Conor McGregor may help with the ongoing bid to extend The Muhammad Ali Reform Boxing Act (Ali Act) to mixed martial arts, per Congressman Markwayne Mullin.
Mullin told Reuters that UFC lightweight champion McGregor, who lost to Floyd Mayweather in a high-profile boxing match last month, has plans to speak at the United States Congress in hopes of the bill finally passing.
“We have been told by his team that (McGregor) was going to come to the (Capitol) Hill to talk about this,” Mullin said.
Mullin, a former MMA fighter, is the sponsor of the Ali Act Extension to MMA and introduced the campaign to Congress in 2016. The bill has still not been passed — and it’s not clear whether it ever will be — but Mullin wants another hearing before the end of 2017, per Reuters.
Created in 2000 for boxing, The Ali Act protects boxers’ rights and would change the entire MMA landscape should it be introduced to the sport. The Ali Act would not allow MMA organizations to use “coercive contracts” and would introduce an independent rankings system, among many other things.