to score a 10-8 has histori- 47 27 pionship (UFC) at UFC 21 in July 1999, the 10-Point cally been more difficult in MMA than boxing. While 48 28 Must System would later be codified into the judg- 10-8s in boxing do not require a knockdown, Califor- 49 29 ing criteria of the original Unified Rules of MMA in nia’s judging criteria in 2017 stated, “The knockdown 50 30 2001. 31 While both sports now utilize the 10-Point Must 1 Non-title fights in MMA are sometimes scheduled for five 32 System for scoring, a key distinctionUncorrected between box- rounds. For example, Author all main event matchups Proof in the UFC, whether 33 ing and MMA matches is the number of scheduled title or non-title fights, are scheduled for five rounds unless there are extenuating circumstances such as a short-notice replacement. ∗Corresponding author: Paul Gift, Pepperdine Graziadio Busi- 2 In the 2016-2019 sample period of the present study, 90.4% ness School, 6100 Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90045, USA. of bouts were scheduled for three rounds while only 9.6% where E-mail: [email protected]. scheduled for five.

ISSN 2215-020X © 2021 – The authors. Published by IOS Press. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (CC BY-NC 4.0). 2 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA

51 should count as one point,” and the Pod Index has At the national level in the United States, the Unified 103 52 found that all three boxing judges unanimously agree Rules of MMA are maintained by the Association of 104 53 on 10-8 rounds 93% of the time (Gift, 2018b). In Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports (ABC), 105 54 MMA, there is no such knockdown rule and judges a non-profit organization composed of member ath- 106 55 unanimously agreed on a 10-8 round only 8.7% of letic commissions. Amendments to these rules are 107 56 the time from 2001–2012, increasing to 26.1% by approved by member commissions at an annual meet- 108 57 2017 (Gift, 2018b). Hence, this paper will examine ing, but the fact remains: The ABC maintains no 109 58 the impact of two changes to the 10-8 scoring criteria regulatory authority over local commissions and can 110 59 in MMA intended to liberalize their usage for “the only recommend policy. Thus, as distributed regula- 111 60 evolution of the sport and the fairness to the fighters” tors, each state or local commission ultimately selects 112 61 (Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative the rules for MMA within its boundaries. 113 62 Sports, 2016, pp. 3). Fortunately, changes to the judging criteria within 114 63 While much of the extant MMA literature has been the Unified Rules have not been controversial, 115 64 devoted to analyses of UFC pay-per-view buyrates unlike other changes such as the definition of a 116 65 (Watanabe, 2012; Tainsky, Salaga, & Santos, 2013; grounded fighter. Thus, the question of interest is: 117 66 Watanabe, 2015; and Reams & Shapiro, 2017), How well has the network of distributed regulators 118 67 researchers have also studied the marginal revenue across the sport of MMA implemented agreed upon 119 68 product of UFC fighters (Gift, 2020) and examined changes to the scoring criteria 10-8 rounds? Utilizing 120 69 the impact of fight night bonuses (Gift, 2019a) and a non-experimental difference-in-differences frame- 121 70 cage size (Gift, 2019b) on various aspects of fighter work across time and local jurisdictions, I find that 122 71 performance. traveling and Nevada judges – those most likely to be 123 72 The two papers most closely related to the present at the forefront of the regulatory evolution of the sport 124 73 study are Collier, Johnson, and Ruggiero (2012) and – had already liberalized their 10-8 scoring prior to 125 74 Gift (2018a). Both studies analyzed the performance the most recent change in January 2017. However, 126 75 determinants of MMA judging decisions with Col- other judges quickly caught up in 2017 and main- 127 76 lier et al. using aggregate bout statistics and the final tained 10-8 probabilities on par with traveling and 128 77 bout outcome and Gift examining the round-by-round Nevada judges. Additionally, over a longer time hori- 129 78 scoring decisions of judges in “close margin” 10- zon, multiple efforts to liberalize 10-8 scoring appear 130 79 9 rounds. Collier et. al also tested for the impact to have been effective in Nevada. These findings can 131 80 of non-performance measures (age and height) and have value not only to the athletic commissions who 132 81 found no statistical effect. Gift’s analysis found that oversee the judges, but also to the fighters, coaches, 133 82 MMA judges tend to show bias towards larger betting promoters, and even fans seeking more “fairness to 134 83 favorites, fighters with an insurmountable lead, and the fighters.” 135 84 the fighter who won the previous round. In contrast to 85 Collier et al. and Gift, the judging decision of interest 86 in the present study is not who wins or loses a bout or 2. MMA judging criteria 136 87 round, but rather the decision to award a 10-8 score 88 instead of 10-9 when the round-winning fighter is not The UFC, presently the world’s largest MMA pro- 137 89 in dispute. moter, held its first event on November 12, 1993. 138 90 In MMA, judges do not work for individual pro- Initially described as “no holds barred” fighting, there 139 91 moters such as the UFC or Bellator. Instead they were only two rules – no biting and no eye gouging 140 92 work for state and local athletic commissions and – and fights could only end by a tapout or corner 141 93 their workload throughout a year and requirements stoppage. The first appearance of judges and deci- 142 94 for training can vary from commission to commission finishes occurred at UFC 7.5 in December 1995. 143 95 sion. Contrary to more traditional sports, MMA is Using the scoring categories of aggressiveness, best 144 96 a sport of regulatory fiefdoms. Each athletic com- strikes, and grappling techniques, a panel of three 145 97 mission defines the ruleset for regulatedUncorrected MMA bouts judges evaluated Author the fight as a whole,Proof revealing win- 146 98 within its jurisdiction. When no regulatory agency ners on paddles which would then be shown to the 147 99 exists, promoters will self-regulate or contract with a film crew and the audience. 148 100 regulatory body such as the Mohegan Department of Shortly after Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta bought the 149 101 Athletic Regulation, which Bellator utilizes when it UFC in January 2001, the Unified Rules of MMA 150 102 travels internationally to an unregulated jurisdiction. were authorized by the New Jersey State Athletic 151 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA 3

