Monday MMA notebook – April 6, 2009
By Zach Arnold | April 6, 2009
MMA Junkie: Urijah Faber wants to test waters in both 135-pound and 155-pound divisions
As Mike Brown showed, Faber can get outmuscled by a 155-pounder cutting down to 145 pounds and if Faber goes up in weight, fighters like Tyson Griffin could gave him problems.
The Arizona Republic: Ryan Bader marks out for being in the upcoming UFC video game
“The experience was surreal, knowing that you’ll be immortalized in a video game pretty much forever. It’s crazy thing to think about. They scan every part of you body, the top of your hands, the bottom of your feet to create your character in the video game. It’s surreal, 50 years from now I can show my kids and grandkids I was in a video game.”
The LV Sun: Forrest Griffin still same guy despite ‘cover boy’ status
The inaugural “TUF” winner also confirmed his next bout is against Thiago Silva (13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) set for UFC 101 on Aug. 8 in Philadelphia.
“He’s tough and I think it’s gonna be a good fight,” Griffin said.
When asked if he was at all disappointed that he will miss out on the organization’s blowout event, UFC 100 in July, Griffin said, “he didn’t mind.”
Jake Rossen: Frank Shamrock-Nick Diaz means nothing, everthing (why is there no heat for this weekend’s fight?)
The fight itself appears destined to be three rounds of video game-style button-mashing. Diaz’s volume punching is probably not going to work against Shamrock, who escaped to stand-up training when his legs gave up on him. Likewise, Shamrock may have few answers (and not enough knee cartilage) if Diaz decides to shoot in on him. There’s never any complete guarantee against boredom, but these are not two guys who stand still and wait for something to happen.
Nikkan Sports: Claimed attendance for DREAM 8 with Sakurai beating Aoki was 9,129 in Nagoya
Sakurai heads to DREAM 10 on 7/20 at Saitama Super Arena. The 25-year old Aoki reflects what he will do next in his career.
Nightmare of Battle: Results for Sengoku training players event
Topics: DREAM, Japan, Media, MMA, Sengoku, StrikeForce, UFC, Zach Arnold | 6 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
A response to a Sporting News writer
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2009
I am turning comments off on this because this post is simply a matter of me responding to comments made by a Sporting News writer about the Dana White/YouTube rant situation.
I am tired of the story. I’m tired of talking about it. What I am not tired of, however, is pointing out the obvious to anyone who writes something about the fight business that is inaccurate or naive.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Frank Shamrock chose WrestleMania 25, while we choose WEC in Chicago
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2009
If you got as much air time as Frank Shamrock did tonight on the WrestleMania PPV next to Mickey Rourke, I’d say it was a good choice to make.
There were reports that Frank was at the WWE Hall of Fame show in Houston yesterday, as well.
Topics: Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 17 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Versus TV: WEC 4/5 Chicago fight card
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2009
Event results: AOL Fanhouse | Sherdog | MMA Weekly | MMA Torch | MMA Junkie | Bloody Elbow | Sports Illustrated | MMA For Real | MMA Convert
The main event is worth going out of your way to watch (between Miguel Torres and Takeuya Mizugaki). The judges had it 49-46 and 48-47 in favor of Miguel Torres at the end.
Update: Sports Navigator (Yahoo Japan) has an article on the WEC show — with an English title, Why no TV? — in regards to Akitoshi Tamura, Wagnney Fabiano, or Fredson Paixao fighting in dark matches.
Venue: UIC Pavilion, Network: Versus
Air time: Sunday (4/5), 9 PM EST
Dark matches
- Lightweights (155 pounds): Rafael Dias vs. Mike Budnik
- Bantamweights (135 pounds): Manny Tapia vs. Akitoshi Tamura
- Bantamweights (135 pounds): Eddie Wineland vs. Rani Yahya
- Featherweights (145 pounds): Wagnney Fabiano vs. Fredson Paixao
- Bantamweights (135 pounds): Dominick Cruz vs. Ivan Lopez
- Lightweights (155 pounds): Bart Palaszewski vs. Anthony Njokuani
Main card
- Bantamweights (145 pounds): Rafael Assuncao vs. Jameel Massouh
- Lightweights (155 pounds): Shane Roller vs. Ben Henderson
- Featherweights (135 pounds): Jeff Curran vs. Joseph Benavidez
- Featherweights (135 pounds): Miguel Torres vs. Takeya Mizugaki
Topics: Media, MMA, WEC, Zach Arnold | 8 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Paul Lazenby: The problem with unsanctioned MMA
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2009
This is a re-print of his article from tonight
In 2007 I warned the Vancouver City Council that refusing to sanction MMA was only going to force the athletes to compete at the whims of potentially unscrupulous promoters, and therefore present a great danger to their health. Tonight, my prediction was borne out at Mike Hammoud’s AMA mixed martial arts event in North Vancouver.
