Saffioti distances herself from bare-knuckle fighting bout
The Combat Sports Commission is mulling a decision to allow the world's biggest bare-knuckle boxing organisation, partially owned by UFC fighter Connor McGregor, to stage a major fight in Perth next month.
In March, Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship founder David Feldman announced on social media his intention to bring a boxing event to Perth on either July 12 or 19.
WA's boxing regulations were amended by former Sport Minister David Templeman in February to recognise the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship as a sanctioning body, paving the way for the body to stage a contest in the state.
Saffioti took over the sport portfolio after the March election.
Bare-knuckle boxing is as the name suggests, and has been panned by health groups, including the Australian Medical Association of WA, which describes it as 'blood sport'.
On Monday Sport Minister Rita Saffioti said the state's Combat Sport Commission was still considering the event.
When questioned why the government would allow such a brutal form of combat sport in WA Saffioti distanced herself from the decision to change boxing rules and said no government funding was going to the event.
'There is discussion about holding an event here. It needs to be signed off by the Combat Sports Commission, and it's in front of the Combat Sports Commission at the moment, but tourism is not providing any funding to it,' she said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
16 hours ago
- Perth Now
UFC champ Conor McGregor set to visit Perth for wild event
Former UFC champion Conor McGregor is expected to visit Perth when the proposed Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship takes over RAC Arena in July. It comes as the two main fights on the July 19 card were announced by BKFC across social media on Wednesday. WA Combat Sport's Commission is due to make a final decision on whether the event will go ahead this week, while Sports Minister Rita Saffioti conceded she would not have the event pulled if the commission approves it. Australian athlete Alex 'Godly Strong' Simon, who has openly talked about spending time in prison as a young man, is taking on former UFC fighter turned BKFC champion 'Big' Ben Rothwell for the proposed main fight. The pair will fight for the inaugural BKFC super heavyweight title — a new weight class for athletes above 120kg. Rothwell, the current heavyweight BKFC champion and MMA veteran, could walk away with two belts if he defeats the Australian. Alex Simon, when speaking to the Secrets of The Underworld Podcast in May, said his weight had reached a maximum of 181kg when pursuing a career in powerlifting after a short stint in prison as a young man. The Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship is set to make its Australian debut in Perth on July 19. Credit: Supplied 'Pretty much we robbed a drug dealer, but it was like a home invasion and it was armed,' the Sydneysider told the podcast. After being released, Simon undertook a career in powerlifting, breaking Australian strongman records at the age of 24. He has since turned his attention to combat sports and could fight on his biggest stage yet at RAC Arena if all goes ahead. Fighting on the co-main event is Tasmanian-born athlete 'Rowdy' Bec Rawlings, who became the first ever BKFC female champion and a well-respected voice in the ongoing fight against domestic violence abusers. She will face French-Canadian boxer Jade Masson-Wong. The female athletes have a collective Instagram following of more than 300,000 people. They both also work as OnlyFans content creators, offering both fight-related and adult-only content. The promotional poster also said New Zealand-born heavyweight Haze 'The Huntsman' Hepi will appear. It is unknown how many bouts will be on the July card. Both the Australian Medical Association and the opposition have slammed the Labor Government ahead of the proposed event. In a letter to the Premier, Ms Saffioti and other Ministers, AMA WA President Michael Page expressed 'profound concern' and said the lack of protective gear made bare knuckle boxing worse. RAC Arena — which is owned and operated by government statutory authority Venues West — advertised ticket sales across social media and on their website on Wednesday despite the event being formally approved. BKFC President David Feldman further quashed any suggestion the event was being cancelled by labelling the July 19 event as the 'beginning of a new era for combat sports in Australia.'. 'Australia has long been on our radar,' he said. 'The energy, the fans, and the venue are all perfect for showcasing BKFC.' The WA Combat sports commission told The West Australian the event was still under consideration on Wednesday. Tickets currently available on Ticketek for the RAC Arena event are starting at $151 with the next available tier at $302. The highest available tickets — classed as 'The Notorious Access' — are going for an eye-watering $6000.
