Prior to UFC 210, the last professional mixed martial arts event in Buffalo, New York was at UFC 7 in September 1995. Since the state banned MMA from 1997 until 2016, the New York State Athletic Commission was rightfully unable to adapt to the regulations upheld throughout the other parts of the US where the sport is legal.
The NYSAC’s inexperience was evident during the co-main event fight between Chris Weidman and Gegard Mousasi, which ended in a controversy. In the second round, Mousasi kneed Weidman twice in the head, but since Weidman’s hands were down, referee Dan Miragliotta put the fight to a pause after perceiving the strikes to be illegal.