Report: Faber vs. Pulver II set for 1/25 in San Diego
By Zach Arnold | November 25, 2008
Five Ounces of Pain has more details.
On one level, the booking makes sense. It gives Faber a chance to get a win back against an opponent he thoroughly dominated. It also gives Pulver the chance at one last big pay day. It also ensures that we’re going to see Mike Brown vs. Leonard Garcia for the 145-pound title, which is interesting because Garcia has a good shot at winning that fight. If the thought process is that Brown can get a win over Garcia to build up his name value, it is a somewhat risky move. I do think Garcia vs. Faber is an attractive match-up and more winnable for Faber than if he had to face Brown in a re-match.
The fight is also a minor kick-in-the-pants for Affliction, which runs the Honda Center the day before with Fedor vs. Arlovski.
Addendum: Joe Silva is handling more of the booking now in WEC, reportedly.
Topics: Media, MMA, WEC, Zach Arnold | 9 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Video: Dana White’s commercial for UFC VIP Experience auction package
By Zach Arnold | November 25, 2008
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 4 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Learning the value of real fighter representation
By Zach Arnold | November 25, 2008
It’s perfectly understood that in this current UFC-dominated MMA climate that if UFC wants to push you as a star, then you will be perceived by the public as a star. If they don’t want to push you as a star, then you likely won’t be seen as a star. Ask any wrestler who works in WWE about this mentality.
So, the comments that UK fighter Dan Hardy made to Eurosport seem innocuous at first. However, they represent a mindset of your typical fighter that doesn’t understand the true value of agent representation:
“I’d like to think they had a plan for me. I think the UFC realise my potential, but at the end of the day I have to get in there and win the fights. And they are all tough fights in the UFC as all the best fighters in the world are here.
“Either way, if there is a plan to market me like Bisping or if there isn’t, then that’s fine with me. My job is still the same; to go out there and beat people up. I don’t think that it means there will be any extra pressure on me; no more than I put on myself anyway.”
I am reminded of a quote that BJ Penn said last week to the Hawaiian media, which is that he always looked at himself for years as just a ‘fighter’ but only recently figured out that there’s a difference between being a professional fighter and just a fighter.
As the business matures and more fighters realize the value of good representation (like Georges St. Pierre has by signing with CAA for business opportunities), hopefully fewer fighters will fully vest 100% of their business hopes into the golden goose that is UFC.
Josh Gross of Sports Illustrated puts last week’s Dana White/Jon Fitch skirmish into perspective:
Here’s the bottom line: the UFC got what it wanted. Fitch signed, and now other fighters are keenly aware of what could happen if they don’t do the same.
Effective? Apparently. Pretty? Not exactly, especially with White going after Fitch and his teammates at AKA the way he did. Can you imagine the backlash David Stern or Roger Goodell would feel for publicly cursing out a player in their respective leagues? Perhaps the nature of the fight business gives White some leeway. Boxing has long been a haven for characters, and MMA is proving to be no different.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, UK, Zach Arnold | 21 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Cage fighting obsession reaches kids
By Zach Arnold | November 24, 2008
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Update on PRIDE FC WW vs. Sakakibara lawsuit
By Zach Arnold | November 24, 2008
At least, an update on the lawsuit filed by PRIDE FC Worldwide Holdings LLC against Dream Stage Entertainment Inc. (Nobuyuki Sakakibara) in Clark County, Nevada (Las Vegas).
There will be a discovery conference on December 5th at 9 AM involving both sides. In short, this means that there will be a meeting to lay out the process of discovery in regards to gathering evidence for the lawsuit (including possible court-imposed limitations or parameters for discovery including electronically-stored information such as e-mail records).
Topics: Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, UFC, Zach Arnold | 2 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Affliction 2 card in real need of drawing power
By Zach Arnold | November 24, 2008
If this is the card so far, it needs a lot of help to draw more than 20,000 PPV buys:
Top two fights: Fedor vs. Arlovski and Lindland vs. Babalu
Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Kiril Sidelnikov vs. Paul Buentello
Chris Horodecki vs. Dan Lauzon
Jay Hieron vs. Jason High
Mark Hominick vs. LC Davis
Antonio Duarte vs. Albert Rios
First thought: Arlovski and Babalu are the two strongest drawing cards on this line-up and they’ve been out of UFC for too long to make any impact for an organization with no television deal.
There is no need for UFC President Dana White to lose any sleep over the competition with cards like these.
