The state that brought us Al Capone passed a bill (House Bill 1490) in June banning boxing and full-contact martial arts contests that are not explicitly approved “by the Department” or as it is commonly known “by the Man”.

The event organizers have to demonstrate that they conform to a strict set of rules defined by the government including the requirement that they pay %3 on the first $500,000 gross income and %4 on the rest.

This might not be a huge deal for large events, but for the smaller guys, it’s a major problem. One example is the IBJJF Chicago Open that was scheduled for August 21st and that I was planning to attend with several other people. The event is now on hold until further notice.

Will a respected IBJJF organization be willing to operate in a state that wants it to follow a complicated bureaucratic process in order to host an event that most other states give it the full freedom to do without it?

Chicago is the city where I grew up, in that I went from middle school to college there, and it saddens me to see it give so little love to those that fight. Al Capone would be sorely disappointed.