New Mexico Athletic Commission
Every professional card in New Mexico is sanctioned by a four-member commission that meets monthly in a state office building on San Antonio Drive. Its decisions set who may fight, who may work a corner, and what everyone gets paid. Almost none of it gets reported.
The board
as of 26 Aug 2026Commissioners
Ed Manzanares
Maurice Cordova
Monica Lovato
Stephanie Jaramillo
Stephanie Jaramillo is the retired Albuquerque super lightweight in our fighter database — International Women's Boxing Hall of Fame, class of 2025. She moved every event ratification at the August meeting.
Staff
Jessica Romero
Johnny Maestas
Doug Alsup
The commission meets monthly, in person with a remote option, and meetings are public under the Open Meetings Act. Regular meetings produce minutes; rule hearings produce full transcripts.
Commissioner in charge
upcoming cards| Date | Card | Commissioner |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2026 | No Where To Run Kickboxing at Empire Event Center in Albuquerque 6 p.m. | Stephanie Jaramillo |
| Oct 3, 2026 | Primetime Promotions: Mass Ascension | Maurice Cordova |
| Oct 24, 2026 | Holmes Boxing at Ohkay Owingeh – Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026 at 6 p.m. | Ed Manzanares |
| Nov 7, 2026 | Legacy Promotions Boxing Event: Saturday, November 7, 2026, 7 PM at Kiva Auditorium | Monica Lovato |
Licensed officials
50 records · 32 in New MexicoWho is eligible to work a card, not who is assigned to one. The commission publishes its licence roster; it does not publish judge and referee assignments in advance, and it does not publish scorecards afterward. Both are on the list of things to ask it for.
Judge — 13
Judge (trainee) — 3
Referee — 15
Promoter — 9
Matchmaker — 2
Manager — 1
Timekeeper — 2
Announcer — 5
From the August meeting
26 Aug 2026 · draft minutesThree rules changed. The board adopted Title 15, Chapter 6 NMAC sections 15.6.4 (duties and conduct of licensees), 15.6.6 (the officials) and 15.6.14 (the fee schedule), all 4–0. The rules committee also signalled the commission intends to adopt the ABC professional rules wholesale and track their annual updates, and has set a standardised official-pay structure based on length of assignment.
A compliance problem, stated on the record. The Executive Secretary reported that the day before the 96-hour deadline, 39% of fighters were licensed, 81% of medicals were in, and 5% of contracts had been received. Commissioners discussed notifying the commissioner in charge of missing paperwork so they can chase promoters directly, and putting the licensing statute in the promoter's packet.
Amateur kickboxing is being squeezed. In public comment, a karate and kickboxing instructor who has run a school since 1973 argued that sanctioning requirements have made amateur events — especially for under-18s — hard to run, and asked the commission to lower the barrier while keeping safety standards.
Online licensing came up twice. A licensee asked the commission to look at adopting NMPLUS, the department's existing online licensing system used by other professions but not by this commission.
1,265 licences issued so far this year, per the staff report. The public lookup returns 226 commission records, all licence year 2025 — so either the lookup lags badly or that figure counts something broader. Worth asking.
THE NEXT MEETING DATE IS DISPUTED — the August minutes record the next regular meeting as Wednesday 23 September 2026. The commission's own board-meetings page and events calendar both list Monday 28 September. Confirm with the board administrator. This is the meeting where promotions, matchmaking and fighter safety are on the agenda.
Source: draft minutes of the 26 August 2026 regular meeting, published 8 September 2026 and not official until the board votes to approve them. No recording or transcript of that meeting has been published.