SALEM, Ore. -- Oregon has joined a growing number of states in adding government oversight to mixed martial arts, the increasingly popular sport that combines aspects of martial arts, boxing and wrestling -- and often puts the combatants in a cage.

Oregon Senate Bill 492, which was passed during the legislative session, expands the authority of the Oregon State Athletic Commission to include the sport. It will regulate the testing of athletes for controlled substances and medical conditions, medical responsibility of promoters and ensure that medical personnel are present at all events.

"To me, it is a brutal and disgusting sport," said Sen. Alan Bates, D-Ashland, who co-sponsored the bill. "I've never been to an event, but I've watched some on TV to see what's going on and I am not impressed. Something needed to be done."

Brad Darcy, executive director of the OSAC, was more forgiving of the sport: "When I first watched, it appeared pretty brutal," Darcy said. "The appreciation of the sport comes over time."

Oregon is not the only state adding government oversight to the sport. Pennsylvania, Missouri, Nebraska, Minnesota and the District of Columbia passed similar bills in the last month, said Marc Ratner, the former head of the Nevada Boxing Commission who is now the Ultimate Fighting Championship vice president of regulatory affairs.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is by far the largest and most popular MMA promotion, but it has avoided Oregon because the sport wasn't regulated here. That could change now.

"It is my fervent goal to bring the UFC to the Northwest and to the Rose Garden either at the end of this year or early next year," Ratner told The Oregonian newspaper. "It's a hot area for the sport."