Showing posts with label MMA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MMA. Show all posts
Monday, January 12, 2015
FIGHT NEWS UNLIMITED HAS MOVED
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Jon Jones' Positive Cocaine Test Makes Zuffa's Random Drug Testing Departure A Peculiar Choice
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By: Rich Bergeron
Hearing Zuffa would be abandoning a planned random drug testing protocol for all fighters under contract with the company was strange enough without the recent news about Jon Jones testing positive for cocaine metabolites in early December of last year. After all, this was a smart, sensible and well-constructed testing program that's now being cut short, and snagging Jones should be a reason why it's more important to follow through with the program rather than ending it. Additionally, all the company brass seemed doggedly committed to carrying the program out, especially in light of statements made by Georges St. Pierre when he walked away from the promotion and the sport of MMA itself.
Instead of doing the right thing, though, the UFC will reportedly now provide funds to athletic commissions instead, expecting those agencies to accomplish all future testing of UFC fighters.
The initial message sent by announcing this monumental random testing program was crystal clear in terms of where the UFC wanted to go. No fighter would be able to escape the new testing regimen as it was first presented. Consider Lorenzo Fertitta's own bold comments on the issue (which he offered in the immediate wake of Cung Le's false-positive test):
"Actually it's becoming less of a problem. We've stepped up our game testing. For the athletes, there's nowhere else to hide. Now, we're testing all guys on a card. It used to be random testing for a few guys on the card. The next step is to random test all 500 athletes, several times a year. We're sending a message: if you're cheating, you'll get caught, suspended and fined. We want the sport to be clean."Apparently, Fertitta was not really willing to put his money where his mouth was on the testing front. He also neglected to mention that if a top-level UFC athlete tested positive for traces of an illegal street drug, there would be more than one place to hide. For Jones, the first place would be a drug treatment program he voluntarily checked himself into. Next, Jones could count on his Zuffa bosses to let him hide behind the coat-tails of the organization itself. Dana White even offered his support, assuring UFC fans that the champion would fight this drug addiction just as efficiently as he fights his opponents in the cage.
Jones is the purest definition of a "company man" who is in some ways bigger than the promotion itself, but not quite untouchable enough to be immune from being told what to do and when to do it. Whenever a major sponsor comes along that wants to get involved with the UFC, the company usually calls on Jones to sign one of the first blockbuster deals with that sponsor. He's even been sponsored by the promotion itself. Of course, he can say no to the brass, but in most cases he has every reason to give in and be the face of the organization when they ask him to be. This very kind of favoritism and unflinching, look-the-other-way support that their poster boy is getting right now is just what Jones expects in return for artfully toeing the company line. So, that's exactly what he's getting.
So far there's been no talk of a suspension of Jones from the UFC, despite countless other cases of fighters who had much less significant incidents result in much harsher punishment. Still, the Nevada State Athletic Commission is not ruling out potential punishment for the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. The lack of consequences for Jones is not as important, however, as the message sent to all UFC fighters about cocaine use in general:
If there really is no formal penalty for ingesting "nose candy," isn't publicizing that reality bound to lead to more fighters consuming the drug instead of other alternatives or traditional PEDS? So, now there has to be a great case for making some anti-cocaine legislation, new company policy, or some other prohibitive measure to adequately address and curtail cocaine use by fighters. Even then, Jon Jones will be exempt from whatever punishment might result from any adjustment of the status quo.
The reality is that White's explanations about getting out of the random testing business because of Cung Le's false positive test for HGH doesn't hold water when matched up with the actual circumstances involved with Cung Le's testing. First of all, Le's testing issues came from day-of-fight tests. The UFC did not order these tests as part of any traditional "random" or "out of competition" testing protocol. The Cung Le testing issue arose from a situation that confronts the UFC whenever they put on a show in a location where there is no commission that oversees mixed martial arts competition. All those cases call for the UFC itself to get the testing accomplished. So, to now say the commissions are going to do all the testing is disingenuous to say the least. No commission was involved with Cung Le's botched tests, and none will be involved in any testing if another fight card comes to Macau or any other no-commission locale.
