The Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC) has chosen a new head after previous president Mike Mazzulli withheld himself from the recent elections that took place recently.

Mauricio Sulaiman, president of the WBC, confirmed the change in leadership on social media in an official commendations towards the new president:

“On behalf of all the members of the WBC I would like to congratulate Timothy Shipman as he has been elected President of the ABC – the Association of Boxing Commissions in the USA,” Sulaiman’s statement reads. “I have had the pleasure to work events in Florida and he is an exemplary boxing commissioner.“

Mazzulli, who ran the organization for roughly 10 years, will be replaced by Timothy Shipman who has served as the head of the Florida State Athletic Commission (FSAC) since 2023. According to MMA Junkie, Shipman has roughly two decades of experience as a combat sports regulator, including a seven-year stint as an assistant executive directory. Shipman was further inducted into the Florida MMA Hall of Fame last year for his efforts as a sports administrator.

The ABC is a non-for-profit US-based organization founded in the 1980s to serve as a bridge and medium between the different state athletic commissions that regulate combat sports.

The organization’s usefulness for the boxing world has amounted to little over at least the past couple of years as the various state athletic commissions have gone on to leave a wide trail of questionable decisions, helped by the fact the ABC has no visible authority over them.

Texas’ combat commission, most notably, is widely known for its incompetence and negligence, being implicated in helping out several fighters known to have tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) under vague premises that have gone unchecked and unmonitored.

The New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) also has had several controversies, primarily their handling of the Ryan Garcia case where they did suspend the American fighter for a year for PED use but neglected to delineate his anti-doping violation as being intentional; allowing instead to allow the fighter to spread the notion that his use of the illegal substance of Ostarine was accidental ― despite failing several opportunities to prove his innocence.

Reportedly, Garcia also failed a test conducted by the NYSAC itself other than the initial test caught by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency (VADA).

Michigan’s athletic commission also come under fire earlier this year after accusing current undisputed women’s heavyweight champion Claressa Shields of unlawful and dangerous behavior that was not substantiated upon, and bordered on the lines of defamation with their accusations.

Notably, the change in leadership coincides with the recently-revealed plans for the Ali Act to be amended by, discretely, UFC chairman Dana White and The Ring owner Turki Alalshikh who appear to be aiming to form not just a boxing promotion but a league through which they are able to override the Ali Act’s rule on managers not being allowed to serve as promoters and vice-versa.

According to the proposed bill aiming to alter the act, the ABC has been closely involved in this process and will be one of the key proponents that will aim to uphold and enforce the changes suggested in the newly-proposed act.

Though there is no known relationship between Shipman and White or Alalshikh, under Shipman’s leadership the FSAC notably became one of a couple of commissions that approved the Power Slap promotion, founded by Dana White, to operate in the state of Florida.

Power Slap is largely known for its tendency to sacrifice health over entertainment, allowing ‘athletes’ to compete in a imitation of boxing called ‘slap boxing’ where competitors slap each other ― which has proven to cause both short-term and long-term brain damage.

Power Slap has not yet been approved by every state for obvious reasons, questioning Timothy Shipman’s current placement at the head of the ABC which is expected to play a significant role in the planned league of Dana White and Turki Alalshikh which appears to be aiming to model its business and organizational structure after the UFC.