Update: Brent Brookhouse thinks this show will do more than 100,000 buys. I stand by my estimate of 20,000 buys.
Topics: Affliction, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 55 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Skepticism about UFC heading to Germany
By Zach Arnold | November 24, 2008
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 23 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Guardian columnist winces at UFC’s rise and boxing’s decline
By Zach Arnold | November 23, 2008
Hey, Gary Shaw, I thought you said there were no ‘haters’ in boxing:
And there in the celebrity seats was Hatton, who started in kick-boxing, loving it. ‘They know how to put on a show,’ he said . Not far away was Wayne McCullough, who has lived in Las Vegas since moving from Belfast 16 years ago. He won a world boxing title – and might have got the decision against Naseem Hamed – but is better recognised among this crowd as an ‘ambassador’ for Ultimate Fighting Championship.
‘Come and see it,’ he says . ‘It’s great stuff. You’ll love it.’
Yes, I tell him, but for the love of Mike, this is like watching your mates fight outside the pub on a Saturday night. And that might be why it’s popular – which is a depressing commentary on the fading attraction of boxing, a sport that, for all its faults, is still an art.
Professional boxing needs America. If the fight game doesn’t shake off its lethargy soon, it runs the risk of being swamped by these bastard children of the fighting game. You won’t find many Jeremiahs within the boxing business tipping garbage on their own heads, though. They continue to talk a good fight. Why wouldn’t they? It’s their living. But it’s not the crazy, wonderful game it was and anyone who says it is more than likely has invested a lot of someone else’s money in it.
Topics: Boxing, Media, MMA, UFC, UK, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Brock Lesnar’s Midwestern charm
By Zach Arnold | November 22, 2008
The Pioneer Press out of Minnesota has a profile story on Brock Lesnar meeting a 23-year old new Mom who hunted a deer on her family property and promptly named it The Lesnar Buck.
“Everybody knows I’m a deer hunter, and when I read this lady named a deer after me, I said, ‘That’s cool. I want to meet her,’ ” Lesnar said.
The Gustafsons and Lesnars chatted about deer hunting, ultimate fighting and Peyton’s charming demeanor. The baby was dressed in a camouflage fleece snowsuit, and all the Gustafsons wore camo hunting jackets.
Lesnar apologized for being late. “I left the heavyweight belt back at the other house and I had to drive back and get it,” he said sheepishly. He was still sporting five stitches over his right eye from the Couture fight.
Will the message boards go crazy and start calling Mr. Lesnar a ‘belt mark’ like they did for Tim Sylvia? Nah…
The champion had time to to watch Kevin Garnett return to Minnesota, as the Boston Celtics beat up on the hapless Timberwolves.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 5 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Michael Rome: Chuck Liddell wants to move to UFC’s Heavyweight Division
By Zach Arnold | November 22, 2008
Some questions/thoughts to ponder:
- Let’s say that Couture vs. Liddell does happen… again. Is there strong enough interest in the fight? Both men are on the decline, and the last time Randy lost… well, everyone thought he was retiring, only for him to come back as a heavyweight. I’m not sure what the money storyline would be here other than the tagline of “this is match four between the two men.”
- Is the move by Liddell basically putting off the inevitable, which is that he’s going to have to retire within the next couple of years? He’s coming off the torn hamstring, has knee issues, and his reflexes are getting a little slower in the cage. Against anyone with speed and a solid game plan, Liddell’s toast. (Just hire Greg Jackson to coach you for a fight against Liddell and you’ll win) So, is the hope essentially that Liddell will be able to use ‘speed’ against more powerful heavyweights like Cain Velasquez? That’s a gamble.
- If Liddell does beat Couture in match four, then Dana White faces a situation where Liddell would have to face Brock Lesnar. UFC President Dana White is Chuck Liddell’s biggest fan, but would he turn on him and completely side with Lesnar as far as winning being the best for the company’s bottom line? I ask this question for one reason… consider Brock Lesnar’s past track record when he’s on top of whatever athletic endeavor he has been involved in… would you be willing to trust him 100% given what he’s done in the past?
- Mr. Rome claims that UFC was not happy with the buyrate of UFC 90 (Anderson Silva vs. Patrick Cote), so the dreams of sugar plums dancing in the heads of UFC management was dashed. What a lousy deal that is for Silva — the UFC 90 PPV was doomed from the start because it had such a weak card line-up. It was a dog of a show. They’re not happy that Silva couldn’t reportedly draw more than 300,000 PPV buys for that deal? Even if Dave Meltzer’s report is true that the top cities that UFC did PPV buys in for the UFC 90 show were all Canadian, how is that Anderson Silva’s fault?