Columbia Martial Arts’ Amber Grant (see previous entry for more on Columbia) participated in last night’s Valley Fight event in Chilliwack where she was taken down, mounted and pounded into submission by Sarah Moras well within the first round. But that apparently didn’t concern Columbia’s head trainer Goldie Kalsi, because both he and Grant were in attendance at tonight’s even where Grant was once again competing in a MMA fight just 24 hours after her defeat to Moras.
I brought this to the attention of event promoter Mike Hammoud, but was met with a blank stare as if to say “So?”. When I repeated my concerns, he replied: “Well, she has no concussion so it’s okay”. When I asked him how he knew that she’d suffered no cranial damage since he was just then finding out about Grant’s previous bout, he took a call on his cell phone and turned his back to me.
This is EXACTLY the sort of thing that I was talking about when I warned Vancouver City Council that we needed sanctioning for MMA. For every promotion like Valley Fight that can be counted on to do the right thing without supervision, there are a dozen promoters like Hammoud who care not a whit about the safety of the athletes as long as there’s money coming in.
People like Kalsi and Hammoud are exactly what the sport of MMA doesn’t need, especially at a time when we’re still pursuing recognition as a valid, viable sport in Vancouver’s lower mainland.
Paul Lazenby
www.paullazenby.com
Response from Goldie Kalsi to Paul Lazenby: Read your comments and I feel you should get some of your facts right be for you make anyone look bad, because after I talked to a certain someone you sure changed your story quickly. Next time come to the source and you may not look like a chump!
Topics: Canada, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 9 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
A samping of feedback from UFC fans on Dana White’s YouTube rant
By Zach Arnold | April 3, 2009
I am posting this because I have been building up our presence on social networking sites to try to expand our reach to a new set of MMA fans. In other words, broaden the base.
When the Dana White YouTube issue broke, I figured that the sentiments would be somewhat in favor of Dana for what he said or didn’t say. What I didn’t expect was that amongst most casual MMA/UFC fans, the support for Dana would be as vociferous as it was/is and how much heat is being dished towards Loretta Hunt. Out of the hundreds of comments I’ve gotten on this story, I would say the split is about 80/20 in favor of Dana — and not just in favor of him, but a real personal backlash towards Loretta Hunt, ‘the media’, and a complete dismissal of the issue she brought up in the first place (UFC allegedly not credentialing certain agents/managers backstage at events — a claim that Dave Meltzer is now publicly saying Loretta may not be so wrong about after all).
One other observational note — I’ve noticed that the most vociferous supporters of Dana on this story have been women, not men.
Here is a sampling of some of the reaction I’ve received on this story:
Shannon Martin
I personally think anyone who talks shit about Dana white after everything he has done for the ufc is a peice of SHIT!!!There would be no ufc if it wasn’t for him!!
Glenn Williamson
so dana… tell us how you really feel? wouldnt have it been great if she was actually sitting right there in the room with him?
Suzy Cooper
I love Dana with my whole heart but I don’t think the entire world needs to always know what is on his mind… I hate the media for that very matter. I hate the fact that he is always saying something to piss everyone off! I hate the fact that the media feeds off his every word like sucker fish at the bottom of a scummy lake. It goes both ways in my book. He should keep his thoughts reserved and spare all of us fighters the grief of what we do for a living and spare the MMA World ridicule from outsiders who don’t understand our sport! MMA is the center for debate all around the world, not just here in America… I once heard from a wise person that stupid people say shit and wise people keep their mouths shut! Don’t fall into snares where people lure you in and be the bigger boy and walk away!
John Gifford
While I’m normally all for White’s outspokenness, there are times he needs to think before he speaks.
