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A Congressional subcommittee held a hearing Thursday on a range of issues related to mixed martial arts, including?brain trauma, inconsistent anti-doping measures and athlete compensation.The Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade -- which is part of the?U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce -- reviewed testimony from several witnesses. Among them were former UFC champion Randy Couture and Jeff Novitzky, the UFCs vice president of athlete health and performance.It was a significant hearing in the sports history because, historically, the federal government has taken very little interest in MMA.This is plowing new ground in Congress, the subcommittee chairman, Congressman Michael C. Burgess (R-Texas), said Thursday.As the industry continues to evolve swiftly, it seems that now is the time to bring Congress up to speed on mixed martial arts and understand if there is a role Congress that should be playing in this multibillion-dollar industry.The current lack of comprehensive health insurance for professional fighters was one of the key issues discussed.Although the focus of the hearing was not to specifically address a live bill to expand the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act of 2000 to MMA, that topic certainly loomed over the entire hearing.That bill -- introduced to Congress in May by Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma) -- aims to expand the federal laws coverage to all combat sports, and specifically calls for the Association of Boxing Commissions to create guidelines for minimum fighter/promoter contractual provisions and establish criteria for an independent fighter rankings system.Couture, who retired in 2011, spoke at length about the need for independent rankings and less restrictive contracts. He used his experience of never securing a fight against Russian icon Fedor Emelianenko as an example.Im living proof of the closed market that exists in our sport right now, Couture said. In the height of my career ... I wanted to fight the No. 1 heavyweight in the world.I wasnt able to see that fight happen through the [UFC], so I pursued it myself outside that contract. Injunctions were filed to keep me from making that fight happen.Novitzky, a longtime advocate of anti-doping practices, said he had concerns regarding any federal law that would force the UFC to cross promote, given the lack of drug testing outside the promotion.The UFC partnered with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) to implement a year-round random drug testing program last year.The subcommittee will not meet again until early 2017, at which point there will be a hearing scheduled to specifically address the bill to expand the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, Rep. Mullin told ESPN.com. Should the bill pass through both the subcommittee and the House, it would move on to the Senate.Ultimately, the bill would also require the signature of President-elect Donald Trump, who has a known relationship with UFC president Dana White. Mullin said he does not see that relationship as a threat to the bill, which the UFC does not support.Why would there be the threat of a veto if we have overwhelming bi-partisan support? Mullin asked. I know people say [Trump] has a relationship with Dana White, but that doesnt matter. This is about taking care of fighters. I have zero concerns over that [relationship]. Marco Belinelli Jersey . And when it opened, every player was at his stall. Thats a sure sign that a team is in a slump and is searching for answers. "Its embarrassing to be at home and play the way we did," said defenceman Josh Gorges. Manu Ginobili Jersey . -- Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Farmar will be out for roughly four weeks after tearing his left hamstring. https://www.cheapspurs.com/636j-tom-nissalke-jersey-spurs.html . The giant slalom world champion slipped during her first run in the morning, landing on her back and then twisting forward before getting her leg caught in the protective material on the side of the slope. Donnie Freeman Jersey . -- On the field, it was business as usual for Jameis Winston and No. Joe Hamilton Jersey .C. -- Rodney Hood connected from all over the court while freshman Jabari Parker was busy swatting shots and scoring in transition. One game into the season and plenty is unknown about Cal State Northridge and No. 16 UCLA, but one element of both teams is certain as they prepare to play Sunday night at 9 p.m. Eastern time at Pauley Pavilion.Both teams can light up the scoreboard with efficient scorers. UCLA and Northridge combined to score 215 points in their respective season-openers on Friday night.The Bruins defeated Pacific 119-80 behind a school-record 18 3-pointers and 29 assists. Northridge beat Pomona-Pitzer 96-72 with four players scoring at least 15 points, led by Washington transfer Darin Johnson, a junior guard who had 20 points and seven rebounds.UNLV transfer Kendall Smith, a junior guard in his second year at Northridge, contributed 17 points for coach Reggie Theus, a former Running Rebels star under Jerry Tarkanian who is engineering a run-and-gun offense in his fourth season.Its nice to be deep as we are because you can get different guys in the game, said Theus, whose roster includes eight transfers from other Division I institutions, including his son Reggie Theus Jr. from South Carolina.Nine Matadors made their debut for Northridge, including Theus son, Johnson, Connecticut transfer Rakim Lubim and Texas A&M transfer Dylan Johns.UCLA coach Steve Alford expressed concern over a quick turnaround from Fridays game preparing for an experienced Northridge team.Were playing a really good opponent that had a lot of transfers sitting out last year, Alford said. Its a seasoned team were playing Sunday.The Bruins do not have as much college experience as Northhridge, but they have dynamic freshmen in guard Lonzo Ball and wing T.ddddddddddddJ. Leaf. Ball had a near-triple double against Pacific with 19 points, eight rebounds and a game-high 11 assists (with only one turnover) while Leaf contributed 22 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.They are unselfish guys, Alford said of his freshmen standouts. Im more impressed with them as young men than I am as basketball players, and I think they are very good players.UCLA senior guard Bryce Alford was one shy of his career record with 30 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 6-of-9 from 3-point range. Reserve point guard Aaron Holiday, who started all 32 games as a freshman last year, had 18 points with five assists and no turnovers.We just had a lot of really good things that took place, Alford said. We want to be a team that will stretch the floor because we have that ability. We have zero (personnel) issues. The culture has been terrific.Northridge has the confidence it can run with the Bruins after posting 20 fast-break points and 50 points in the paint against Pomona-Pitzer. The Matadors were not as potent from behind the 3-point line as UCLA, making 8 of 17, but Smith and Johnson were each 4 of 5 from that range.We are going to have to play a lot better basketball to beat UCLA, Theus said. We are going to watch a little bit of the film. Its a great challenge for us to go up to Pauley Pavilion. Im looking forward to that. ' ' '