152 Control Board, including judging criteria for scor- or attacks.” Duration is essentially the amount of time 201 3 153 ing rounds. The particular criterion of interest in a fighter spent inflicting heavy damage or dominating 202 154 this paper is that used to double the reward for win- the action. See Appendix A for a complete description 203 155 ning a round: a score of 10-8 instead of the most of the expansive new 2017 judging criteria. 204 156 frequent score of 10-9. According to the initial Uni- An empirical question of interest for fighters, 205 157 fied Rules of MMA, “A round is to be scored as a coaches, fans, media, regulators, and promoters is: 206 158 10-8 Round when a contestant overwhelmingly dom- How effectively has MMA’s new judging criteria 207 159 inates by striking or grappling in a round.” (Emphasis been implemented across local jurisdictions? Unlike 208 160 added; New Jersey State Athletic Control Board, other major sports, MMA does not have a cen- 209 161 2001, pp. 8). tral authority to advise and train all officials on 210 162 MMA’s judging criteria would remain unchanged rules/criteria changes. Training sessions from judges 211 163 for roughly 12 years until 2012 (but effective Jan- at the forefront of the sport are available in various 212 164 uary 2013), when the ABC approved certain changes locations throughout a typical year, but requirements 213 165 in order “to bring a greater clarity with respect to for updated training vary by jurisdiction. Also varying 214 166 the overall criteria of MMA judging” (Association of greatly by jurisdiction are the number of sanctioned 215 167 Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports, 2012, MMA events available each year for judges to work 216 168 pp. 2). The definition of a 10-8 round was relaxed and gain experience. For example, 69 professional 217 169 from a fighter overwhelmingly dominating to instead MMA events were held in California in 2018 and 218 170 winning by a “large margin.” In particular, “A round 34 in Nevada. Meanwhile, Alabama, North Dakota, 219 171 is to be scored as a 10-8 Round when a contestant Vermont, and West Virginia were home to only two 220 172 wins by a large margin, by effective striking and events each, according to the site operator of the 221 173 or effective grappling that have great impact on the MMA database Tapology.com (Kelliher, 2019). 222 174 opponent” (Emphasis added; Association of Boxing 175 Commissions and Combative Sports, 2012, pp. 5).

176 Soon thereafter, the unwritten “Two D’s” of Dom- 3. Data 223 177 inance and Damage for determining 10-8 rounds

178 originated and began circulating. 3.1. Fightmetric 224 179 In August 2016, in order “to evolve mixed martial

180 arts . . . ,” the ABC once again passed changes to the The dataset for the present study was obtained 225 181 judging criteria (Raimondi, 2017, pp. 1). Effective from FightMetric, the official statistics provider for 226 182 January 1, 2017, a 10-8 round was still defined as a the UFC. For each round and fighter, FightMetric 227 183 fighter winning by a large margin, however the new tracks over 100 performance statistics covering strik- 228 184 criteria liberalized what constituted a “large” mar- ing, damage, knockdowns, takedowns, grappling, and 229 185 gin by incorporating the Three D’s of Dominance, submissions, as well as time spent with and with- 230 186 Damage (also known as “Impact”), and Duration, out control in various positions such as the clinch, 231 187 and explicitly noting when a judge “shall always” guard, half guard, side control, mount, and having an 232 188 score a 10-8 versus when a judge “must consider” opponent’s back. In addition to the UFC, FightMet- 233 189 at 10-8 score. It was also the first time the con- ric tracked performance statistics for World Extreme 234 190 cepts of Damage, Dominance, and Duration were Cagefighting (WEC) and Strikeforce events. Zuffa 235 191 explicitly put in writing. Damage is when a fighter LLC, the corporate entity which owns and operates 236 192 impacts their opponent significantly in a round. Evi- the UFC, acquired the rival WEC and Strikeforce 237 193 dence of damage could include physical harm such promotions in December 2006 and March 2011, 238 4 194 swelling or lacerations as well as striking or grap- respectively. Bouts in these promotions while under 239 195 pling maneuvers that lead to a diminishing of the Zuffa ownership will be utilized in the second sample 240 196 opponent’s “energy, confidence, abilities and spirit.” period of the present study as described below. 241 197 Dominance in striking is when a fighter forces their In addition to fighter performance statistics, Fight- 242 198 opponent to continually defend. In grappling, it is UncorrectedMetric acquired Author judge scorecards Proof for many past UFC, 243 199 when a fighter takes dominant positions and uses WEC, and Strikeforce events held in two of the most 244 200 those positions to “attempt fight ending submissions active jurisdictions, Nevada and California, as far 245

3 While many states utilized these Unified Rules of MMA, they 4 The WEC and Strikeforce, and their associated fighters, were were officially codified by the ABC in 2009. absorbed into the UFC in 2010 and 2013, respectively. 4 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA

Table 1 given judge agreement on which ﬁghter won the 269 Judge-rounds scored by jurisdiction round, the decision of interest is whether a 10-8 score 270 7 Year Nevada Cali- New York Other Inter- Total is warranted over a 10-9. 271 fornia Domestic national Two sample periods will be employed in this 272 2001 75 0 0 0 0 75 study: 273 2002 54 0 0 0 0 54

2003 45 0 0 0 0 45 1. 2016–2019 Sample Period: All UFC events 274 2004 90 0 0 0 0 90 with available scorecards held across 47 local 275 2005 192 0 0 0 0 192 2006 321 57 0 0 0 378 jurisdictions from January 30, 2016 (the ﬁrst 276 2007 369 45 0 0 0 414 observed date of FightMetric’s widespread 277 2008 354 54 0 0 0 408 scorecard collection) through April 20, 2019. 278 2009 411 108 0 0 0 519 2010 399 243 0 0 0 642 2. 2001–2019 Sample Period: All UFC, WEC, 279 2011 468 120 0 0 0 588 and Strikeforce events with available scorecards 280 2012 303 147 0 0 0 450 held in Nevada from September 28, 2001 (the 281 2013 357 144 0 0 0 501 ﬁrst Zuffa-operated UFC event in the state) 282 2014 339 108 0 0 0 447 2015 126 21 0 0 0 147 through April 20, 2019. 283 2016 432 108 129 372 630 1,671 2017 333 123 147 474 663 1,740 The 2016–2019 sample period can be seen towards 284 2018 255 105 159 672 708 1,899 the bottom of Table 1. Nevada, California, and New 285 2019 60 0 45 324 237 666 York were the three most active jurisdictions in 286 Total 4,983 1,383 480 1,842 2,238 10,926 terms of unanimous judge-rounds scored, with other 287 Note: For all Zuffa-owned UFC, WEC, and Strikeforce events with domestic and international locations each contribut- 288 scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement on the round winner in the 2001–2019 sample period. ing a sizeable number of scores. The 2001–2019 289 sample period can be seen in the Nevada column on 290