Name redacted (female)
Dana is human, if someone pissed me off that bad I would “speak” on it too. I saw the video and you know what, I think he has balls of steel to fight off publicity that are false. He has the right to say what he thinks, at least he isn’t afraid to say it. Everyone has opinions, good for you Dana for saying what is on your mind. People may not agree with it, and I am sure Loretta’s feelings are hurt. Im sure it was in the heat of the moment, will he regret it later? Who knows. At least he has the balls to say what is on his mind and defend his organization. On a positive note, Loretta Hunt’s name will be in the thoughts of many for a while to come. Publicity is publicity, good or bad, she got her name out there more. ultimately it won’t damage her career, people will take notice on what she writes for a while now. As for Dana, he is a cool cat and has emotions like everyone else.
James Breazeale
Dana White is the man Loretta Hunt is the bad person here shes the one who was talkin shit, all im sayin is Loretta Hunt got what she deserved.
Ryan Valdez
gotta be honest here guys, dana did what anyone would do if someone was publicizing shit that wasnt true or mad you look like an ass when your not! i think if you want to isolate things, dana is a hot head, dana can be a dick and talk lot like a tailor trash punk… BUT he made the UFC what it is and is a AMAZING business man, he has to be a dick to push down doors and get what the company needs, thats why he is not fired lol dont you guys get that lol you ever work with a big douche who is GREAT at his job and they wont fire him cause of it? they make a show like that called “HOUSE” hahaha, if you want to shit talk a BIG company with a dick at the head of it, better put your GLOVES ON and bring the FACTS!!! DING DING! stop being pussies people.
Stefanie
I don’t think it’s particularly fair to attack him for what he said during a heated rant. Perhaps the rant itself may have been out of place and unnecessary but I have heard plenty of decent people have similar things come out of their mouths in the heat of the moment. Someone is taking this and running with it because in this day and age the slightest politcally incorrect comment is fuel for a media wildfire backlash because they have nothing better to do.
Derek
He said what he felt so therefore i don’t feel he need say more on the subject.
Here is Sherdog’s official media statement in response to everything that has happened in the past 72 hours.
Jason Bent has an article on this story, bringing everything home full-circle.
Dana White knows that the UFC fighters are scared of him. There are abused children who fear spilling Daddy’s bourbon less than there are fighters who are willing to even raise an eyebrow at Dana White. Jon Fitch knows all about this, and I wouldn’t have been surprised if Fitch was brought in and forced to kiss Dana’s bare ass in much the same way that Randy Marsh had to kiss Jesse Jackson’s on an episode of ‘South Park.’
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 64 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
The obligatory Dana White ‘apology’ video
By Zach Arnold | April 3, 2009
Update: The apology video has now been yanked, but USA Today transcribed what White said in the video clip. Someone has put the Dana White apology video on Sendspace (download link here).
He chose the “if I offended anyone” route. The fact that I merely point this out will guarantee me 50 hate comments and message board heat all over the Internet. This video message was also kept at a minimum in terms of who White apologized to — nothing about Loretta Hunt, who was the target of Dana’s wrath in the first place. Give him points for consistency, at least. Ivan Trembow points out the obvious:
(White) even offers a justification of sorts for his words against (Loretta) Hunt by saying, “Anybody who knows me knows that I would never, ever maliciously attack someone who wasn’t attacking me.” So if he perceives that someone is attacking him, then it’s okay for him to say all of those things that he said about Hunt?
Since ESPN is covering this story on their news ticker and Around the Horn host Tony Reali is an MMA fan, the chance that this story pops up on either ATH or Pardon the Interruption on Friday is probably a good bet to make. Plus, it should be noted that even though ESPN outsources most of their MMA coverage to Sherdog, the fact is that an attack on a Sherdog writer now will get the attention of ESPN — which is not a good thing for UFC.
Dana’s new video has been combined with a video message from Nashville:
Dave Meltzer is reporting the following tonight:
*White will be doing no more video blogs
*White has pulled out of doing a reality show based on his life that was scheduled to start filming
*He is going to cut back greatly on dealing with the media and greatly reduce his public role in the company
I expect that all of these bullet points will have an expiration date. A short one, likely.
