Bouctouche gearing up for mixed martial arts event

Bouctouche will become the first town in New Brunswick to host a sanctioned mixed martial arts event this weekend.

Changes in the law and the establishment of a New Brunswick Combat Sport Commission are now allowing the sport.

Stephen Williams, promoter of the War on the Shore event being held Saturday night at the Forum, hopes this is just the beginning.

He believes MMA is gaining momentum because of the popularity of Ultimate Fighting Championship.

The sport also attracts all walks of life, said Williams, who is the co-owner of Extreme Cage Rage.

If all goes well, he'd like see more events across the province, he said.

So far, ticket sales are going well, said Williams. He says it will be one of the first live and legal shows outside of Moncton.

Reaction among the local residents approached by CBC News on Friday appears to be mixed.

"Well, I'm not impressed with martial arts, OK? I mean there's a place for martial arts and I don't think it's in Bouctouche," said Henry Saulnier.

"I don't know, I think it's kind of scary people fight for fun," said Kayla LeBlanc. "I wouldn't do it."

But Suzanne Thibeau says she has "no issues" with MMA. "It's pretty much controlled and they have to see a doctor after and all that, so it's like any other sport," she said.

Many rules

Williams says two doctors and an ambulance will be on site. There will also be high-qualified referees and judges," he said.

"Yeah, it's a lot of work as far as being organized for the safety of the fighters."

There are also many strict rules to follow, said Williams.

"For the amateur level, there's bigger gloves than what you have in the UFC — it's seven-ounce gloves," he said.

"They have no knees, no elbows to the head standing, and no knees or elbows at all on the ground, and very limited striking on the ground. For the pros, it's exactly what you see in UFC, cause it's international rules, right?"

There will be a total of eight matches, said Williams.

"It's like we're starting all over again," he said. "In the last two years, fighters were just tired, or they just stopped training cause they had nothing to train for. And fortunately now, we started the shows again and these guys [aren't] ready," he said.

"So ... to get the people ready in time for the show is a big job for us and we started off with almost 16 matches and we're down to eight."

A championship belt will be awarded Saturday night.