The Advertiser
18 hours ago
- The Advertiser
UFC cookie monster out to back up 19-second masterclass
Quillan Salkilld needed just 19 seconds to taste victory in his UFC debut, now he hopes there will be another memorable ending and lots of celebratory cookies this weekend. Salkilld announced himself as a star of the future in February when he knocked down Anshul Jubli with a vicious right in the opening seconds of their UFC 312 lightweight showdown in Sydney. The performance earned Salkilld a $50,000 fight-of-the-night bonus, but it also left the West Australian with a problem. How can he ever top that stunning display? Fans are about to find out when Salkilld (8-1) takes on Yanal Ashmouz at UFC 316 in New Jersey this weekend. "It was like a fairytale ending," Salkilld said of his 19-second debut. "The way it ended like that, getting the performance of the night bonus in my home country, it couldn't have gone any better. "I'm just trying to figure out how I'm going to top that, which is going to be pretty bloody hard." Salkilld has been training intensely while giving up his favourite foods - with cookies being on top of the banned list. "Cookies mate, that gets me," Salkilld said. "I eat generally clean, but I've got a bit sweet tooth. I've just got to stay away from that in fight camp. For me that's depressing. "I'm in good nick right now. Staying away from the chocolates, the cookies, the cake. "It's been a good six weeks. I'm shredded right now, so it's worth it." So how does he plan to celebrate if he defeats Ashmouz to make it a perfect 2-0 start to his UFC career? "By just eating like a pig. Smoking a couple of cigars and eating all the cookies I want," he said with a laugh. The headline act for UFC 316 will be the bout between bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili and No.1 challenger Sean O'Malley. The co-main event will see women's bantamweight champion Julianna Pena up against two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison. Salkilld was born in Pinjarra, 80km south of Perth. But the 25-year-old spent most of his childhood in the picturesque resort town of Broome, a high-profile tourist destination in the Kimberley region that is a 1600km flight north from Perth. The emergence of Salkilld continues a factory line of UFC fighters from WA, which includes new welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena. Quillan Salkilld needed just 19 seconds to taste victory in his UFC debut, now he hopes there will be another memorable ending and lots of celebratory cookies this weekend. Salkilld announced himself as a star of the future in February when he knocked down Anshul Jubli with a vicious right in the opening seconds of their UFC 312 lightweight showdown in Sydney. The performance earned Salkilld a $50,000 fight-of-the-night bonus, but it also left the West Australian with a problem. How can he ever top that stunning display? Fans are about to find out when Salkilld (8-1) takes on Yanal Ashmouz at UFC 316 in New Jersey this weekend. "It was like a fairytale ending," Salkilld said of his 19-second debut. "The way it ended like that, getting the performance of the night bonus in my home country, it couldn't have gone any better. "I'm just trying to figure out how I'm going to top that, which is going to be pretty bloody hard." Salkilld has been training intensely while giving up his favourite foods - with cookies being on top of the banned list. "Cookies mate, that gets me," Salkilld said. "I eat generally clean, but I've got a bit sweet tooth. I've just got to stay away from that in fight camp. For me that's depressing. "I'm in good nick right now. Staying away from the chocolates, the cookies, the cake. "It's been a good six weeks. I'm shredded right now, so it's worth it." So how does he plan to celebrate if he defeats Ashmouz to make it a perfect 2-0 start to his UFC career? "By just eating like a pig. Smoking a couple of cigars and eating all the cookies I want," he said with a laugh. The headline act for UFC 316 will be the bout between bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili and No.1 challenger Sean O'Malley. The co-main event will see women's bantamweight champion Julianna Pena up against two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison. Salkilld was born in Pinjarra, 80km south of Perth. But the 25-year-old spent most of his childhood in the picturesque resort town of Broome, a high-profile tourist destination in the Kimberley region that is a 1600km flight north from Perth. The emergence of Salkilld continues a factory line of UFC fighters from WA, which includes new welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena. Quillan