5 the left. 291 246 back as 2001 and 2006, respectively. In January 247 2016, FightMetric initiated the collection and track- 3.2. Descriptive statistics 292 248 ing of scorecards for every UFC event, conditional 249 on the regulating athletic commission publicly releas- Raw data over the entire 2001–2019 period is 293 250 ing such information. Thus, the potential dataset for presented in Fig. 1. Available scorecards for unan- 294 251 the present study can be seen in Table 1 and is tab- imous rounds increased substantially in 2016 when 295 252 ulated by judge-round scored. All scored rounds are FightMetric initiated a rigorous collection process. 296 253 included regardless of whether the fight ultimately When examining the percentage of unanimous judge- 297 254 went to a decision or ended by knockout or submis- rounds assigned a 10-8 score, the right-most tail 298 255 sion in a subsequent round. appears to increase in recent years as one would 299 256 The 10-8 scoring decision is a determination as to expect from a liberalization of the 10-8 criteria. 300 257 whether a fighter won by a close margin (10-9) or However, early years contain higher 10-8 scoring per- 301 258 overwhelmingly dominated or won by a large mar- centages than might be expected when earning a 10-8 302 259 gin (10-8, depending on the time period of the bout). required overwhelming domination. One possibility 303 260 Hence, if a 10-8 is being considered by a judge, the is the fights themselves may have been more lopsided 304 261 round winner should be apparent. The data supports in the early years of modern MMA, typically taken 305 262 this notion as there was only a single disagreement on to be from 2001 when the Fertitta brothers purchased 306 263 the round winner in 409 rounds with at least one 10-8 6 the UFC. 10-8 scores may have required more dom- 307 264 score. Since the relevant decision being examined ination in these early years, yet the matchups may 308 265 is the extent to which the winning fighter dominated have been more lopsided. As the sport developed, 309 266 the action, the sample for the present study, as seen 267 in Table 1, is composed of all rounds in which judges 7 While a score of 10-7 is technically possible, it occurs when a 268 unanimously agreed upon the winner. In other words, Uncorrectedjudge believes Author the referee did not do his Proof or her job and a “stoppage is warranted” (Raimondi, 2017, pp. 4). Out of 10,926 judge-rounds 5 MMA was legally sanctioned in Nevada in 2001 and California in the overall sample, only three were scored a 10-7, each time by in 2006. a single judge. In practice, the three 10-7 scores essentially served 6 In the second round of Chris Leben vs. Patrick Cote at UFC as very decisive 10-8s, and therefore are coded as 10-8 scores in Fight Night 1, two judges scored the round for Cote (10-9 and the paper. Results are qualitatively the same and virtually identical 10-8) while the third judge scored a 10-9 for Leben. when the three 10-7 rounds are excluded from the analysis. P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA 5

Table 2 Descriptive statistics in the 2016–2019 sample period Variable N Mean S.D. Min Max 10-8 Score 5,976 0.08 0.27 0 1 Head Jabs Landed 5,976 4.38 10.0 –46 62 Head Jabs Missed 5,976 1.11 8.15 –37 35 Head Power Landed 5,976 5.80 7.82 –19 78 Head Power Missed 5,976 1.98 8.91 –34 42 Body Jabs Landed 5,976 1.68 5.42 –24 57 Body Jabs Missed 5,976 0.08 1.18 –6 9 Body Power Landed 5,976 1.45 3.86 –14 32 Body Power Missed 5,976 0.14 2.05 –11 11 Leg Jabs Landed 5,976 0.64 3.86 –27 40 Leg Jabs Missed 5,976 0.01 1.07 –9 7 Leg Power Landed 5,976 0.79 3.44 –21 16 Leg Power Missed 5,976 0.06 1.30 –9 9 Fig. 1. Judge-rounds scored and 10-8 scoring percentages by year. Knockdowns 5,976 0.08 0.34 –1 4 Note: For all Zuffa-owned UFC, WEC, and Strikeforce events with Damage 5,976 0.08 0.32 –1 1 scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement Takedown Slams 5,976 0.08 0.42 –3 4 on the round winner. Takedowns Landed 5,976 0.43 1.06 –5 6 (No Slam) Takedowns Missed 5,976 –0.08 1.82 –10 8 Submission Chokes 5,976 0.06 0.42 –2 3 310 better athletes entered, and coaching and training Attempted Submission Locks 5,976 0.00 0.31 –5 3 311 methods improved, a reduced amount of domination Attempted 312 may help explain the apparent downward trend in Tight Submission 5,976 0.01 0.13 –1 1 313 10-8 scoring percentages through roughly 2013. The Standups 5,976 –0.35 0.98 –6.0 4.0 314 data appears supportive in this regard as unanimous Sweeps 5,976 0.02 0.31 –2.0 2.0 Clinch Control Time 5,976 0.15 0.72 –4 5 315 round winners during 2001–2006 had higher pre- Guard Control Time 5,976 0.22 0.68 –4 4 316 ﬁght standard normalized win probabilities (59.2%) Half Guard Control Time 5,976 0.17 0.51 –3 3 317 and tended to out-land their opponents each round Side Control Time 5,976 0.08 0.33 –2 4 318 with more knockdowns (+0.11), damage (+0.19), Mount Control Time 5,976 0.04 0.21 –2 3 Back Control Time 5,976 0.09 0.45 –2 4 319 and power strikes to the head (+6.37) than in any Miscellaneous Control 5,976 0.33 0.72 –3 4 320 other period covering 2007–2012, 2013–2016, and Time 321 2017–2019. However, regardless of the precise cause, Note: Data is at the judge-round level. For all UFC events with 322 the changes in raw 10-8 scoring percentages over scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement 323 time help highlight the importance of controlling on the round winner. 324 for in-cage ﬁghter performances when evaluating

325 10-8 scores, as will be addressed in Section 4 4. Model 342 326 below. 327 Tables 2 and 3 present descriptive statistics on the This paper uses a non-experimental difference- 328 binary outcome variable, 10-8 Score, and the 29 con- in-differences framework across time and local 329 trol variables of fighter performance utilized in the jurisdictions to examine the impact of judging criteria 330 two samples of the present study. All control variables changes on 10-8 scores in MMA. Judge scoring deci- 331 are the difference in performance statistics between sions are estimated using a logit model over a sample 332 the winning and losing fighter. Both tables show that of rounds where all three judges unanimously agreed 333 fighters who unanimously win their rounds tend to upon the winner. In this context, suppose the observ- 334 both land and miss more strikes than losing fight- able 10-8 and 10-9 scoring decisions derive from a ∗ 335 ers, or put another way, they tend to be more active. latent judging preference variable y specified as 336 This may partially be due to the winning fighter ∗ y = α + β · T1t + γ · Gg + τ · T1t · Gg 337 more often being in a position ofUncorrected control, as can jgt Author Proof 338 be seen towards the bottom of each table. Fighters + θ Xjgt + εjgt (1) 339 who win rounds unanimously also tend to get more 340 knockdowns, do more visible damage, and land more for the 2016–2019 sample period, where jgt denotes 343 341 takedowns (slams and non-slams) than unanimous judge-round j in group g in time period t. T1 is an indi- 344 round losers. cator variable equal to one in the new judging criteria 345 6 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA

Table 3 5. Empirical results 354 Descriptive statistics in the 2001–2019 sample period

Variable N Mean S.D. Min Max 5.1. 2016–2019 sample period 355 10-8 Score 4,983 0.05 0.23 0 1 Head Jabs Landed 4,983 6.58 12.7 –67 86 A difference-in-differences framework is utilized 356 Head Jabs Missed 4,983 1.41 7.46 –48 42 in the 2016–2019 sample period, allowing for the pos- 357 Head Power Landed 4,983 5.49 6.73 –13 69 Head Power Missed 4,983 2.68 8.06 –30 38 sibility that certain groups of judges were influenced 358 Body Jabs Landed 4,983 2.89 7.27 –41 53 more effectively by the 2017 change in 10-8 judging 359 Body Jabs Missed 4,983 0.01 0.99 –6 9 criteria. A number of reasons could lead to differences 360 Body Power Landed 4,983 1.54 3.50 –11 32 across judging groups. As Panel 1 of Table 4 shows, 361 Body Power Missed 4,983 0.05 1.66 –9 11 Leg Jabs Landed 4,983 0.39 3.61 –27 40 the number of unanimous UFC judge-rounds scored 362 Leg Jabs Missed 4,983 –0.03 0.98 –7 8 varies greatly across jurisdictions. Thus, judges in 363 Leg Power Landed 4,983 0.69 3.20 –21 25 some areas, such as the top three in Nevada, New 364 Leg Power Missed 4,983 0.01 0.98 –6 5 Knockdowns 4,983 0.08 0.32 –1 3 York, and California, may have more annual repe- 365 Damage 4,983 0.10 0.34 –1 1 titions applying the criteria in major MMA events. 366 Takedown Slams 4,983 0.09 0.40 –2 4 Another possibility is awareness and training. Cer- 367 Takedowns Landed 4,983 0.58 1.21 –4 6 tain jurisdictions may devote more effort towards 368 (No Slam) Takedowns Missed 4,983 –0.16 2.00 –10 7 being at the forefront of rule and criteria changes, 369 Submission Chokes 4,983 0.08 0.57 –3 3 and either require or encourage judges to receive 370 Attempted training more regularly. And the trainers themselves 371 Submission Locks 4,983 0.01 0.42 –3 4 may have an effect. The top referee and judge in 372 Attempted Tight Submission 4,983 0.01 0.22 –1 1 the sport, “Big” John McCarthy, whose COMMAND 373 Standups 4,983 –0.43 1.05 –8.0 4.0 officials training program is the premier provider of 374 Sweeps 4,983 0.00 0.34 –2.0 2.0 ABC-certification, resided in California and Nevada 375 Clinch Control Time 4,902 0.16 0.78 –4 4 throughout both sample periods. While McCarthy 376 Guard Control Time 4,902 0.41 0.99 –4 5 Half Guard Control Time 4,902 0.27 0.58 –2 4 would regularly travel as the top official in the sport, 377 Side Control Time 4,902 0.13 0.42 –2 4 it is possible he had more frequent interactions with 378 Mount Control Time 4,902 0.05 0.27 –1 4 California and Nevada officials. 379 Back Control Time 4,902 0.13 0.50 –2 4 It should be noted that some of the 2017 changes 380 Miscellaneous Control 4,902 0.39 0.68 –3 4 Time to the Unified Rules of MMA were controversial. In 381 Note: Data is at the judge-round level. For all Zuffa-owned UFC, addition to amending the judging criteria, the ABC 382 WEC, and Strikeforce events held in Nevada with scorecards also approved changes to the composition of fouls 383 tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement on the in the sport. Specifically, the ABC altered the defi- 384 round winner. Sample size is slightly smaller for control time vari- nition of a grounded fighter and removed a foul for 385 ables as some older events did not have Time In Position (TIP) heel strikes to the kidney, among other less controver- 386 tracked. sial changes. Referred to generally as MMA’s “new 387 rules,” many states adopted the ABC-approved new 388 346 time period of 2017–2019, G is an indicator vari- set of fouls, but others did not. Hence, the “rules” of 389 347 able equal to one when judge-bouts are scored by the professional MMA could vary depending on the state 390 348 group of interest, and X is a vector of 29 differenced or jurisdiction in which an event was held. This led 391 349 fighter performance statistics serving as controls. As to confusion among UFC announcers and fans as to 392 350 in Gift (2018a), all regression results employed clus- whether the new – and uncontroversial – judging cri- 393 351 tered standard errors at the bout level. teria were also in effect in jurisdictions which did not 394 The 2001–2019 sample period utilizes only one fully adopt the new set of fouls. Since 10-8 scoring 395 group, Nevada judges, and tests for apparent changes involved a change in criteria rather than a change to 396 in 10-8 scoring over the longest time frame of the set of fouls, “all” judges should have been using 397 2001–2019 with the model the new standard in the 2017–2019 sample period 398 ∗ Uncorrected Author Proof = + · + + “as a fluid criteria to adjudicate a round,” accord- 399 yjt α β T2t θ Xjt εjt (2) ing to Jerin Valel of the COMMAND program (Gift, 400 352 where T2 is a categorical variable identifying the three 2018c). Yet, as noted above, it is possible groups 401 353 time periods of interest for 10-8 judging in MMA: of judges were influenced differently by the new 402 2001–2012, 2013–2016, and 2017–2019. criteria. P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA 7

