Sixteen years ago, Randy Gordon, then the New York State Athletic Commissioner, got a phone call from then-Gov. Mario Cuomo asking if he had heard about a new sport called “no holds barred” fighting.

“Apparently the Legislature says they want to go with it,” Gordon remembers Cuomo saying. “Just watch it.”

Gordon tuned in to see what the sport, which is also called mixed martial arts (MMA), was all about.

What he saw disturbed him: bare-knuckle punches, head-butting, broken bones.

“I am not going to approve this,” Gordon told Cuomo. “This is street fighting without beer bottles.”

The sport was eventually banned in 1997 by Cuomo’s successor, George Pataki, who called MMA “barbaric.” Since then, a bill to reverse the ban and allow the sport to be regulated by the Athletic Commission has died twice in the Assembly.  

But now Gov. David Paterson has said he wants to reverse the ban as a way to provide a roundhouse kick to the state’s economy. New York is just one of eight states that does not allow the sport. Supporters say that MMA has become safer since new rules were adopted in 2001, providing for weight classes, rounds and time limits, as well as outlawing dangerous striking maneuvers.

And now among the supporters: Randy Gordon. Not only does he host a radio show for Sirius XM called “Fight Club” which covers MMA, but he is also calling for the Legislature to lift the ban he originally helped put into place. The state’s economy could use the boost that organizations like Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) could provide, he said.

“It’s certainly not going to balance our budget,” Gordon said. “But it’s a nice chunk. The fighters certainly want it. The fans want it. It’s come time to do it already.”

Lawmakers say that Paterson’s plan to legalize MMA as part of his executive budget gives added momentum to the effort to legitimize the sport in New York.

Assembly Member Jonathan Bing, a Manhattan Democrat and co-sponsor of a bill to legalize MMA, said that New York is losing tens of millions of dollars to other states, like New Jersey, that regularly host UFC matches.

“I am not a fan. I’m not somebody who is going to watch an MMA competition,” Bing said. “I am a fan of revenue.”

A recent study done by UFC estimated that one event would generate $11.5 million in economic activity for New York City, and $5.2 million for a city upstate like Buffalo.

State Sen. Jose Serrano, chair of the Senate committee on sports and tourism, said he was open to examining the details of the governor’s proposal, and was intrigued by the revenue estimates that he has seen.

“If it’s happening in so many other places, why not let it happen here?” Serrano said. “It could be an easy way to get money in the state’s coffers.”

But other states that have legalized ultimate fighting say the sport’s real appeal should be its staying power, not its power to create economic activity for the state. Aaron Brown, commissioner of the New Jersey Athletic Control Board, said New York should consider legalizing MMA because it is unlikely to disappear any time soon.

“If New York is going to go about it,” Brown said, “you just gotta say, ‘Hey, this sport is here, and it’s here to stay.’ And then the money will come.”

But not all lawmakers are fans of ultimate fighting, either as a revenue draw or as a sport. One Assembly member has taken a stand against authorizing MMA based on the fact that it allows fighters to hit and kick their opponents while on the ground.

“Violence begets violence,” said Bob Reilly, a Democrat from Colonie, who says he “accidentally” became the public face of the opposition when he gave a speech against MMA during a committee hearing several years ago.

Reilly cited numerous cases of injuries sustained from ultimate fighting matches, such as a man who was paralyzed in Iowa and a woman in Minnesota who suffered a brain aneurysm, to support his argument that the sport was still too unsafe to allow in New York.

“There’s a reason why in boxing, when a man or woman is on their knees, you can’t hit them in the head,” Reilly said. “There’s a reason why in wrestling, you can’t punch in face someone who’s in headlock.”

Even the financial argument for legalizing MMA is full of holes, Reilly said. Zuffa LLC, UFC’s parent company, is currently embroiled in a bankruptcy case involving a number of casinos in Las Vegas, he said. And according to Reilly, scalpers and online third-party ticket providers generally gouge ticket prices, picking money from the pockets of both fans and state government.

But even if MMA eventually comes to New York, Reilly said he will make it his mission to pass legislation that would make the sport safer than it presently is.

“Do more people die in fishing than die in ultimate fighting? The answer is yes,” Reilly said. “But that doesn’t make ultimate fighting okay.”

Fighters and trainers in New York, though, say they are eager for the boost in business that could come from any legislative action in Albany.

At the Renzo Gracie Academy, a humid basement training facility in Midtown Manhattan, fighter and trainer Max McGarr said that MMA was one of the fastest-growing sports in the nation.

“MMA is the purest form of sports—a battle between two people,” said McGarr, a thick-armed bruiser with a quick smile. “Of course, there are rules now.”

Pete Lawson, the gym’s manager, explained how before the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts were established in 2001, fighters routinely sustained heavy injuries during bouts, but that those were all in the past. Even so, Lawson said he enjoyed reminiscing about the sport’s lawless days.    

“There was one fight where one guy was hitting the other guy in the groin,” said Lawson, laughing. “Bam! Bam! Like 20 times!”