In fact, it is a long-standing, official UFC policy to hire out local labs to test all fighters appearing on overseas cards. Former NSAC Chairman Mark Ratner, now a UFC executive, even went as far as announcing the promotion would refuse to pay out fight bonuses until all results from that testing came in.
This is especially interesting since Jon Jones received a Fight of the Night bonus for his recent win over Daniel Cormier, even though UFC officials obviously knew beforehand about the cocaine test.
Another frightening aspect involved in this scenario is the fact that White promised future tests will be faulty if the UFC continues to handle them. “Our legal team completely screwed that thing up,” White said about Le's false positive. "We have no business doing drug testing. We f----d it up, and we will f--k it up again. That’s what the commission is there to do.” (Editor's Note: Wait a second, is the commission there to test, or to f--k up the test?)
All lawyers of fighters who were once (or might soon be) bagged in the UFC's overseas testing for banned substances, please take notice of this monumental admission from "The Baldfather." It may be your ticket to an easy payday for you and your client.
It is very disappointing to see so many articles on the subject of the UFC abandoning their random testing plans without anyone bothering to point out that Cung Le's problems were not even the result of a random test. It just so happens that the announcement on the killing of the program came just before the year's first Pay-Per-View card for the UFC, which involved a fighter caught up in a real case of random testing. The decision to scrap random testing also came in the wake of multiple stories pointing out the UFC's revenue struggles in 2014, mainly due to fighters pulling out of huge bouts due to injuries. While the losses from cancelled or postponed fights might not be back-breaking for the world's most powerful MMA promotion, it's still concerning for everyone invested in the company. This is an organization run by people who now fully realize that calling off and/or rescheduling fights is bad for business, period.
If more top-level fighters were to be caught up in random testing snags, that could create more financial instability. Some of these tests could create even more damaging cancellations and more rescheduling, losing the UFC way more money than they would miss out on by looking the other way.
It's bad enough that the mainstream MMA media continues to maintain their UFC lapdog status by failing to point out the reality behind the Cung Le situation, but what's worse is they don't even call into question Dana White blaming everything on the UFC legal team. Really? Why does the legal team have anything to do with arranging drug testing? It makes more sense to have a guy like Ratner in charge of those kind of issues with the legal team just checking off on it. Even before Le joined a class action lawsuit against the UFC, stories surfaced to reveal that the UFC did not even bother to employ a lab that was approved by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for the testing of fighters appearing on the Macau card.
The Jones debacle obviously proves beyond any reasonable doubt that random drug testing IS WORKING and should continue if the UFC really does want to promote a "clean" sport. Unfortunately, the mere fact that Jones was tested for a substance that is not banned out of competition is being called an "administrative oversight" by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. So, it's not so much the story that Jones messed up here. It's really the athletic commission's fault for going above and beyond the call of duty.
To borrow a phrase from ESPN Monday Night Football: "C'mon, Man!" If it's really about making the sport better and the well-being of the athletes involved in combat sports, "banned" and "illegal" should be considered to be one and the same in this situation. Instead, this is being viewed as a fluke, and UFC fighters are now finding out that a little coke is not only permitted out of competition, but it's also not even supposed to be something commissions can test you for.
This is pure, unadulterated irony, because now it's a thousand times more urgent for the UFC to implement their own independent, random testing program. It's only natural that the company should want to prevent their stars from using and abusing illegal drugs. Giving Jones a free pass only encourages recreational cocaine use, and calling the fact that he was even tested an oversight is as good as apologizing to a person who purposely victimized himself.
The Jones case also proves that Dana White is lying through his teeth about Cung Le's false positive being the true impetus behind the decision to dump random drug testing. "Uncle Dana" claims to be a phenomenal poker player, but he can't bluff his way out of this mess.
Giving a little extra money to the commissions to complete the testing the company should get done on their own is a cop out, plain and simple. It's also another case of CYA in action, and it only has to go down this way because the UFC President is getting sick of announcing changes to fight cards. It has absolutely nothing to do with Cung Le.
