Minster calls for introduction of better safety standards within MMA community

The Sports Minister is calling on leaders in the MMA community to urgently introduce better safety standards to protect fighters.

The Sports Minister Shane Ross is calling on leaders in the MMA community to urgently introduce better safety standards to protect fighters.

It is after the death of Joao Carvalho after a bout in April 2016.

Joao Carvalho (28) sustained 41 blows to the head in the Total Extreme Fighting contest at Dublin’s National Boxing Stadium on April 9 2016.

Medics carried the injured fighter through a crowded hallway to an ambulance waiting outside, Dublin Coroner’s Court heard.

The critically ill fighter was rushed to the nearest emergency department unsecured on the floor in the back of the ambulance amid chaotic scenes.

Mr Carvalho, a father of two, died in hospital two days after the fight. The cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.

- Digital Desk