Henry George, the president of the Nigeria Mixed Martial Arts Federation (NMMAF), says its collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) will be useful in combating crime.

Mr George said this in an interview on Thursday in Lagos.

“The sport is making waves around the country, and don’t forget that MMA will be of many benefits to the NPF in combating crime. The sport is more of self-defence and hand combat,” he said.

He said the just-concluded IGP Open National Mixed Martial Arts in Abuja demonstrated the collaboration with the police, disclosing that no fewer than 300 participants registered for the championship and that some would represent the nation in national and international championships.

Mr George added that the police had approved the championship to strengthen its collaboration with the federation, stressing that Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun encouraged the collaboration with the federation.

“The IGP approved MMA and then the first national open championship took place. This was a very good decision and we were really excited about the development,” said Mr George. “This is the first of its kind and the NPF has been doing very well in the sport, also adopting the system. MMA can now have people from NPF that can represent the country in international events.”

The NMMAF boss revealed that plans were underway to ensure that martial arts make more of an impact in the 2024 Police Games.

“The police games are around the corner, and we are looking at having MMA as one of the sports in the games. This means a lot of officers will be involved. This will be the first of its kind, and we are going to work tirelessly to ensure the sport will attract more people,” Mr George said.

(NAN)