By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

You need only look at some of the recent headlines to see both the place for and the urgency of the "no rules combat enforcement act of 2005" the legislature has sent Gov. Linda Lingle to sign into law.

Between a 14-year-old boy being tossed into the ring with a seasoned 32-year-old at Dole Cannery ballroom and reports of a bare-knuckle, no-holds-barred gym brawl in Waimanalo, this piece of legislation is timely, if not overdue.

Senate Bill 768 sets some minimum standards for so-called mixed martial arts competition, including requiring a licensed physician at ringside, established rules and an experienced referee in the ring. Fighters who have been medically disqualified in other jurisdictions would not be permitted to compete and promoters would have to provide the state's Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs with unedited video of the matches. Moreover, it would establish fines of up to $10,000 for violations.

Together, these are a promising first step toward regulating the burgeoning and lucrative field of mixed martial arts and ultimate fighting. They are just that, though, a beginning. By themselves, they aren't nearly enough. But, for the moment at least, they are better than what is currently in place, which has been very little.

Mixed martial arts is booming as the sellout crowd at Blaisdell Arena for Saturday night's "Rumble on the Rock" and past "Super Brawls" have illustrated. With very limited regulation, the state, as well as competitors and fans, have had to trust in the responsibility and safeguards put in place by promoters. In some cases, it has been, as some would say, like letting the "wolf guard the chicken coop."

While some have taken their obligations seriously, others clearly haven't and it is a situation that can invite serious injury or death.

Ideally, the legislature will revisit the issue and put some sharper teeth into law. For example, it should give a commission oversight, and establish uniform rules to protect competitors and fans. It should demand pre-fight physicals and make mandatory post-fight examinations for any competitor that suffers a knockout. It needs to confirm records and contracts.

As Super Brawl promoter T. Jay Thompson puts it, "regulate us, please. Put us all under the same microscope."

A good place to look for a model, as the state has begun to do, is the Nevada State Athletic Commission, which has been in the forefront nationally for several years. No longer just a boxing commission, Nevada regulates "all contests and exhibitions of unarmed combat."

For now, Senate Bill 768 is a good start and worthy of the governor's signature. But, like a true combination of punches, it needs to be followed up with something stronger.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.