Instant Replay to return to New Jersey MMA this Saturday
Instant replay review capabilities will return to MMA competition this Saturday in Atlantic City, NJ during the Cage Fury Fighting Championships (CFFC) 43 card. Head of the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board Larry Hazzard instituted instant replay review capabilities during fights, years ago.
After his departure in 2007, however, New Jersey ceased with the practice. Now that Hazzard is back in the saddle in New Jersey, he’s brought back instant replay review with him for boxing and MMA contests.
“These are sports that are certainly subject from time to time, to errors, mainly by referees,” Hazzard told Cagewriter.
“These types of errors can have an impact on a bout. I think that unless necessary corrections are made, at the time, it’s just unfair to the fighters. These are individual sports, and the fighters don’t often get a second chance at big opportunities. After a kid works his or her butt off for several years, to finally reach that upper echelon where he or she are making good pay days, it’s unfair to them not to have the ability to correct costly official mistakes.
“I think that with instant replay, we will be able to make these corrections, if necessary, on the spot…It’s the fairest way to go in the 21st century.”
The first MMA card to have those capabilities under the re-institution will be the CFFC in Atlantic City, at the Borgata. The card will air live via pay per view on Go Fight Live, cable through InDemand, and through the promotion’s website.
The presence of television cameras is crucial to the use of instant replay review, because Hazzard says that the cost of the tool will be paid for by promotions, like the CFFC.
“This will mainly be used in pro fights, fights that are big enough to be televised,” Hazzard explained.
“Or, it’s going to happen if a promoter requests and pays for the cameras and monitors. The cost of this is going to be on the promoter. This is in it’s infant stages, and we’ll see how it goes as time goes on, but right now it will be in the events that want it.”
The decision to apply instant replay review capabilities once more on this Saturday’s particular Atlantic City event came just weeks ago. CFFC CEO Rob Haydak says the topic came up in conversation between he and New Jersey Athletic Control Board Counsel Nick Lembo a couple weeks ago, and the state made its decision soon after.
Welterweight champion Jonavin Webb (7-0) will defend his title in the main event of CFFC 43 against Lyman Good (16-3), this Saturday, and was told of the development only this week. “I think I found out this week,” he told Yahoo! Sports.
“I think it’s a good thing, for certain.”
Webb, however, said that he was not sure when, exactly, instant replay review could occur during fights, or how the whole process is supposed to occur. “I don’t really know, to be honest,” he said.
“I’m more concerned with getting punched in the head than that, though. I’m not too worried.”
How, exactly, instant replay review would or will work during fights seems to be a relative unknown to state regulators as well. Hazzard admitted that the program is still in development.
“It’s an additional tool for me, or a designate of mine to use during fights,” he said.
“I’m sure that there are certain fouls, or certain situations where it could help. Like, whether a fighter tapped out or did not tap out. These are things where, if a ref makes a mistake, we can correct it.”
Hazard says that he, or a designee will be watching fights on monitors and if they believe “conclusively” that a referee has made a mistake through the use of instant replay, they will have the ability to change or reverse a call. “It will have to be done in between rounds,” he detailed.
Hazard says that instant replay review will not be used for decisions that fighters may appeal and get a hearing on. “It has to be done right there, in the moment,” he explained.
“If there’s anything that has the capability to impact a final decision, we can review and change upon review. It has to be conclusive, though. We are not going to be nit-picking referee calls. We are not going to have debates on issues. It has to be something we’re sure of. And, it’s not something we’re looking forward to using. We hope we never have to. But, it is a safe guard for the fighters’ sake.”
With a loosely-defined set of circumstances where decisions can be reversed, and a very small window of time to not just review but put in effect a referee decision reversal (in between rounds, according to Hazzard), it would seem that New Jersey has a great deal of planning and process-construction yet to do with regards to instant replay review capabilities. However, the decision to even re-open the door to correcting perceived mistakes made during fights is encouraging, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out, and if other major states follow New Jersey’s lead.
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