Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich recently signed into law a bill that sanctions the sport of mixed martial arts in the Prairie State, according to the Chicago Sun -Times.
That means that the organization can begin to schedule events for "The Windy City," Chicago. In fact, UFC Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, Marc Ratner, is quoted in the article that sometime in 2008 is a possibility.
Here's a snip:
''We're delighted. We want to come to Illinois very badly. They have mixed-martial-arts events now, but they're not properly regulated. That's why we've waited, to go through the state commission. We've already been in contact with the United Center and Allstate Arena.... Our goal is to get there in '08."
According to the article, the earliest the UFC can stage an event would be mid- to-late 2008. However, if an amendment is passed beforehand the law could be effective on the first of the year.
Several fighters, including former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski, as well as Terry Martin, Stephan Bonnar and others have Chicago roots.
The UFC would more than likely put together a card that includes these local fighters, as well as those from the surrounding area.
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