The UFC made a comeback to Atlantic City, New Jersey over the weekend, hosting a Fight Night event at the Boardwalk Hall. New Jersey has significant ties to MMA and the UFC’s history.
Big John McCarthy and Josh “The Punk” Thomson offer their response to Brenden Fitzgerald’s remarks about UFC origins during the UFC Atlantic City event, as seen in a clip from Weighing In.
Big John McCarthy Exposes Dana White and UFC’s False Claims
During a recent episode of the Weighing In podcast, “Big” John McCarthy and Josh Thomson discussed the events in Atlantic City and addressed a statement made by UFC commentator Brendan Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald claimed that when Dana White was appointed president of the UFC by the Fertitta brothers in the early 2000s, MMA was only regulated in New Jersey. However, McCarthy, a prominent figure in MMA refereeing, offered his perspective on the matter.
“Really?! What a bunch of horse** that line is. How many times do you see people talking about commentary and, ‘Hey, do your homework,’ and stuff like that, and it’s like, if you’re going to put that out, you better make sure it’s right.”
“No, there was quite a few states that regulated MMA, okay. The first state that regulated MMA, if you’re going to really look at it, was Mississippi. Billy Lyons was the commissioner of Mississippi, he’s the first one that ever issued me a license as someone who worked for the state athletic commission, okay. How about Iowa was another. New Jersey was done before the Fertittas were ever owners of the UFC.”
In the podcast episode, the experienced official, now employed by the PFL, felt compelled to rectify the statement made during the broadcast. He clarified that during the era when the Fertitta brothers owned the UFC, New Jersey was not the inaugural nor sole state to regulate MMA.
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McCarthy shared the clip on his social media accounts accompanied by a caption urging for fact-checking. He emphasized the importance of truth.
