It was clear from the start when Fishman brought PRIDE shows to Las Vegas that he not only wanted in the business, he thought the business was very conducive to the casino world and was a perfect match. From what I understand, he is quickly learning a lot of things about the business and is a legitimate fan of it. How much that translates over into whatever he ends up doing MMA-wise, we’ll see.

Why are you so sure that Ed Fishman is going to create an MMA organization? Because he has so much money? And secondly, why do you think it will be able to rival the UFC? What are your exact opinions on the matter?

The reason why I ask is that the Ed Fishman thing sounds very similar to Calvin Ayre’s foray into MMA with the exciting BodogFight. He has, I believe, alot more money than Ed Fishman, and he has operated globally. What makes you think that Ed Fishman can do what he cannot?

Arlovski has lost his luster. The “Pitbull” is a myth. He dominanted a UFC division that was weak and pathetic. The new UFC division is too stacked. He had his chance to prove something in the fight with Werdum and he didn’t. He lost his bargaining power when he showed up not to lose.

What headache? They already paid him off a long time ago.

I’m trying to figure out now where I got that sense. If I find the reference I’ll post it.

After some digging, I THINK it was the No Holds Barred interview with Gary Shaw in January, but they take down the older shows, so it’s no longer in the archive.

Zach, you were clearly right about the fighter contracts and Zuffa’s inability to make PRIDE work in Japan, but the Fishman lawsuit was hardly what “squashed” a revival of PRIDE.

If Fishman had been able to get the Fertittas, Dana, Hendrick, and others under deposition, it would have opened a whole new can of worms. He would have attempted to prove that somehow Zuffa undercut him and his contract with DSE Inc. For UFC, why bother putting up with that headache? They already got most of the guys they wanted, so just end the PRIDE project and end the headache with Fishman. The problem is that they paid DSE Inc. for the PRIDE assets and they probably didn’t imagine that their money would be going into Fishman’s pockets.

So Zach, what do you mean when you say they are disorganized? The next HERO’S card has Sakuraba, Kid Yamamoto, Minowa, and Uno fighting already, it seems to me like they are making a major play to fill that void.

HEROs is disorganized from a matchmaking standpoint and also from a total business standpoint. Right now, the purpose those MMA shows serve is basically for K-1 to fulfill their lucrative TV contracts with Tokyo Broadcasting System. Outside of the MMA events being “contents,” there’s really no creative direction or purpose to the shows.

If so, then he may find that he’s going to have an uphill battle establishing a new promotion because his past pattern (hooking up with an established promotion that has fighters, then setting up local shows and media) is going to be really hard to reproduce since ProElite is honeying up to everyone except UFC and IFL.

I would imagine Fishman is going to run alone and will hire his own employees from other promotions. Unless, of course, someone like Scott Coker can get his foot in the door.

I’m also not convinced that Fishman is solely an American-only play. He has a lot of interests in Russia, HK, Macau, and other Asian countries.

What is Fishman’s relationship with HBO? Are other promotions in talks with HBO? This is the wildcard TV deal that could really hurt UFC. That is why Dana White is still after the deal in my opinion.

I hadn’t heard that. Who are you referring to?