Myrtle Beach first mixed martial arts (MMA) fight event at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center was a hit. The Bash at the Beach, put on by Carolina Fight Promotions, presold tickets online before the event, which sold out at 3,500 and had to turn away a few hundred more people at the door. MMA fighting only became legal in South Carolina in recent months. Saturday night’s event featured 9 amateur and 3 professional fights, including 3 fighters from the Myrtle Beach area. The event, which drew both locals and tourists, who made trips specially to see the fights, was the first of series of planned fights by Carolina Fight Promotions. The company signed contracts with the Myrtle Beach Convention Center to hold a fight in June during the areas annual Sun Fun Festival and a fight on August 20th. Tickets will again be available online and buying in advanced is recommend.
MMA has become popular across the country and the attendance for Saturday’s night fight shows the popularity of the sport and the need for different types of events throughout the year in Myrtle Beach. The fight is the first of numerous sporting events which will be debuting across the Grand Strand area in 2010. The others include the USA Team Handball Collegiate National Championships to be held in April at Broadway at the Beach, the USA Judo 2010 Senior National Championships to be held in late April, and the 2010 USA Triathlon National Championship Festival to be held in November.
