Arkansas Administrative Code

17 CAR § 225-117. Workforce Expansion Act fee waiver. (a) The State Athletic Commission shall waive the initial licensing fee if the applicant: (1) Is receiving assistance through the: (A) Arkansas Medicaid Program; (B) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; (C) Special Suppl…

17 CAR § 225-201. Applicability. All rules in this subpart and Subpart 1 of this part apply to the combative sport of boxing, kickboxing, martial arts, mixed martial arts, Muay Thai, and elimination tournaments, provided however, in the event of a conflict between this subpart an…

17 CAR § 225-202. Prohibited substances. The use or administration of drugs, stimulants, depressants, prescription, nonprescription, or any other substances by or to a contestant during or prior to participation in an event is prohibited, except as follows or as otherwise permitt…

17 CAR § 225-203. Licensure. (a) Every contestant, doctor, event coordinator, inspector, judge, manager, matchmaker, promoter, referee, second, timekeeper, or official, unless exempted by this part, is required to apply for and receive a license from the State Athletic Commission…

17 CAR § 225-204. Event license. (a) Promoters are subject to this part including, without limitation, any amateur event not exempted from this part shall submit a written application for and receive an event license prior to each event as follows: (1) Each application shall be o…

17 CAR § 225-205. Event procedures. The following shall be applicable to every event: (1) Audit and taxes. The provisions of the Act shall be followed with respect to remittance of taxes to the State Athletic Commission and such shall be subject to audit by the commission at any …

17 CAR § 225-206. Rings, mats, and contest areas. The ring shall: (1) Not be less than sixteen feet (16’) square; (2)(A) Have an apron or floor area outside the ropes which extends at least two feet (2’) beyond the ropes on all sides. (B) Variances can be granted; (3) Have a floo…

17 CAR § 225-207. Ring access. Access to the ring shall be only as follows: (1) Prior to and immediately following a bout, only the announcer, announcer assistant, authorized media personnel, promoter, contestants, doctor, inspectors, commission representatives, and persons autho…

17 CAR § 225-208. Technical zone. The technical zone shall be: (1) Under the exclusive control of the State Athletic Commission, designated employee or employees, and inspectors at each event; (2) The commission can require, following a prior problem with the same issue, that the…

17 CAR § 225-209. Amateur events. (a) Announcers, contestants, doctors, matchmakers, officials, promoters, and seconds for events or bouts in which all of the contestants are amateurs are exempted from this part when the regulatory body is a federally recognized and International…

17 CAR § 225-210. Exhibition events. All provisions of this part shall apply to exhibitions, except the portions hereof relating to judges and scoring.

17 CAR § 225-211. Announcers. All events must have a licensed announcer who should: (1) Announce the names of the contestants, contestants’ weights, names of officials, decisions of the referee and judges, as well as provide additional information requested by the State Athletic …

17 CAR § 225-212. Contestants. Contestants shall: (1) Sign all necessary forms and releases and otherwise authorize the State Athletic Commission and any of its representatives, agents, or inspectors to inquire, receive, and discuss contestant’s medical history, medical condition…

17 CAR § 225-213. Doctors. Doctors shall: (1) At least two (2) hours, but not more than up to seven (7) hours prior to the scheduled start of the first bout for each event to which they are assigned or are otherwise participating, administer a prefight physical for each contestan…

17 CAR § 225-214. Event coordinators. At the discretion and under the direction and control of the promoter and if licensed by the State Athletic Commission, may in connection with an event perform, negotiate, obtain, or assist with setup for any of the following: (1) Event site …

17 CAR § 225-215. Inspectors. (a) The State Athletic Commission may be represented in person by commission member or members and duly appointed inspector or inspectors at any event for the purpose of supervising, enforcing, and ensuring compliance with the law and this part. (b) …

17 CAR § 225-216. Judges. (a) If a judge becomes incapacitated and is unable to complete the scoring of a contest, a timeout shall be called and an alternate, qualified judge shall be immediately assigned to score the contest from that point. (b)(1) If the judge’s incapacity is n…

17 CAR § 225-217. Managers. Managers shall: (1) Have a fiduciary obligation to deal fairly with and act in the best interests of the contestant or contestants they represent; (2) Ensure the contestant or contestants they represent observe and comply with the suspensions issued by…

17 CAR § 225-218. Matchmakers. Matchmakers shall: (1) Contact, solicit, or negotiate a contestant for the purpose of obtaining the contestant’s participation in or attempting to obtain the contestant’s participation in an event; (2) Match the contestants as to weight and experien…

17 CAR § 225-219. Officials. The officials for each event shall: (1) Be licensed in accordance with this part; (2) Have specific training or a fundamental understanding of the rules governing the event which they officiate; (3) Not simultaneously participate in multiple licensed …

17 CAR § 225-220. Promoters. A promoter shall as a condition of licensure or continued licensure: (1)(A) At all times comply with the Act, this part, and the instructions and directives of the State Athletic Commission, committee, designated employee or employees, and inspector o…

17 CAR § 225-221. Referees. (a) Before the State Athletic Commission issues a referee’s license, the applicant for a referee’s license must certify as to having read the Act and being familiar with this part. (b) The commission may require the applicant for a referee’s license to…

17 CAR § 225-222. Seconds/corner. Seconds shall: (1) Assist, as necessary, their contestant before, during, and after a contest; (2) If the chief second, be in charge of each person in the contestant’s corner and be responsible for the conduct of and can suffer violations as well…

17 CAR § 225-223. Timekeepers. Timekeepers shall: (1) Prior to the start of each contest, ensure the presence of at least two (2) stopwatches and a whistle and a properly functioning bell or airhorn for MMA; (2) Sound the bell only at the beginning and end of each round; (3) Imme…

17 CAR § 225-301. Applicability. All rules in this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part apply to the combative sport of boxing, provided however, in the event of a conflict between this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part, the rules …

17 CAR § 225-302. Uniform rules of boxing. Unless otherwise approved or exempted by the State Athletic Commission in writing prior to an event, every boxing event shall be conducted under the Uniform Rules of Boxing as adopted and amended and appended thereto by the ABC on July 3…

17 CAR § 225-303. Federal ID cards, results, and suspensions. The State Athletic Commission hereby adopts by reference the rules and guidelines in effect on the effective date of this part for the ABC with respect to issuance of identification cards, suspension of licenses, and e…

17 CAR § 225-304. Licensure. Each applicant for a contestant’s professional boxing license shall simultaneously apply for or currently possess a valid Boxer Federal ID.

