Rose Namajunas will fight with the new unified MMA rules on Saturday. Photo via YouTube
The new rule changes that were approved by the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combat Sports (ABC) this past summer will be used for the first time in the UFC at this Saturday’s upcoming event in Edmonton, Canada.
The UFC card is headlined by a flyweight bout between Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi and features a bunch of good matchups. Learn more about the new unified MMA rules below.
The new unified MMA rules:
Kneeing and/or Kicking the head of a grounded opponent: A fighter shall be considered grounded and may not be legally kneed or kicked to the head when any part of their body other than their hands or feet is in contact with the canvas (ground). The changes to the rule were made to clear up the gray areas as to when it’s fair for an athlete to be struck or not.
Removal of the downward pointing elbow strike (12 to 6) as a foul: For a long time, the rule has been one of the most controversial in MMA, but experts have lately claimed the downward pointing elbow strike won’t inflict more damage than other elbow strikes. The strike will be allowed for the first time since the Unified Rules were implemented back in 2001.
UFC Edmonton Fight Card
Main card
Flyweight bout: Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi
Women’s flyweight bout: Erin Blanchfield vs. Rose Namajunas
Heavyweight bout: Derrick Lewis vs. Jhonata Diniz
Light heavyweight bout: Caio Machado vs. Brendson Ribeiro
Middleweight bout: Marc-André Barriault vs. Dustin Stoltzfus
Welterweight bout: Mike Malott vs. Trevin Giles
Preliminary card
Bantamweight bout: Aiemann Zahabi vs. Pedro Munhoz
Women’s flyweight bout: Ariane da Silva vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
Bantamweight bout: Charles Jourdain vs. Victor Henry
Featherweight bout: Jack Shore vs. Youssef Zalal
Heavyweight bout: Alexander Romanov vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
Bantamweight bout: Serhiy Sidey vs. Garrett Armfield
Bantamweight bout: Chad Anheliger vs. Cody Gibson
Women’s flyweight bout: Jamey-Lyn Horth vs. Ivana Petrovic