UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz says MMA promotions should start providing healthcare for their fighters when they are done competing so they can deal with mental issues that can stem from a career in the Octagon.
In an interview with Inside MMA, the former UFC light heavyweight champion used Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Jon "War Machine" Koppenhaver as examples of the damage that repeated head trauma could cause over time, according to MMAmania.com. Miller has gotten in trouble with the law several times and was recently arrested after getting in a standoff with Orange County police, and War Machine was put in jail on charges of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, Christie Mack.
"Us fighters put our lives on the line to entertain the fans that watch," Ortiz said. "Look at Jason 'Mayhem' Miller, War Machine. I'm not defending anything they did. Everything they did was wrong in their own right, but a lot of these fighters take a lot of head trauma, head damage, as you see in professional football."
Competitors in the UFC are currently offered health insurance when they are active.
"Customized accident insurance coverage," which was introduced by the UFC parent company Zuffa in 2011, covers accidental injuries suffered in training as well as in car accidents and other situations outside of training, MMA Fighting reported.
Ortiz added that the UFC and Bellator should help fighters post-career the same way the NFL helps its players when they decide to leave the football field. With the "88 Plan," retired football players can get up to $88,000 each year for medical and custodial care that result from Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other brain disorders.
"Because they're making so much money off us. It's blood money. Going back to Mayhem, I think helping a guy like him is very needed," Ortiz said.