17 CAR § 225-305. Promoters. A promoter shall as a condition of licensure or continued licensure: (1) At all times comply with the Act, this part, and the instructions and directives of the State Athletic Commission, committee, designated employee or employees, and inspector or i…

17 CAR § 225-306. Referees. (a) Before the State Athletic Commission issues a referee’s license, the applicant for a referee’s license must certify as to having read the Act and being familiar with this part. (b) The commission may require the applicant for a referee’s license to…

17 CAR § 225-307. Headgear. During a bout, amateur contestants shall wear U.S.A. Boxing approved headgear and gloves weighing at least twelve ounces (12 oz.).

17 CAR § 225-308. Gloves. (a) Contestants weighing up to and including one hundred forty-seven pounds (147 lbs.) shall wear gloves weighing eight ounces (8 oz.), while contestants weighing more than one hundred forty-seven pounds (147 lbs.) shall wear gloves weighing ten ounces (…

17 CAR § 225-309. Hand wraps. Contestant’s hand wraps shall: (1) Consist of dry cotton gauze not more than twenty yards (20 yds.) in length and not more than two inches (2”) in width per hand, if synthetic, only ten yards (10 yds.) in length if State Athletic Commission approved …

17 CAR § 225-310. Boxing weight classes. The weight classes are as follows: (1) Flyweight — up to 112 lbs.; (2) Super Flyweight — over 112 to 115 lbs.; (3) Bantamweight — over 115 to 118 lbs.; (4) Super Bantamweight — over 118 to 122 lbs.; (5) Featherweight — over 122 to 126 lbs.…

17 CAR § 225-311. Weight differences. (a) Contestants shall not fight outside their contracted weight or weight class without approval of the State Athletic Commission and agreement by the contestants to compete at the weight differential. (b) For all types of events, the weight …

17 CAR § 225-312. Weigh-ins. (a)(1) Contestants failing to meet their contracted weight shall have two (2) hours after their initial weigh-in within which to meet the contracted weight. (2) If in an attempt to make weight, a contestant shows evidence of dehydration, having taken …

17 CAR § 225-401. Applicability. All rules in this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part apply to the combative sport of kickboxing, provided however, in the event of a conflict between this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part, the ru…

17 CAR § 225-402. Governing rules. Bouts shall be governed either under the full contact rules or international rules, which governing rules shall be declared by the referee and promoter prior to the start of each bout.

17 CAR § 225-403. Contestants. Contestants shall: (1) Wear only long pants during a bout conducted under full contact rules and wear only shorts during a bout conducted under international rules; (2) Permitted to strike using the feet and shins in addition to the gloved fists; (3…

17 CAR § 225-404. Minimum kicks. There is no requirement for a minimum number of kicks per round, however, the referee may issue a warning to or deduct a point or points from a contestant who fails to execute at least: (1) Six (6) kicks per round for amateurs; and (2) Eight (8) k…

17 CAR § 225-405. Kickboxing weight classes. The weight classes are as follows: (1) Flyweight – up to 112 lbs.; (2) Super Flyweight – over 112 to 115 lbs.; (3) Bantamweight – over 115 to 118 lbs.; (4) Super Bantamweight – over 118 to 122 lbs.; (5) Featherweight – over 122 to 126 …

17 CAR § 225-501. Applicability. All rules in this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part apply to the combative sport of martial arts, provided however, in the event of a conflict between this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part, the …

17 CAR § 225-502. Single martial arts discipline. Due to the extraordinarily high number of differing disciplines in the martial arts, any event or bout exclusively using a single martial arts discipline (as opposed to a mixed martial arts event or bout) not specifically provided…

17 CAR § 225-601. Applicability. All rules in this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part apply to the combative sport of mixed martial arts, provided however, in the event of a conflict between this subpart, Subpart 1 of this part, and Subpart 2 of this part…

17 CAR § 225-602. Licensure. (a)(1) Persons under eighteen (18) years of age will not be issued a license other than cases when and if certain criteria are met, except a contestant’s license at the discretion of the State Athletic Commission. (2) Persons sixteen (16) years of age…

17 CAR § 225-603. Judges. Judges shall modify the 10 Point Must System by not automatically deducting a point each time a contestant is knocked down, but instead, shall consider the knockdown as part of the overall scoring criteria for the round.

17 CAR § 225-604. Promoters. Promoters shall provide at least one (1) pair of fingernail clippers and two (2) nail files for each event.

17 CAR § 225-605. Referee. Referees shall: (1) In the event a foul is committed by a contestant: (A) Call a timeout; (B) Check the fouled contestant’s condition and safety; (C) Assess either a warning or point deduction, as the referee may deem necessary, to or against the contes…

17 CAR § 225-606. Seconds. A contestant’s chief second may throw a white, cotton towel into the contest area only if: (1) The contest is being held inside a cage; (2) The chief second has first signaled or otherwise attempted to obtain the referee’s attention to stop a mixed mart…

17 CAR § 225-607. Timekeepers. Timekeepers shall not begin a count when an opponent is down.