One other salient point to make about the development of media coverage on this story — if it wasn’t for GLAAD and their organized set-up of contacting media outlets and getting the message out, this story would have never been picked up by the mainstream media. Perhaps Alex Marvez would have discussed it on Fox Sports without GLAAD talking about it, but once GLAAD started zeroing on this then everything else started to fall into place.
Related posts:
- Nicki Jhabvala (Sports Illustrated): Dana White’s tirade simply embarrassing
- The media focuses on Dana White’s comments on Loretta Hunt
- GLAAD: Dana White & UFC need to apologize
- You can always tell when an attack is effective…
- UFC and labor relations
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 52 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Report: UltimateBet gets UFC sponsorship deal, bye bye Full Tilt Poker
By Zach Arnold | April 2, 2009
Bluff Magazine has the details:
“We’re mega excited to have our logo associated with Kampmann, a master of his craft and one of UFC’s world class fighters,” said an UltimateBet spokesperson. “Our collaboration with ‘The Hitman’ continues our inroads into some of the highest rating pay-per-view sports shows on air, and we’re pulling no punches when it comes to any opportunity to get involved with UFC.”
Phil Hellmuth and Dana White — what a combination. As long as we keep Phil away from fast cars and Harley Davidsons, everything should be OK.
So what happened between UFC & Full Tilt Poker?
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 4 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
The media focuses on Dana White’s comments on Loretta Hunt
By Zach Arnold | April 2, 2009
Update (evening of 4/2): ESPN is now running an item on their news ticker crawl talking about White’s YouTube video rant against Loretta Hunt.
- ESPN: Dana White uses slurs in video blog
- The LA Times: UFC chief is criticized for video rant
- Jamie Penick: The fear of repercussions not instilled in Dana White
- Dan Lamothe: UFC President Dana White — a Red Sox fans with an edge
- USA Today/AP: Dana White blasts reporter in profanity-laced Web video
- Kevin Iole: Dana White’s unfortunate words hurt UFC (read Ivan Trembow’s accurate rebuttal here)
- Fox Sports: UFC boss curses out female reporter in tirade
- Alex Marvez: Dana White’s rant sends UFC down dangerous path
Note what Alex Marvez said in his Fox Sports article — it’s the same point I’ve been making on here for the last 24 hours, and it’s a point that has fallen on deaf ears for most of White’s defenders:
In other pro sports leagues — the ones that White wants to have the UFC mentioned along with — these are the kinds of comments that would get a commissioner fired. I don’t expect the promotion to take that step with White, who is a part-owner of UFC’s parent company.
Right now, there seems to be happiness that MMA is a business that gets a little mainstream media attention but not enough to actually justify criticism of some of the things that happens in the industry. The American sports media has never treated the MMA scene like the Japanese media has.
You probably won’t be surprised to find out about this item from USA Today:
“Even his use of anti-gay langauge has precedent; Randy Couture’s autobiography Becoming the Natural — which was co-written with Hunt — claims that White used similiar terminology to describe Couture’s agents.”
However, as I heard from a few sports media writers today, what really stirred the pots in terms of attention towards this story was the fact that Deadspin picked it up.
Apparently, Dana White will now issue an apology on YouTube.
Given that I try to look at issues from a different perspective, there is one perspective about this incident that has given me some pause — the reaction from those defending Dana White.
I’ve followed and written about MMA since the early 90s. It’s a business that I’ve always had a passion for. From its stone age to the current UFC-dominated period now, I’ve witnessed the changes in the MMA audience as far as who’s following the business and who isn’t anymore. I now have to ask myself, after witnessing such vociferous and strong defenders of Dana White’s comments, the following questions:
- Am I out of touch with the current MMA fan base?
- Am I not serving this audience what they want?
- Is this audience truly a reflection of what the bigger picture looks like?
If the answer to those questions is yes, then I have to re-assess the business and what topics I write about. After all, it is my job is to understand what the audience is and give them what they want. I have to think about issues like these sometimes.
I ask these questions because of a comment like this (start with comment #2):
Geezus…….who really cares besides rump rangers and lesbos? not exacty the ufc’s demographics. why dana would even acknowledge this organazation is beyond me. let’em go cry in thier appletinis and tofu. he wasn’t aiming his tirade at anyone but the dumb b!tch who wrote that article in the first place. is she apologizing for the mis-information in her column? no? much ado about nothing!