Table 4 Judge-rounds scored in the 2016-2019 sample period Panel 1 State or Local Jurisdiction Judge-Rounds Percent Panel 2 Judge Rounds Pe rce nt Scored Scored 1. Nevada, USA 1,080 18.1% 1. Sal D’Amato 516 8.6% 2. New York, USA 480 8.0% 2. Derek Cleary 470 7.9% 3. California, USA 336 5.6% 3. Chris Lee 381 6.4% 4. England, U.K. 291 4.9% 4. Jeff Mullen 215 3.6% 5. Texas, USA 213 3.6% 5. Marcos Rosales 194 3.2% 6. Arizona, USA 177 3.0% 6. Glenn Trowbridge 163 2.7% 7. Pennsylvania, USA 144 2.4% 7. Dave Hagen 153 2.6% 8. Sao Paulo, Brazil 132 2.2% 8. Tony Weeks 153 2.6% 9. Missouri, USA 126 2.1% 9. Ben Cartlidge 140 2.3% 10. Tennessee, USA 126 2.1% 10. Junichiro Kamijo 126 2.1% 11. Hamburg, Germany 123 2.1% 11. Michael Bell 123 2.1% 12. Distrito Federal, Mexico 120 2.0% 12. Eric Colon 122 2.0% 13. Illinois, USA 117 2.0% 13. Paul Sutherland 121 2.0% 14. Georgia, USA 111 1.9% 14. Howard Hughes 110 1.8% 15. Zuid-Holland, Netherlands 102 1.7% 15. Guilherme Bravo 105 1.8% 16. Victoria, Australia 99 1.7% 16. Mark Collett 101 1.7% 17. Ceara, Brazil 93 1.6% 17. Dave Tirelli 100 1.7% 18. Alberta, Canada 90 1.5% 18. Cardo Urso 94 1.6% 19. Florida, USA 81 1.4% 19. Brian Puccillo 87 1.5% 20. New Jersey, USA 78 1.3% 20. Ric hard Winter 86 1.4% 21. Rio De Janeiro, Brazil 78 1.3% 21. Doug Crosby 76 1.3% 22. New South Wales, Australia 75 1.3% 22. Evan Field 73 1.2% 23. South Australia, Australia 69 1.2% 23. Andy Roberts 70 1.2% 24. Idaho, USA 66 1.1% 24. Charlie Keech 69 1.2% 25. Wisconsin, USA 66 1.1% 25. Hallison Pontes 63 1.1% 26. Colorado, USA 60 1.0% 26. Anthony Dimitriou 58 1.0% 27. New Brunswick, Canada 60 1.0% 27. Adalaide Byrd 54 0.9% 28. Virginia, USA 60 1.0% 28. Ron McCarthy 54 0.9% 29. Moscow, Russia 57 1.0% 29. Andreas Gruner 49 0.8% 30. Oklahoma, USA 57 1.0% 30. Pawel Harasim 49 0.8% All Others 1,209 20.2% All Others 1,801 30.1% Total 5,976 100.0% Total 5,976 100.0% Note: Panel 1 shows the Top 30 judge-rounds scored by state or local jurisdiction. Panel 2 shows the Top 30 rounds scored by individual judge. For all UFC events with scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement on the round winner.

403 Given the possibilities for different treatment The difference-in-difference effect is the time- 422 404 effects of the 10-8 criteria change across jurisdictions, group interaction, which is negative and insignificant 423 405 the first group examined is the top three scoring states for the NV/CA/NY grouping. Figure 2 presents the 424 406 in the data (see Table 4, Panel 1) relative to all other results visually, showing the predicted probabilities 425 407 jurisdictions. Hence, G equals one when a judge- of a 10-8 score in the four time-group combina- 426 408 round is scored in Nevada, New York, or California tions. While 10-8 probabilities increased in each 427 409 and zero otherwise. group over time, the change in non-NV/CA/NY juris- 428 410 Table 5 presents difference-in-difference regres- dictions was the only with statistical significance. 429 411 sion results for the three groups that will be examined NV/CA/NY judges appeared to already score 10-8s 430 412 in this study. While results from the fighter perfor- more frequently in 2016, and there was not a signifi- 431 413 mance control variables are not the primary focus, cant difference in how scoring probabilities between 432 414 they display strong consistency across the three each group changed over time. 433 415 groupings and appear to make economic sense. The Since judges do not always work exclusively in 434 416 most influential performance factorUncorrected for a 10-8 score their primary Author jurisdiction, and Proof certain judges travel 435 417 is knocking the opponent down. Also influential extensively, two other groupings are examined. In a 436 418 are having dominant (i.e., controlling) positions, 2018 interview, John McCarthy described “traveling 437 419 damaging the opponent’s face, attempting submis- judges” as those who frequently work events in differ- 438 420 sions, and landing power strikes to the head, body, ent jurisdictions for major promotions such the UFC 439 421 and legs. and Bellator, sometimes specifically at the promoter’s 440 8 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA

Table 5 Logit regressions of 10-8 Score for the 2016–2019 sample period Independent Variables (1) (2) (3) (NV/CA/NY Group) (Traveling Judge Group) (NV Judge Group) Beta S.E. AME Beta S.E. AME Beta S.E. AME 2017–2019 Period 0.695∗∗∗ 0.258 1.175∗∗∗ 0.268 1.274∗∗∗ 0.300 Group Indicator 0.382 0.365 1.311∗∗∗ 0.312 1.351∗∗∗ 0.320 2017–2019 Period × Group –0.247 0.413 –1.200∗∗∗ 0.349 –1.223∗∗∗ 0.360 Head Jabs Landed 0.046∗∗∗ 0.010 0.2% 0.047∗∗∗ 0.009 0.2% 0.047∗∗∗ 0.009 0.2% Head Jabs Missed 0.009 0.011 0.0% 0.009 0.011 0.0% 0.009 0.011 0.0% Head Power Landed 0.121∗∗∗ 0.011 0.5% 0.121∗∗∗ 0.011 0.5% 0.122∗∗∗ 0.011 0.5% Head Power Missed 0.009 0.010 0.0% 0.010 0.010 0.0% 0.010 0.010 0.0% Body Jabs Landed –0.019 0.024 –0.1% –0.021 0.023 –0.1% –0.022 0.023 –0.1% Body Jabs Missed –0.060 0.073 –0.3% –0.038 0.072 –0.2% –0.047 0.072 –0.2% Body Power Landed 0.065∗∗∗ 0.023 0.3% 0.067∗∗∗ 0.023 0.3% 0.068∗∗∗ 0.023 0.3% Body Power Missed 0.009 0.054 0.0% 0.011 0.055 0.0% 0.008 0.055 0.0% Leg Jabs Landed –0.012 0.022 –0.1% –0.010 0.021 0.0% –0.009 0.021 0.0% Leg Jabs Missed –0.172∗ 0.092 –0.8% –0.183∗∗ 0.091 –0.8% –0.181∗∗ 0.092 –0.8% Leg Power Landed 0.099∗∗∗ 0.026 0.4% 0.098∗∗∗ 0.025 0.4% 0.097∗∗∗ 0.025 0.4% Leg Power Missed 0.117∗ 0.066 0.5% 0.117∗ 0.067 0.5% 0.116∗ 0.067 0.5% Knockdowns 1.262∗∗∗ 0.177 5.6% 1.288∗∗∗ 0.181 5.6% 1.289∗∗∗ 0.180 5.6% Damage 0.431∗∗ 0.220 1.9% 0.454∗∗ 0.220 2.0% 0.439∗∗ 0.220 1.9% Takedown Slams 0.011 0.197 0.1% 0.001 0.200 0.0% –0.002 0.200 0.0% Takedowns Landed (No Slam) –0.065 0.140 –0.3% –0.043 0.140 –0.2% –0.038 0.140 –0.2% Takedowns Missed –0.070 0.053 –0.3% –0.080 0.053 –0.4% –0.082 0.053 –0.4% Submission Chokes Attempted 0.440∗∗∗ 0.150 1.9% 0.442∗∗∗ 0.154 1.9% 0.454∗∗∗ 0.154 2.0% Submission Locks Attempted 0.665∗∗ 0.213 2.9% 0.662∗∗∗ 0.221 2.9% 0.669∗∗∗ 0.214 2.9% Tight Submission 0.364 0.439 1.6% 0.380 0.418 1.7% 0.405 0.420 1.8% Standups –0.036 0.142 –0.2% –0.030 0.142 –0.1% –0.025 0.143 –0.1% Sweeps –0.160 0.226 –0.7% –0.141 0.221 –0.6% –0.125 0.219 –0.5% Clinch Control Time 0.307∗∗ 0.144 1.4% 0.313∗∗ 0.146 1.4% 0.317∗∗ 0.145 1.4% Guard Control Time 0.396∗∗∗ 0.124 1.7% 0.409∗∗∗ 0.126 1.8% 0.416∗∗∗ 0.127 1.8% Half Guard Control Time 0.748∗∗∗ 0.134 3.3% 0.754∗∗∗ 0.130 3.3% 0.756∗∗∗ 0.130 3.3% Side Control Time 0.681∗∗∗ 0.155 3.0% 0.675∗∗∗ 0.154 3.0% 0.670∗∗∗ 0.153 2.9% Mount Control Time 0.824∗∗∗ 0.286 3.6% 0.838∗∗∗ 0.291 3.7% 0.821∗∗∗ 0.290 3.6% Back Control Time 0.911∗∗∗ 0.123 4.0% 0.921∗∗∗ 0.122 4.0% 0.905∗∗∗ 0.122 4.0% Miscellaneous Control Time 0.770∗∗∗ 0.117 3.4% 0.767∗∗∗ 0.112 3.4% 0.759∗∗∗ 0.112 3.3% Constant –6.304∗∗∗ 0.288 –6.844∗∗∗ 0.300 –6.951∗∗∗ 0.328 N 5,976 5,976 5,976 Note: Standard errors are clustered at the bout level. ∗∗∗, ∗∗, and ∗ indicate signiﬁcance at the 1, 5, and 10 percent levels, respectively.

request. McCarthy noted that traveling judges have 441 figured out the scoring criteria, “and no matter where 442 they are or where they go, they’re using that criteria” 443 (Gift, 2018c) 444 One would expect traveling judges to be at the 445 forefront of the sport’s regulatory evolution, no mat- 446 ter the jurisdiction. In addition, they interact with 447 local judges as they travel, potentially transferring 448 knowledge before events begin or at the conclusion 449 when officials typically debrief. A traveling judge 450 is defined as any NV/CA/NY judge who appears 451 in two of the three states during the sample period. 452 Uncorrected10 judges qualifiedAuthor for traveling Proof status, with nine of 453 those 10 judges appearing in the top 11 of rounds 454 Fig. 2. Estimated 10-8 Score probabilities by jurisdiction groups 8 scored as shown in Panel 2 of Table 4. For this 455 in the 2016–2019 sample period. Note: For all UFC events with scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement 8 on the round winner. The 10 traveling judges are Michael Bell, Derek Cleary, Sal D’Amato, Dave Hagen, Junichiro Kamijo, Chris Lee, Ron P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA 9

Fig. 4. Estimated 10-8 Score probabilities in the Nevada jurisdiction for the 2001–2019 sample period. Note: For all Zuffa-owned UFC, WEC, and Strikeforce events with scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement on the round winner.

While not effective until January 1, 2017, the criteria 469 were publicized and passed a vote at the ABC annual 470 meeting in early-August 2016. It is not unreasonable 471 to believe the criteria were debated and discussed 472 among top judges well in advance of the vote. Results 473 suggest traveling judges – likely more in-tune to the 474 regulatory evolution of the sport – had already inter- 475 nalized the new 10-8 scoring criteria in 2016 while 476 other judges had not. Over time, non-traveling judges 477 appear to have been effectively advised and trained 478 on the new criteria, as their probability of scoring a 479 Fig. 3. Estimated 10-8 Score probabilities by judge type groups 10-8 in a round with a unanimous winner increased 480 in the 2016–2019 sample period. Note: For all UFC events with to statistical parity with their traveling judge counter- 481 scorecards tracked by FightMetric and unanimous judge agreement on the round winner. parts. 482 Since eight of the 10 traveling judges worked sub- 483 stantially in Nevada, a final analysis groups Nevada 484 456 second grouping, G equals one when a judge-round judges who worked in the state in the pre- and 485 457 is scored by a traveling judge, regardless of juris- post- periods (2016 and 2017–2019) against all other 486 458 diction, and zero otherwise. As shown in Table 5, judges. Results can be seen in Table 5 and bottom 487 459 there is a significant difference-in-difference effect portion of Fig. 4 and are qualitatively the same as for 488 460 between traveling and all other judges. The nega- traveling judges. 489 461 tive coefficient on the time-group interaction might 462 seem to indicate that traveling judges became less

463 likely to score 10-8 rounds in 2017–2019 than their 5.2. 2001–2019 sample period 490 464 counterparts, but Fig. 3 helps to better interpret the

465 results. For a broader examination of the evolution of 10-8 491 466 As the top portion of Fig. 3 shows, traveling judges scoring in MMA, judging in Nevada can be ana- 492 467 had essentially already liberalized their 10-8 scor- lyzed from 2001–2019. A difference-in-differences 493 468 ing in 2016 before the new criteria went into effect. Uncorrectedapproach cannot Author be utilized, but Proof differences over time 494 can be examined as the 10-8 scoring criteria was liber- 495 McCarthy, Jeff Mullin, Marcos Rosales, and Glenn Trowbridge. alized from overwhelmingly dominant (2001–2012) 496 Ron McCarthy scored the fewest rounds in the sample and appears to winning by a large margin with the Two D’s 497 at position 28. But as John McCarthy’s son, it is reasonable to expect him to be at the leading edge of judging evolution in the (2013–2016) to a new description of large margin 498 sport. and the Three D’s (2017–2019). 10 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA

Table 6 events and potentially-divergent views on the foul 515 Logit regressions of 10-8 Score for the 2001–2019 sample period portions of the Unified Rules is a relevant empiri- 516 Independent Variables Beta S.E. AME cal question for fighters, coaches, fans, promoters, 517 ∗∗ 2013–2016 Period 0.688 0.273 media, and the regulators themselves. 518 ∗∗∗ 2017–2019 Period 1125 0.290 The most recent 10-8 judging criteria change in 519 Head Jabs Landed 0.039 ∗∗∗ 0.008 0.1% MMA was not an unanticipated shock. It was a 520 Head Jabs Missed 0.012 0.015 0.0% Head Power Landed 0.139∗∗ 0.015 0.5% process involving debate and discussion within the 521 Head Power Missed 0.014 0.015 0.0% ABC’s MMA Rules and Regulations Committee, 522 Body Jabs Landed –0.005 0.015 0.0% which may have influenced the findings of this study 523 Body Jabs Missed 0.015 0.131 0.1% ∗∗ as traveling and Nevada judges appear to have been 524 Body Power Landed 0.063 0.025 0.2% Body Power Missed 0.025 0.088 0.1% aware of the trajectory of the debate on 10-8 scores. 525 Leg Jabs Landed 0.000 0.031 0.0% When analyzing the impact of the 2017 criteria 526 Leg Jabs Missed –0.051 0.155 –0.2% change at the jurisdiction level, it appears the prob- 527 Leg Power Landed 0.063 0.039 0.2% Leg Power Missed 0.081 0.106 0.3% ability of 10-8 scoring increased over time. But I do 528 ∗∗∗ Knockdowns 1.443 0.303 4.8% not find a significant effect of the criteria change 529 ∗∗∗ Damage 1.081 0.246 3.6% on the top three jurisdictions relative to all oth- 530 Takedown Slams 0.418 0.272 1.4% ers. One potential reason for this finding is that 531 Takedowns Landed (No Slam) 0.359∗∗ 0.161 1.2% Takedowns Missed 0.016 0.062 0.1% top judges such as Sal D’Amato and Derek Cleary 532 ∗ Submission Chokes Attempted 0.311 0.161 1.0% frequently travel across multiple jurisdictions and 533 Submission Locks Attempted 0.190 0.204 0.6% appeared many times in both jurisdictional groups. 534 Tight Submission 0.570 0.484 1.9% When judges were grouped differently and 535 Standups 0.370∗∗ 0.162 1.2% Sweeps 0.567 0.354 1.9% classified as traveling/non-traveling or Nevada/non- 536 Clinch Control Time –0.026 0.250 –0.1% Nevada judges, regardless of jurisdiction, results 537 Guard Control Time 0.167 0.117 0.6% strongly supported a substantial initial difference 538 Half Guard Control Time 0.146 0.167 0.5% between judging groups in 2016 prior to the crite- 539 Side Control Time 0.684 ∗∗ 0.149 2.3% Mount Control Time 0.270 0.208 0.9% ria change. In each case, judges classified in a group 540 ∗∗∗ Back Control Time 0.535 0.147 1.8% likely closer to the forefront of the sport’s evolu- 541 ∗∗∗ Miscellaneous Control Time 0.772 0.145 2.6% tion (i.e., traveling and Nevada judges) were already 542 Constant –6.750 ∗∗∗ 0.311 scoring 10-8 rounds at more than double the like- 543 N 4,902 lihood of their counterparts. Possible explanations 544 Note: Standard errors are clustered at the bout level. ∗∗∗, ∗∗, and ∗ indicate significance at the 1, 5, and 10 percent levels, respectively. could include self-selecting into more frequent train- 545 ing, training with the top official in the sport, or more 546 frequent attendance at ABC meetings and knowledge 547 499 Table 6 shows that both time effects are positive of the policy considerations of the Rules and Reg- 548 500 and significant while Fig. 4 suggests that each effort ulations Committee. Yet by the 2017–2019 period, 549 501 to liberalize 10-8 scoring was effective in the state all groups of judges had reached statistical parity as 550 502 of Nevada. Controlling for fighters’ in-cage perfor- knowledge of and training on the new 10-8 scoring 551 503 mances, the probability of a unanimous round winner criteria appears to have been successfully executed 552 504 earning a 10-8 score roughly doubled from 4.4 per- across a distributed network of regulators. 553 505 cent in 2001–2012 to 8.7 percent in 2017–2019. One potential caveat to the analyses of this study is 554 a possible selection problem around data availability. 555 Not every athletic commission releases scorecards 556 506 6. Discussion and conclusion upon the conclusion of a fight. Thus, it is possi- 557 ble commissions which choose to release scorecards 558 507 The Unified Rules of MMA have, in practice, may also signal an emphasis on judging priorities 559 508 become divided following two controversial changes within their jurisdiction. While non-traveling and 560 509 to the set of fouls in the sport. A 2019Uncorrected report had “at non-Nevada Author judges appear to Proof have quickly caught 561 510 least 10” different MMA rulesets being used in North up with their counterparts, it is possible this selec- 562 511 America (Raimondi, 2019). Yet changes to the 10-8 tion mechanism could mask a resistance to change in 563 512 scoring criteria were uncontentious. How they have jurisdictions where scorecards are private. 564 513 been implemented across a distributed regulatory net- MMA is not a sport where rules change fre- 565 514 work with marked differences in the frequency of quently. In fact, the word “rules” is a misnomer, better 566 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA 11

567 described as judging criteria and local regulations Gift, P. 2018c. McCarthy clears up confusion surrounding judging 603 604 568 regarding fouls. Over 18 years in the present study, criteria and MMA’s new rules. Bloodyelbow.com. Retrieved February 7, 2020, from: https://www.bloodyelbow.com/ 605 569 there have only been two changes to the criteria for 2018/3/6/17083716/referees-john-mccarthy-jerin-valel- 606 570 scoring 10-8 rounds. And while regulators may dis- judging-criteria-new-old-unified-rules-mma-interview 607 571 agree on certain elements of the Unified Rules, such Gift, P. 2019a. Performance bonuses and effort: Evidence from 608 572 as the applicable set of fouls, the evidence of this fight night awards in mixed martial arts. International Journal 609 573 study suggests they have effectively coordinated and of Financial Studies, 7(1), 13. 610 574 effectuated change with respect to a critical element Gift, P. 2019b. Entertainment design in mixed martial arts: Does 611 612 575 of three- and five-round MMA fights: When to double cage size matter? Journal of Applied Sport Management, 11(2), 11-26. 613 576 a fighter’s reward for winning a round with a score of Gift, P.2020. Moving the needle in MMA: On the marginal revenue 614 577 10-8 instead of 10-9. product of UFC fighters. Journal of Sports Economics, 21(2), 615 176-209. 616

Kelliher, S. 2019. Personal interview. 617 578 Acknowledgments New Jersey State Athletic Control Board. 2001. Mixed Martial 618 Arts Uniﬁed Rules of Conduct. Retrieved February 7, 2020, 619 579 I am grateful for helpful comments and sugges- from: https://www.nj.gov/lps/sacb/docs/martial.html 620

580 tions from conference participants for the Western Raimondi, M. 2017. Click Debate: How will the new judging 621 581 Economic Association and Eastern Economic Asso- criteria affect how MMA bouts are scored? Retrieved Febru- 622 ary 7, 2020, from: https://www.mmafighting.com/2017/1/8/ 623 582 ciation, as well as two anonymous peer reviewers. I 14200886/click-debate-how-will-the-new-judging-criteria- 624 583 would like to thank Rami Genauer of FightMetric for affect-how-mma-bouts-are-scored 625 584 data access and Steven Kelliher of Tapology for the Raimondi, M. 2019. ABC survey: At least 10 different MMA 626 585 personal interview. rulesets being used in North America. Retrieved February 627 7, 2020, from: https://www.mmafighting.com/2019/4/16/ 628 18358920/abc-survey-at-least-10-different-mma-rulesets- 629 being-used-in-north-america 630 586 References Reams, L. & Shapiro, S. 2017. Who’s the main attraction? Star 631 power as a determinant of Ultimate Fighting Championship 632 587 Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports. 2016. pay-per-view demand, European Sport Management Quar- 633 588 Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Retrieved Febru- terly, 17(2), 132-151. 634 589 ary 10, 2020, from: https://www.abcboxing.com/wp-content/ 590 uploads/2020/02/unified-rules-mma-2019.pdf Tainsky, S., Salaga, S., & Santos, C. 2013. Determinants of pay- 635 per-view broadcast viewership in sports: The case of the 636 591 Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports. 2012. Ultimate Fighting Championship, Journal of Sport Manage- 637 592 MMA judging criteria revisions. Retrieved February 10, 2020, ment, 27, 43-58. 638 593 from: https://www.abcboxing.com/Unified Rules of MMA 594 Judging Criteria.pdf USA Today 2008. MMA timeline. USAToday.com. Retrieved June 639 12, 2013, from: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/2008- 640 595 Gift, P. 2018a. Performance evaluation and favoritism: evidence 05-29-mma-timeline N.htm 641 596 from mixed martial arts. Journal of Sports Economics, 19(8), 597 1147-1173. Watanabe, N. 2012. Demand for pay-per-view consumption of 642 Ultimate Fighting Championship events, International Jour- 643 598 Gift, P. 2018b. BE Analytics: Crunching the numbers on the nal of Sport Management and Marketing, 11, 225-238. 644 599 first full year of new 10-8 scoring. Bloodyelbow.com. 600 Retrieved February 7, 2020, from: https://www.bloodyelbow. Watanabe, N. 2015. Sources of direct demand: An examination 645 601 com/2018/2/1/16958692/be-analytics-crunching-numbers- of demand for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Interna- 646 602 2017-10-8-judging-scoring-criteria-ufc-mma-editorial tional Journal of Sport Finance, 10, 26-41. 647

Uncorrected Author Proof 12 P. Gift / The impact of new judging criteria on 10-8 scores in MMA

648 Appendix A a direct result of negative impact. When a fighter is 690 hurt with strikes, showing a lack of control or ability, 691 Excerpt of “MMA Judging Criteria/Scoring- these can be defining moments in the fight. If a judge 692 Approved August 2, 2016” sees that a fighter has been significantly damaged in 693 (Effective January 1, 2017; Emphasis and the round the judge should CONSIDER the score of 694 capitalization in original) 10–8. 695

649 10–8 Round

Impact 696 650 A 10 – 8 Round in MMA is where one fighter 651 wins the round by a large margin A judge shall assess if a fighter impacts their oppo- 697 nent significantly in the round, even though they 698 652 A 10 – 8 round in MMA is not the most common may not have dominated the action. Impact includes 699 653 score a judge will render, but it is absolutely essential visible evidence such as swelling and lacerations. 700 654 to the evolution of the sport and the fairness to the Impact shall also be assessed when a fighter’s actions, 701 655 fighters that judges understand and effectively utilize using striking and/or grappling, lead to a diminish- 702 656 the score of 10 – 8. A score of 10 – 8 does not require ing of their opponents’ energy, confidence, abilities 703 657 a fighter to dominate their opponent for 5 minutes and spirit. All of these come as a direct result of 704 658 of a round. The score of 10–8isutilized by the impact. When a fighter is impacted with strikes, by 705 659 judge when the judge sees verifiable actions on the lack of control and/or ability, this can create defin- 706 660 part of either fighter. Judges shall ALWAYS give a ing moments in the round and shall be assessed with 707 661 score of 10 – 8 when the judge has established that great value. 708 662 one fighter has dominated the action of the round, 663 had duration of the domination and also impacted 664 their opponent with either effective strikes or effec- Dominance 709 665 tive grappling maneuvers that have diminished the 666 abilities of their opponent. As MMA is an offensive based sport, dominance 710 667 Judges must CONSIDER giving the score of 10 of a round can be seen in striking when the los- 711 668 – 8 when a fighter shows dominance in the round ing fighter is forced to continually defend, with no 712 669 even though no impactful scoring against the oppo- counters or reaction taken when openings present 713 670 nent was achieved. MMA is an offensive based sport. themselves. Dominance in the grappling phase can be 714 671 No scoring is given for defensive maneuvers. Using seen by fighters taking dominant positions in the fight 715 672 smart, tactically sound defensive maneuvers allows and utilizing those positions to attempt fight ending 716 673 the fighter to stay in the fight and to be competitive. submissions or attacks. Merely holding a dominant 717 674 Dominance of a round can be seen in striking when position(s) shall not be a primary factor in assessing 718 675 the losing fighter continually attempts to defend, with dominance. What the fighter does with those posi- 719 676 no counters or reaction taken when openings present tions is what must be assessed. 720 677 themselves. Dominance in the grappling phase can 678 be seen by fighters taking DOMINANT POSITIONS 679 in the fight and utilizing those positions to attempt 680 fight ending submissions or attacks. If a fighter has Duration 721 681 little to no offensive output during a 5 minute round, it 682 should be normal for the judge to consider awarding Duration is defined by the time spent by one 722 683 the losing fighter 8 points instead of 9. fighter effectively attacking, controlling and impact- 723 684 Judges must CONSIDER giving the score of 10 ing their opponent; while the opponent offers little 724 685 – 8 when a fighter IMPACTS their opponent signifi- to no offensive output. A judge shall assess duration 725 686 cantly in a round even though they doUncorrected not dominate by recognizing Author the relative time Proof in a round when one 726 687 the action. Effectiveness in striking or grappling fighter takes and maintains full control of the effec- 727 688 which leads to a diminishing of a fighter’s energy, tive offense. This can be assessed both standing and 728 689 confidence, abilities and spirit. All of these come as grounded. 729