Also, it’s very interesting to me how when a beloved MMA fighter makes a decision fans don’t agree with, they throw it on someone else. Randy never would have had problems with Zuffa if Kim didn’t get involved in his business affairs. Tito wouldn’t have made outlandish demands for money if Jenna didn’t get in his ear. And now Fedor’s entire life is decided by his manager? All 3 of those men are reasonably intelligent from what we’ve seen, they make the final decision because they want to, not because they’re subservient to a master. Vadim, Jenna and Kim obviously chipped in their two cents to Fedor, Tito and Randy, but they did not make the decision for them. It’s a copout to say “I’ll credit you for your good points but blame the bad ones on somebody else.”

And I don’t see any reason to say they aren’t real.

Maybe 30 mil is based on the fight/win instead of a guaranteed amount, other than that, it’s just silly presuming that it’s a total fiction. UFC is offering him money, it’s a fair bet that it’s more than anyone else has ever made in the sport, and he would be treated as the top fighter in their stable, hands down.

Anything other than that is spin.

If those figures are correct then Fedor would be foolish to not accept them. He will never come close to making $5 million per fight outside of the UFC. Dream or Strikeforce can’t provide even a million dollar contract unless they revert to the PPV model which will fail. Fans are only going to buy PPVs in North America and only if they are promoted by the UFC.

There has to be more to this, maybe those six fights are not guaranteed?

At this point I don’t really see the champions clause as a big deal because fighters will not earn more then $5 million per fight in the next five years. If we look at the UFC PPV numbers, the top guys might deserve $10 million + contracts but ZUFFA will never allow them to earn that much and nothing outside of the UFC will be as lucrative. The only guy who might force them into giving out Tyson type paydays is Brock if he puts on a long winning streak. Fedor will never be the cross-over star that Brock is, even if he beats him.

It wouldn’t make sense for Fedor to go to Strikeforce and only earn 1.5 million. What can they and Showtime possibly offer M-1? Also I don’t see how M-1 made much of a profit from co-promoting with Affliction since the PPVs tanked.

If the offer is real then Fedor’s team will accept and they are just currently haggling over some other points, probably trying to guarantee the contract.

In boxing many people believe Muhammad Ali or Sugar Ray Robinson were the best ever. But nobody lists either of them at thetop of the list of active fighters.

If Fedor doesn’t go to UFC he will still be the best ever. For now. But he should no longer be ranked the top current heavyweight.

It is concievable that Brock beats Velasquez, Carwin, nog or Randy again, Cro Cop, Machida, Tito Ortiz and Anderson Silva. That cod be his next three years. Or one of the other guys could amass the same resume. That fighter would then trump Fedor on the all time great list. Fedor avoiding UFC would aid in that argument.

Followed by “ok, they are not dumb, they didn’t turn it down”.”

Okay…

So far, how many media outlets and message board posters have said, “OMG! How could anyone turn that money down?!?”? A lot.

So far, how many media outlets and message board posters have said, “ok, they are not dumb, they didn’t turn it down” so far? Not very many.

Is your argument really that more people are going to express the latter sentiment than the former sentiment?

I didn’t call anyone a dumbfuck (I’ll leave the name-callin to you, Michael), but if you don’t think that most UFC fans would flat-out believe Dana White’s word over M-1 Global’s word, then you must pay very little attention to the MMA media or to comment posters, and I don’t think that is the case.