- Back to Couture/Liddell… it seems like UFC management is going to try to ride this one down to the ground like Vince McMahon rode down Hulk Hogan/Randy Savage in the late 80s, huh?
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 19 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Brandon Vera’s job security in UFC
By Zach Arnold | November 22, 2008
Vera said Frank Trigg should be vice president, and the man who should be president is UFC President Dana White: “I think we would be clear of debt, we would probably own Canada and Mexico and South America, and everybody else would be paying us royalties for us not to invade their country,” Vera said.
Well, things didn’t work out so well for UFC President Dana White in Japan…
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 12 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Today’s chalkboard: Jake Shields, Dana White, and UFC business matters
By Zach Arnold | November 21, 2008
I’ll add more links throughout the day.
Elite XC 170-pound champion Jake Shields says that he’s a free agent now:
“My 30 days is up today,” Shields said on Thursday. “Today I consider myself a free agent. EliteXC still has no reply, but as far as the contract goes, I’m a free agent today.”
“My dad manages me,” Shields said. “He’s just started looking around today. Obviously the UFC being the top show that I’m looking at, but I’m definitely going to look around a little bit. Hopefully I’ll be signed somewhere in the next month and be fighting within two or three months.”
Honolulu Star Bulletin: UFC President Dana White says taxes make running a show in Hawaii untenable.
Plus, a wacky Dana quote:
“When we do live fights, Hawaii is the equivalent of everybody who has a … television watches the fights in Hawaii,” White said. “The numbers we pull out of here are like ‘American Idol’ numbers in the United States.
Sam Caplan: Focus on the bigger picture here with UFC’s firing and re-hiring of Jon Fitch:
While listening and reading some of UFC president Dana White’s emotionally charged diatribes, I did not get the feeling that what was taking place was calculated. It was madness without any sort of method and that is unacceptable from a company with a market cap as big as the UFC’s. And don’t tell me how other companies in MMA have acted unprofessionally in the past because the UFC has always strived for something better.
White’s tirades coupled with the news that Fitch worked out his UFC issues with Zuffa CEO Lorenzo Fertitta instead of White has prompted many to speculate that Dana was solely responsible for the situation. There’s a theory that Fertitta performed damage control yesterday and cleaned up Dana’s mess. While that may be the case, I’m not so sure. Maybe I’m naive, but I don’t think a company makes a politically charged decision such as cutting an 8-1 fighter over a management dispute without consulting its majority ownership.
Ivan Trembow – UFC proof of fear, intimidation, and making examples out of people
The message to fighters was clear: If you want to keep fighting in the UFC, but your manager or lawyer advises you against signing this merchandising agreement or any other contractual agreement that may arise in the future, you can and should just circumvent your manager, contact the UFC directly, and sign whatever we tell you to sign.
The attitude of, “Where else is he going to go?” combined with the lack of a fighters’ union or any form of collective bargaining will ensure that the fighters can’t, as Fitch put it, “stand up for their rights” without permanently crippling their careers. And as long as that’s the case, the UFC is going to continue to prey on that.
The fact that this has been horrible P.R. for the UFC doesn’t appear to matter to them. They have succeeded in sending a strong message to any fighter or manager who is even thinking about refusing to sign anything that the UFC orders them to sign in the future. The UFC got what they wanted, and they got it the same way that they often get what they want in contract negotiations: Through fear, intimidation, and making examples out of people.
Topics: Media, MMA, Pro Elite, UFC, Zach Arnold | 21 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Jon Fitch signs video game agreement, is back in UFC
By Zach Arnold | November 20, 2008
What a hard bargain that was driven here by team AKA. Hard negotiators those folks.
Silly us for actually caring about fighters. However, all of the issues raised in the spat are not silly and will need to be addressed soon enough — that is, if any fighter has the gumption for a real protracted war against UFC, which clearly no one so far has demonstrated. Luke Thomas comments.
I do find that the good cop, bad cop UFC management routine is an amusing spectacle to watch. Almost as amusing as watching other MMA fight camps kiss The Dana’s ass when it comes to business dealings.
Leave it to Total MMA to sum things up: Zuffa is just acting like an employer; Jon Fitch is just acting stupid.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 27 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |