Proposed California bill would create pension for MMA fighters

Politicians in California are hoping to give back to retired fighters.

A proposal in the California Legislature would set up a pension fund for former MMA fighters who have a certain number of fights in the state, bill sponsor Assemblymember Matt Haney (D-San Francisco) told ESPN.

The legislation was introduced in state Assembly on Feb. 15 and Haney said he hopes it will pass into a law this year. It could be heard on the Assembly floor as early as March 18.

A pension fund for retired boxers in California already exists, the only such fund of its kind in the U.S. No states currently provide a pension fund for MMA fighters, who don't have the kind of post-career protections athletes in other major sports get from unions or players associations.

«We know that this is an incredibly popular sport,» Haney said. «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 is being supported by the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) and several retired MMA athletes, including UFC Hall of Famer and women's MMA pioneer 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 kind 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."

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