Wikipedia:WikiProject Mixed martial arts/MMA notability

Template:Essay-project-note MMA notability, also known as WP:MMANOT, is an essay to give some guidance on points to consider when discussing the notability of the subjects of mixed martial arts (MMA) articles. It is a specific supplement to the overall policy of Wikipedia:Notability relating to mixed martial arts and in no way supersedes it.

These guidelines were created by WikiProject Mixed martial arts to help assess the notability of the subjects of articles. Feel free to discuss improvements on the project talk page or the discussion area for this page (WT:MMANOT).

General points

See also: Wikipedia:General notability guideline

Reliable sourcing is the most important factor. Assertions of notability must be sourced from somewhere other than the individual or organization under discussion (see secondary sources); if referencing a title, the organization which sanctioned the event would be the first stop; if the subject of an article is an author, the publisher or ISBN of the subject's work should be given. A lack of any sources after looking around is a warning sign that an article may not be notable enough for inclusion.

Google and other search engines are a useful tool for finding sources, and may sometimes be persuasive (very high or very low result counts), but is not proof of whether or not something is notable (see WP:Google test). Using quotes around the search ("mixed martial art fighter") will look for only exact matches and using -Wikipedia at the end will remove self references.

Organizations

See also: Wikipedia:Notability (organizations and companies)

The methodology used to establish the list of notable organizations is given in the section listing notable organizations.

Criteria supporting notability

1. Subject of multiple independent articles/documentaries--articles should be from national or international media, not just local coverage.
2. Promotes a large number of events annually--the more fights it has sanctioned, the more notable.
3. Has actively been in business for several years - the longer the organization has been around, the more notable.
4. Large number of well-known and highly ranked fighters.

Criteria supporting deletion

1. Has only promoted a single event.
2. Short history as an organization.
3. Few notable fighters fight in their events.
4. Fights are no-holds-barred, or rules are much less restrictive than the unified rules of martial arts
5. Promoted fights are not licensed by state or regional governing bodies.

Fighters

See also: Wikipedia:Notability (people) and Wikipedia:Biographies of living persons

Amateur MMA fighters are not considered notable (unless they can pass WP:GNG under other criteria).

Criteria supporting notability

1. Subject of multiple independent articles/documentaries--articles should be from national or international media, not just local coverage or press releases from organizations
2. Fought for the highest title of a top tier MMA organization
3. Fought at least three (3) fights for top tier MMA organizations

Criteria supporting deletion

1. Only amateur bouts
2. Few fights for notable organizations

Individual Events

See also: Wikipedia:Notability (events) and Wikipedia:Notability (sports)

Individual events are not inherently considered notable because, on the whole, the coverage they receive is routine in nature (consisting of the event announcement, who is going to take part, and the results). To be considered for a standalone article, the article will need to demonstrate the event's lasting effect using references from reliable and diverse sources that are both independent of the subject and show that the duration of coverage lasted beyond the end of the event. Should an event be evaluated as lacking in individual notability, alternatives to deletion (such as merging) should be prefered over outright deletion in accordance with WP:PRESERVE.

Current list of notable MMA organizations and promotions

MEN

This list is subject to change as organizations grow, merge, or go out of business. Changes in this list should be made by consensus after discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Mixed martial arts/MMA notability. The list is divided into two tiers. The top tier is the highest level. The organizations in this list were determined by looking at independent world rankings of MMA fighters in June, 2010. Active organizations with multiple fighters ranked in the top 10 in any of the 7 weight classes were placed in the top tier. Defunct and other active organizations were placed based on consensus agreement.

Promotion	First Event	Most Recent Event	Total Events
Top Tier - Active
Bellator Fighting Championships	April 3, 2009	April 4, 2013	93
Shooto (Japan only)	May 18, 1989	June 8, 2013	373
Ultimate Fighting Championship	November 12, 1993	June 8, 2013	230
Top Tier - Defunct
Strikeforce	May 31, 1997	January 12, 2013	63
Affliction Entertainment	July 19, 2008	January 24, 2009	2
Dream (mixed martial arts)	March 15, 2008	December 31, 2012	20
Fighting Network Rings (events held between 1995 and 2002) (Japan, Holland, USA and Russia only)	January 25, 1995	September 23, 2012	126 (64 notable)
Pride Fighting Championships	October 11, 1997	April 8, 2007	69
World Extreme Cagefighting	June 30, 2001	December 16, 2010	53
World Victory Road	March 5, 2008	December 30, 2010	19
Second Tier - Active
BAMMA	June 27, 2009	December 1, 2012	11
Cage Warriors	July 27, 2002	December 8, 2012	57
Deep (mixed martial arts)	January 8, 2001	December 8, 2012	188
Jungle Fight	September 13, 2003	November 15, 2012	45
King of the Cage	October 30, 1999	December 8, 2012	294
Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki	February 27, 2004	December 1, 2012	27
Maximum Fighting Championship	March 3, 2001	October 26, 2012	38
M-1 Global	November 1, 1997	December 8, 2012	154
ONE Fighting Championship	September 3, 2011	May 31, 2013	9
Pancrase	September 21, 1993	December 1, 2012	266
Shark Fights	October 24, 2008	November 11, 2011	21
Ultimate Challenge MMA	December 6, 2008	December 1, 2012	33
Universal Reality Combat Championship	November 23, 2002	December 1, 2012	44
World Series of Fighting	November 3, 2012	June 14, 2013	3
Second Tier - Defunct
Cage Rage Championships	September 7, 2002	September 20, 2008	42
Elite Xtreme Combat	February 10, 2007	October 10, 2008	17
Palace Fighting Championship	January 18, 2007	May 8, 2009	19
Tachi Palace Fights	July 16, 2009	November 12, 2012	16
Last Updated - January 13, 2013

WOMEN

This list is subject to change as organizations grow, merge, or go out of business. Changes in this list should be made by consensus after discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Mixed martial arts/MMA notability. The list is divided into two tiers. The top tier is the highest level. The organizations in this list were determined by looking at the Unified Women's Mixed Martial Arts world rankings of female MMA fighters in October, 2012. Active organizations with at least three fighters ranked in the top 5 (regardless of weight class) were placed in the top tier. Organizations with two fighters ranked in the top 5 were placed in the second tier.

Promotion	First Event	Most Recent Event	Total Events
Top Tier - Active
Bellator Fighting Championships	April 3, 2009	February 21, 2013	88
Invicta Fighting Championships	April 8, 2012	January 5 , 2013	4
Ultimate Fighting Championship	November 12, 1993	February 23, 2013	230
Top Tier - Defunct
Strikeforce	May 31, 1997	January 12, 2013	64
Second Tier - Active
Cage Warriors	July 27, 2002	December 8, 2012	57
Jewels (mixed martial arts)	November 16, 2008	December 15, 2012	23
Last Updated - February 4, 2013