UFC Performance Institute
UFC Performance Institute Hosts Summit With American College Of Sports Medicine
UFC PI In Las Vegas Partnered With Top Minds In Sports Medicine
For nearly 10 years, the minds at the UFC Performance Institute have worked to push forward mixed martial arts. Looking at everything from weight cutting, nutrition, strength and conditioning, to recovery and injury prevention, the UFC PI has established itself as a hub for a top-tier institution in the space.
On October 31 and November 1, the UFC PI hosted a summit in partnership with the American College of Sports Medicine, a sports medicine and exercise science membership organization that, for the last 70 years, has held conferences and published books and journals, among other efforts in the sports medicine space. For two days, top minds across the country gathered in the Las Vegas headquarters to trade notes, discuss studies, and participate in immersive sessions with the hope of advancing sports science.
The event began with UFC Chief Operating Officer Lawrence Epstein giving a brief discussion about the sport of mixed martial arts, spelling out the ways the UFC has pushed the sport into new heights over the last three decades. Part of that growth was the PI itself, which he described as “a leader in the world of sports, from strength and conditioning, performance and recovery, and of course sports science: as well as an unparalleled asset and resource for the athletes on the roster.
Dr. Duncan French, the UFC PI Senior Vice President, followed with a keynote speech about the ways the PI is accelerating the evolution of MMA and elaborated on the challenge of juxtaposing “science and chaos” that is inherent in combat sports. He highlighted the efforts in the Performance Institutes in Shanghai and Mexico City, including the efforts to develop talent in the region.
“We’ve just got a group that are really committed to ultimately solving all the problems,” Dr. French said.
Several other speakers talked about their immense and in-depth research in their respective fields of expertise. Dr. Heather Linden, Senior Director of Sports Medicine at the PI, and Dr. Brooke Conway-Kleven, Director of Sports Data Analytics at University of Las Vegas-Nevada, discussed the different biomarkers and objective markers looked at in combat sports. UFCPI Executive Performance Chef Steven Petre and UFCPI Performance Nutrition Manager Daniel Marquette talked about the efforts the team is making in weight management and weight-cutting for the athletes. Senior Vice President of Anti-Doping Compliance Jeff Novitzky discussed UFC’s anti-doping program and innovations in blood analysis. Professors from different universities were in attendance and also spoke on various topics before it was all said and done.
In total, the summit was held in hopes of continuing the development and growth of sports science in a complete, 360-degree manner. Jessi Warner, Director of Partnerships & Sponsorships for ACSM, put it succinctly, stating: “Every insight we share can result in better outcomes for athletes.”