The UFC was on the verge of its demise with no rules, no audience, no cable access and U.S. Senators calling for its break-up. It was time to step back and re-evaluate the situation. People are interested in the idea of MMA, but not in seeing the type of fight that has 2 fighters fighting in pools of their own blood. The first step was to add protective rules. Weight classes were introduced – heavy weights, middleweights and lightweights. The number of unacceptable striking areas on the body were increased to include the back of the neck, pressure points areas and the back of the head. Protective gloves were mandatory and there were now 5-minute rounds, all of which helped the UFC legitimately begin calling itself a sport, rather than an underground cage fight.
After the organization cleaned up the fights, it was time to start getting officially recognized by fighting associations. The improved image played well with the athletic commissions, as did the petitions for sanctioning made by other clean MMA organizations. It wasnt until September 30th of 2000 that the International Fighting Championships hosted the first MMA sanctioned event in New Jersey. 2 months...