Or this:
This is all overblown, Dana White just talks like normal people do. If you watch any UFC shows or TUF you are bound to hear him use some off color language, and this video blog was nothing different.
Practically everybody i know talks like this in private or with their friends, they are just words, not meant to slander women or gays or anything like that.If you dont like the way Dana talks, dont watch his blogs or his shows, that way you wont be offended
People need to get a life.
Related posts:
- Down the viral drain goes Dana White’s YouTube video on Loretta Hunt…
- GLAAD: Dana White & UFC need to apologize
- You can always tell when an attack is effective…
- UFC and labor relations
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 17 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Down the viral drain goes Dana White’s YouTube video on Loretta Hunt…
By Zach Arnold | April 2, 2009
… unless you’re like some MMA fans who downloaded the YouTube video clip. Someone put the YouTube clip of Dana White’s YouTube rant of Loretta Hunt on Sendspace for download right here. It’s an 11MB Windows Media Video file. I do not use Sendspace, but someone who captured the video from YouTube did upload it to that file service site. I’ll be fascinated to see if Zuffa’s legal team tries to get Sendspace to take it down by arguing that they own the copyrights to the footage and that even though the video was on YouTube, they still are the sole owners to the rights of the video. In other words, if someone makes a video public domain for everyone to see on YouTube, then yanks it down and others have already downloaded it, is it fair game for it to stay online as long as it’s not sold or modified?
Here is what MMA Payout readers saw last night:
And now here is what they saw early this morning:
I thought Dana White using slurs was cool? Hey, that was what I’ve been told all night long online…
Related posts:
- GLAAD: Dana White & UFC need to apologize
- You can always tell when an attack is effective…
- UFC and labor relations
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 67 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
You can always tell when an attack is effective…
By Zach Arnold | April 1, 2009
…by how loud a person squeals. Dana White understands what is at stake as far as labor relations in UFC is concerned.
Will there be any backlash by sponsors towards Dana White for his rant against Loretta Hunt? No. This is the same man who said that he didn’t need Coke, Coke needed him.
So what will hurt Dana White and UFC? The trend that their organization has gone through corporate sponsors left and right and has burnt several bridges publicly (t-shirt companies, toy makers, etc). The caveat emptor label is out there for sponsors who want to get involved in doing business with the company.
To address the initial argument about the purpose of managers and agents being backstage with their fighters… in most cases, it has to do with protecting their clients from promoters offering contracts and asking for signatures without legal representation. However, there are also other circumstances for agents to be present in front of fighters, and I noted a couple of these reasons when I did an article for CBS Sports about the drug problems in MMA. Mainly, during the PRIDE days, agents were concerned with drug testing procedures — including one agent publicly going on record for my article to claim that PRIDE promoters were encouraging the use of painkiller injections for a fighter… right before a fight.
In response to Brent Brookhouse asking why the media hasn’t jumped all over Dana White for what he said here, the reason is that most of the stick-and-ball media doesn’t pay attention to MMA. It’s a fringe sport for them. It’s not in their demographic zone, so they don’t care. They think MMA is barbaric in the first place, so why waste effort talking about it and promoting the business? As in the old adage, “Any publicity is good publicity.”
As I told a media friend a little while ago when talking about White’s rant, could you imagine Roger Goodell doing this towards a media writer in a video statement on the NFL web site if a reporter had written a story claiming the NFL was causing problems for players in the locker room? Every mainstream sports media writer would be banding together to go after Goodell, call for him to get out of the NFL, and go after the sponsors supporting the NFL.
Using a misogynistic or gay slur has nothing to do with media bias. Dana White is not a super hero because he is using this type of speech against a media writer. Furthermore, I find it amazing that UFC supporters are treating White the same way ECW supporters used to treat Paul Heyman when he would go on his rants. This “he’s speaking truth to power!” vibe from White’s defenders here is laughable considering that we have UFC on one side and the ‘power’ here is supposedly Sherdog.