Salkilld needed just 19 seconds to taste victory in his UFC debut, now he hopes there will be another memorable ending and lots of celebratory cookies this weekend. Salkilld announced himself as a star of the future in February when he knocked down Anshul Jubli with a vicious right in the opening seconds of their UFC 312 lightweight showdown in Sydney. The performance earned Salkilld a $50,000 fight-of-the-night bonus, but it also left the West Australian with a problem. How can he ever top that stunning display? Fans are about to find out when Salkilld (8-1) takes on Yanal Ashmouz at UFC 316 in New Jersey this weekend. "It was like a fairytale ending," Salkilld said of his 19-second debut. "The way it ended like that, getting the performance of the night bonus in my home country, it couldn't have gone any better. "I'm just trying to figure out how I'm going to top that, which is going to be pretty bloody hard." Salkilld has been training intensely while giving up his favourite foods - with cookies being on top of the banned list. "Cookies mate, that gets me," Salkilld said. "I eat generally clean, but I've got a bit sweet tooth. I've just got to stay away from that in fight camp. For me that's depressing. "I'm in good nick right now. Staying away from the chocolates, the cookies, the cake. "It's been a good six weeks. I'm shredded right now, so it's worth it." So how does he plan to celebrate if he defeats Ashmouz to make it a perfect 2-0 start to his UFC career? "By just eating like a pig. Smoking a couple of cigars and eating all the cookies I want," he said with a laugh. The headline act for UFC 316 will be the bout between bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili and No.1 challenger Sean O'Malley. The co-main event will see women's bantamweight champion Julianna Pena up against two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison. Salkilld was born in Pinjarra, 80km south of Perth. But the 25-year-old spent most of his childhood in the picturesque resort town of Broome, a high-profile tourist destination in the Kimberley region that is a 1600km flight north from Perth. The emergence of Salkilld continues a factory line of UFC fighters from WA, which includes new welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena.
West Australian
19 hours ago
- West Australian
UFC cookie monster out to back up 19-second masterclass
Quillan Salkilld needed just 19 seconds to taste victory in his UFC debut, now he hopes there will be another memorable ending and lots of celebratory cookies this weekend. Salkilld announced himself as a star of the future in February when he knocked down Anshul Jubli with a vicious right in the opening seconds of their UFC 312 lightweight showdown in Sydney. The performance earned Salkilld a $50,000 fight-of-the-night bonus, but it also left the West Australian with a problem. How can he ever top that stunning display? Fans are about to find out when Salkilld (8-1) takes on Yanal Ashmouz at UFC 316 in New Jersey this weekend. "It was like a fairytale ending," Salkilld said of his 19-second debut. "The way it ended like that, getting the performance of the night bonus in my home country, it couldn't have gone any better. "I'm just trying to figure out how I'm going to top that, which is going to be pretty bloody hard." Salkilld has been training intensely while giving up his favourite foods - with cookies being on top of the banned list. "Cookies mate, that gets me," Salkilld said. "I eat generally clean, but I've got a bit sweet tooth. I've just got to stay away from that in fight camp. For me that's depressing. "I'm in good nick right now. Staying away from the chocolates, the cookies, the cake. "It's been a good six weeks. I'm shredded right now, so it's worth it." So how does he plan to celebrate if he defeats Ashmouz to make it a perfect 2-0 start to his UFC career? "By just eating like a pig. Smoking a couple of cigars and eating all the cookies I want," he said with a laugh. The headline act for UFC 316 will be the bout between bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili and No.1 challenger Sean O'Malley. The co-main event will see women's bantamweight champion Julianna Pena up against two-time Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison. Salkilld was born in Pinjarra, 80km south of Perth. But the 25-year-old spent most of his childhood in the picturesque resort town of Broome, a high-profile tourist destination in the Kimberley region that is a 1600km flight north from Perth. The emergence of Salkilld continues a factory line of UFC fighters from WA, which includes new welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena.
