MMA Fan Launches Solo Lobbying Campaign Against TKO Boxing Bill

An MMA fan from Texas has turned his frustration with combat sports consolidation into a one-man lobbying operation targeting legislators and political campaigns across the country.

Mike Fox, who trains recreationally and has followed mixed martial arts since The Ultimate Fighter aired on Spike, is pushing candidates to reject TKO's Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act while advocating for stronger antitrust enforcement and fighter protections, according to an interview published by The MMA Draw. Fox developed a full policy document, media contact list with over 50 names, and outreach strategy after attending a town hall for a congressional candidate in his district who expressed interest in the issue.

Policy Push Targets Multiple Campaigns

Fox told The MMA Draw he reaches out directly to campaign staff through internal communication channels and offers ready-made policy language to make adoption as simple as possible. "Every campaign I've contacted about this has been extremely positive and supportive," he said. "The only challenge is converting that initial enthusiasm into actual policy adoption." He is now contacting fighters, wrestlers, and boxers to secure endorsements that might persuade campaigns to formally back combat sports reform.

The activist's effort centers on blocking TKO's proposed legislation, which would create a new Unified Boxing Organization exempt from existing Ali Act protections. Fox warned that passage would allow one promoter to sidestep rules on conflicts of interest, rankings transparency, and fighter negotiating power. "Boxers will, over the next decade or so, gradually lose all the benefits they enjoy from the Ali Act," he said in the interview.

If the bill passes, Fox plans to lobby 2028 presidential candidates on antitrust action to break up TKO and will seek support from anti-monopoly figures including Matt Stoller and former FTC chair Lina Khan.

Source: themmadraw.com