In any other sport, the manner in which Dana White attacked Loretta Hunt would simply not be tolerated. However, because it’s MMA, the media doesn’t take it seriously despite the strong numbers the sport attracts amongst younger fans. Just look at the attacks made in the comment section of this Yahoo Sports post. I think the tone UFC supporters are using to defend White (as opposed to the actual act of defending him) is disheartening, even if the idiots are keyboard warriors.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 45 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Masato will have retirement match on K-1 NYE ’09 show
By Zach Arnold | April 1, 2009
He officially announced his retirement intentions today at a press conference in Tokyo. There will be an exhibition match involving “The Second Masato” HIROYA on 4/21 at Fukuoka Marine Messe, in which the media focus on Masato’s retirement will start building up for the next eight months. Masato is set to fight at the K-1 MAX Nippon Budokan show this July, and then the retirement match on 12/31.
Topics: Japan, K-1, Media, Zach Arnold | 6 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
UFC and labor relations
By Zach Arnold | April 1, 2009
Regarding this new Sherdog report claiming that some managers & agents are being kept away from their clients (fighters) backstage at Zuffa events…
The only surprise here, in my mind, is that it didn’t happen sooner.
The Jon Fitch/video game rights licensing debacle last year was a test for UFC and they won hands down. They got what they wanted and Fitch was dressed down in public fashion. Same deal with the American Kickboxing Academy. Doesn’t matter if in the end it was a blow-up over nothing, the fact is that UFC got what they wanted and were willing to go to the mat to make a point. What repercussions have they suffered from last year’s little 24-hour incident? None. Nobody on the Internet is going to stop anything Zuffa does as far as their business practices are concerned.
Let’s call a spade a spade right now. In the MMA scene, most MMA agents and managers are powerless to Zuffa. They show little-to-no backbone. There’s no united front. What are they going to do to stop Zuffa from getting fighters to sign ‘backstage deals’ without legal representation? Nothing, that’s what.
However, there is a clear and present danger with UFC’s behavior here. The two dangers are:
- This kind of behavior by UFC will hasten the process of fighters aligning with higher-name, more powerful agents. (Think about what Georges St. Pierre recently did with CAA — it will happen with more fighters.)
- A fighter with nothing to lose will take UFC to court in Nevada and obliterate the current contractual structure of deals between Zuffa LLC and its fighters.
In order for the second option to happen, it’s going to have to come in the form of a lawsuit from a fighter who a) is likely on his way towards retirement, b) has a big bankroll, and c) has a lot of patience. So far, nobody in the fight business has demonstrated these three qualities together. If a fighter does step up to the plate and this happens, then there’s trouble for UFC… that is until they throw substantial money at that fighter to settle, which of course the fighter (and his lawyer) will want to do, and then we’re back to square one. So, in addition to the three characteristics mentioned up above, you would also need a fighter who has a backbone and no desire to further his career advancement in Zuffa in-or-out of the cage.
The scenario much more likely to happen is that fighters start to ditch the ‘old guard’ of MMA agents and managers and start making their move towards big sports agents/agencies like The Poston Brothers, Scott Boras, Leigh Steinberg, Drew Rosenhaus, or the William Morris agency. Once that starts happening, then UFC will face a labor relations strain that could jeopardize its business model. You would also face the prospects of bigger agents getting together to form a players association-type group for MMA fighters (similar to what Rob Maysey is trying to accomplish right now), which would bring us down the road to breaking UFC’s ability to hire fighters as independent contractors instead of actually treating the men like employees. Put yourself in the shoes of someone like Leigh Steinberg looking at a UFC fighter contract — the fighter is an ‘independent contractor’ yet Zuffa basically treats the fighter as their exclusive property, has rights to their likeness for video games and merchandising, has clauses for champions involving static salaries for title defenses once a contract runs out/expires and the fighter is still the champion, and the company doesn’t pay the fighter a salary when they’re not fighting.
As far as what the blogs or web sites say, it’s white noise as far as Zuffa is concerned. As far as the broadsheet media goes, they don’t give a damn about Zuffa’s business practices. If UFC can sell copy or bring in new ad revenue for them in exchange for coverage of events, then it will be performed without remorse. The real revolution needs to start amongst the fighters and the representation they choose to use to manage their careers. You get what you pay for, and right now the old guard of MMA agents and managers are looking pretty powerless. Once the current crop of agents are replaced by the David Falks of the world, then we’ll see Zuffa start to react more favorably towards their talent when it comes to business practices outside of the cage.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 35 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |