American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, and JacksonWink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico are two of the biggest and most successful MMA gyms in the world. Both gyms have produced a long list of UFC champions, and countless UFC contenders.
Unfortunately, both are currently without Instagram accounts thanks to the UFC.
Like most gyms, Jackson Wink and American Top Team regularly posted footage and images of their fighters on Instagram. The UFC apparently saw this as a copyright violation, reported the gym’s accounts to Instagram, and got them disabled as a result.
Speaking on Twitter on Tuesday, a representative from American Top Team issued a call for help.
Please help. Our @instagram acct. has been disabled for the past week for posting @ufc content. We received 1 warning and never were given an email w/ official explanation or claim tix. We've always posted about our fighters and promoted the ufc events. Any help is appreciated.
— American Top Team (@AmericanTopTeam) December 18, 2018
“Please help,” American Top Team wrote on its official Twitter account. “Our [Instagram] acct. has been disabled for the past week for posting [UFC] content. We received 1 warning and never were given an email w/ official explanation or claim tix. We’ve always posted about our fighters and promoted the UFC events. Any help is appreciated.”
This message from American Top Team prompted a response from JacksonWink MMA’s Twitter account. Apparently, they’re having the same problem. They offered to join forces with American Top Team in an attempt to figure this situation out.
Hey us too! Let’s work together and make Instagram great again! https://t.co/WvtfN8gZcT
— JacksonWinkMMA (@JacksonWinkMMA) December 18, 2018
“Hey us too,” The JacksonWink MMA account wrote. “Let’s work together and make Instagram great again!”
According to a Tweet from Dr. Beau Hightower of JacksonWink MMA, Black House MMA, another major MMA gym, also had its account suspended last week, though it has since been reinstated.
https://twitter.com/DrBeauHightower/status/1072942335242100736
At the time of this writing, both American Top Team and JacksonWink MMA are still suspended on Instagram.
This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 12/18/2018.