Muhammad Ali Act Mandates $150/Round Minimum Pay and Advanced Brain Scans for Professional Boxers

The newly proposed Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act is a major shakeup for professional boxing, focusing heavily on fighter safety and guaranteed compensation. Think of this as the fine print that ensures boxers—the people taking the hits—get better medical care and a minimum floor for their paychecks.

The core of the bill creates an alternative system for organizations called "Unified Boxing Organizations" (UBOs). If a UBO agrees to meet a long list of strict standards, they get a streamlined path for compliance. Crucially, these UBOs must now provide comprehensive medical coverage, including mandatory advanced brain imaging (MRI and MRA scans) for every contracted boxer before their first fight and every three years after. If a boxer gets knocked out, the UBO has to pay for immediate follow-up scans. For boxers over 40, they also get extra annual checks like EKGs and chest X-rays. This is a massive shift, moving the industry toward proactive, long-term health monitoring, ensuring that brain health isn't treated as an afterthought.

The $150 Question: Guaranteed Pay and Injury Coverage

For the boxers themselves, the two biggest changes are financial. First, the bill establishes a minimum pay rate: $150 for every round a boxer actually fights in a match. While this won't move the needle for championship bouts, it sets a necessary floor for the hundreds of fighters on undercards or in smaller matches. Second, the bill mandates that for every match, the promoter or UBO must secure health insurance covering at least $25,000 for any injuries sustained during the fight. The boxer cannot be charged the premium for this insurance—that cost must be covered by the organization. This provision directly addresses the all-too-common scenario where fighters are left with massive medical bills after a serious injury in the ring.

Integrity and Anti-Doping Get a Right Hook

The UBOs also have to step up their game on integrity. They must run a comprehensive anti-doping program, testing at least half of the participants at every event, and they can conduct unannounced, no-notice testing on their contracted fighters. The UBO pays for the testing, and the results are handled by an independent third party. Furthermore, the bill prohibits anyone associated with the UBO—including staff and the boxer’s immediate circle—from betting on the match, and it requires strict rules to prevent conflicts of interest, such as the UBO having a financial stake in a boxer’s management. This is designed to clean up the business side, ensuring that the fights are fair and the organizations aren't profiting from conflicts.

The Cost of Doing Business

While this bill is a huge win for boxer safety, it places significant new financial and administrative burdens squarely on the UBOs and promoters. They are responsible for the substantial costs of advanced imaging, extra medical checks for older fighters, running the anti-doping program, and increasing ringside safety measures—like having three licensed physicians and two dedicated ambulances present at all times. This increased overhead could mean that only larger, well-funded organizations can afford to operate within the UBO structure. However, the requirement that the UBOs pay for these necessary safety measures is exactly the point: shifting the financial burden of protecting athlete health away from the individual fighter and onto the organizations profiting from the sport.