Nevada passed a series of rule changes today in the hope of making boxing safer after two fighters died in Las Vegas last year.

The State Athletic Commission changed rules about gloves, ringside drinks and doctors, medical exams and trainers. The commission also approved measures requiring state funding for things like drug tests, CT scans and a new medical advisory board.

Those measures will be submitted to state legislators for approval in September.

The heightened attention to boxer safety came after the deaths of Martin Sanchez in July and Leavander Johnson in September. It was the first time since 1933 that two fighters died in Nevada in the same year.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)