Translated from the original Spanish language interview by Benyair Ulaje at El Rocktágono Live: http://elrocktagono.com/mma/el-objetivo-es-hacer-de-las-mma-un-deporte-olimpico-raul-senk-presidente-de-la-famm/ The Federation of Mixed Martial Arts, said Raúl Salas Navarro, better known as Raúl Senk, is an official body recognized by both international and national federations that regulate the sport of mixed martial arts. In an exclusive interview with El Rocktágono Live, the president of the FAMM (the Mexican Federation of Mixed Martial Arts) said that the discipline is already established as an sport in itself with its own regulations and its own vision. “The FAMM is the national body that regulates the sport in Mexico under the IMMAF that recently merged with the World Mixed Martial Arts Association, and we are working to give certainty and legacy to the sport. In the future, the goal is to make MMA an Olympic sport. It is one of the most ambitious objectives for the future of our sport, “said Salas Navarro. He also said that the FAMM has been recognized by the National Sports Commission in Mexico for two years as well as by state institutes: CURRENTLY WE HAVE 22 REGULATED AND REGISTERED STATES. SINCE THE NATIONAL FEDERATION ATTAINED ITS REGISTRATION NUMBER JUST TWO YEARS AGO, WE HAVE HAD LITTLE TIME. HOWEVER WE HAVE ACHIEVED SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS. TODAY WE HOLD THE LARGEST AMATEUR [MMA] TOURNAMENT IN THE WORLD, WHICH IS RECOGNISED EVEN BY THE UFC. Raúl Senk stated that news is shortly to be released about the federation’s receipt of an award as a federation of excellence for its stringent processes: “Also recently we attended the World Championships of MMA in the Arab Emirates and all without a budget – that is, we do not have any sort of funding and achieved this purely through community initiative”. Senk indicated that the support they receive from CONADE (Mexico’s National Commission for Physical Culture and Sport) is structural, since the FAMM can make use of its sports facilities for the realization of tournaments and the development of its athletes. “We have achieved athletes of the calibre of Teco Quinónez, Brandon Moreno and others who were able to train at the CNAR, which is a high performance centre for Mexican athletes.” On how they develop and carry out their tournaments, Senk said that they are regulated under the regulations given by the International Federation [for amateurs], and for professional fights under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, as used by the UFC and 95% of professional promoters around the world. WE HAVE THE CAPACITY TO REGULATE PROFESSIONAL AND AMATEUR MMA EVENTS. WE HAVE IMPORTANT MEETINGS WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING IN COMMISSIONS, SO THAT WE CAN EDUCATE THOSE WITH COMMISSIONING EXPERIENCE IN THE REGULATIONS [OF MMA], WHERE THEY LACK CAPACITY. WE DO THIS BY INVITING PEOPLE TO TRAIN WITH US WITHOUT ANY PRESSURE It should be noted that the FAMM holds municipal, state and regional tournaments and as a cherry on the cake. Each year it develops a national tournament and a few months ago the second edition of this competition was held, to a resounding success as it broke participation records with more than a thousand athletes across women’s and men’s categories.]]>
The goal is to make MMA an Olympic Sport, says Mexican MMA President
