New York must be more of an apple-pie kind of state.

Everyone wants a piece of the pie.  Well, everyone but the state of New York, it seems. For quite some time now, Zuffa and the UFC have been tickling the balls of legislators in New York in hopes of getting them to begin to regulate the sport of Mixed Martial arts. On November 10th, the UFC released the results of a study they had commisioned which projected that a UFC event in New York City (ie. Madison Square Garden) would bring in mad amounts of green and produce a ‘net new’ economic impact of $11.5 million dollars.  The study also projects that an event would generate near a million dollars in combined tax revenue for both New York City and the State of New York.  Translated: An MMA event in New York would make you a shit-ton of money. No Shit.

Could this be a possibility in the near future?

The prospect of a Mixed Martial Arts event in The Garden can seem f*cking bizzare-o to even the most casual of MMA-fan, a sport that has been long been criticized is now poised to step onto the largest stage. However, New York City isn’t the only target for the UFC. They also have the city of Buffalo in their scopes as well, as their study also projects that an event in “Buffalo would generate $1.7 million in direct event spending, $1.4 million in visitor spending, and $2.1 million in indirect/induced benefits.”  The release of this study is quite strategic as yesterday, November 11th, there was a “informational hearing” in Manhattan for “legislators, regulators and promoters” according to Sherdog.  While we don’t really understand why New York is dragging their feet on this one (unless giving the UFC blue balls is their intention), we just hope New York can come to their senses some time soon; hopefully yesterday’s meeting will be one step forward. In the mean time, anyone want some pie?