Leaving all testing to "the regulators" also means that only those fighters slated to appear on a particular card will be subject to testing. Even if every fighter to appear on every future card were to be tested, what happens between fights? Fighters commonly use PEDs as a method to recover more quickly from injuries. Even in cases where a fighter is using banned substances just to gain an unfair advantage in training, most of the time the user knows exactly when to taper off in time to avoid getting busted by a local commission. Some camps might even employ doctors or medical technicians to advise them on the best protocol to follow in order to avoid detection. Therefore, the best way to catch users is to test them when they least expect it, when there is no fight coming up.
The only sensible way to do this testing is exactly how Lorenzo Fertitta said it should and would be done: for all the fighters under contract with the promotion, multiple times per year. Any other approach just affirms that the UFC is not interested at all in providing a cleaner competitive environment. If getting there translates to the potential of more drastic alterations to future fight cards and more lost revenue, it's not happening. And it's all Cung Le's fault.
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Is Bellator Bound to Fail?
By: Rich Bergeron
The only organization in Mixed Martial Arts that still tries to really compete with The Ultimate Fighting Championship is Bellator MMA. Yet, their latest maneuverings seem wholly defensive, and all hopes of the giant Viacom conglomerate taking this league to lofty new heights now seem inevitably doomed.
Some of the second-fiddle organization's fans might blame the recently-deposed Bjorn Rebney, the Former CEO of Bellator. Rebney reportedly let his mouth write a few checks his backers couldn't cash, especially in light of recent reports from Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's camp. Rebney did his best to capitalize on the Viacom connection, promising fighters like Jackson and "King" Mo Lawal opportunities with TNA Wrestling when that promotion was also running on the same Spike TV network that broadcasts all Bellator shows. Today, TNA is relegated to the Destination America channel, which commands less than half the audience of Spike.
Though Jackson stood by Rebney and seemed obviously distraught when the man who recruited him left the promotion, Lawal famously accused his then-acting boss (on Spike TV's air) of "dick riding" his new rival. It would be easy to imagine what Dana White would do in Rebney's place if one of his fighters pulled such a stunt on a UFC show. Rebney did absolutely nothing to discipline Lawal for his blatant disrespect and salty language. That incident itself didn't inspire his Viacom bosses to tell Rebney to take a hike, but it likely hastened Rebney's departure from the promotion he founded. The whole debacle, which concluded with Former Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker taking Bellator's reigns, won the distinction of being dubbed Sherdog's 2014 Story of the Year.
Coker traditionally gets all the credit for the success of Strikeforce, despite the crumbling of the promotion after the UFC purchased the entire operation. While many Strikeforce fighters made the quick transition to the UFC in the wake of the fold up, Coker ended up getting lost in the shuffle. Still, Dana White's history with Coker is all positive, and he's obviously still appreciative of Coker's efforts with Strikeforce. Rebney often drew White's ire, to the point where "The Baldfather" typically referred to the rival CEO as "Bjork." Dana obviously doesn't harbor the same animosity when it comes to Coker.
Still, the UFC is by no means above taking every opportunity available to acquire Bellator's best and most-recognized fighters. Eddie Alvarez came over to the UFC recently after a long, arduous and unsuccessful court battle to obtain his services even earlier. Rampage Jackson's Bellator contract didn't stop him from jumping ship, but Coker's response to the announced defection indicated that Bellator may be willing to fight for their rights to Rampage in another court setting.
Bellator is no stranger itself to poaching former UFC fighters, but to my knowledge it's never been done by that promotion with any fighter who is still under UFC contract. Even in Rampage's situation, though, there's not a whole lot of back and forth banter between Coker and White over this or any other issue. It's all being approached in a much more professional manner than we're used to seeing "Uncle Dana" treat past competitors:
The UFC likely has no chance to buy out or completely kill Bellator, but the top dog MMA company doesn't have to. First of all, Bellator is not an actual threat to the UFC model. Their free fights don't typically compete with UFC offerings, and the Pay-Per-View model Bellator experimented with in 2014 failed miserably. Secondly, Bellator is doing a fantastic job of making itself look irrelevant and hopeless.
Consider Coker's recent boasting about trying to recruit WWE Wrestler and Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar to be the biggest fish in his little pond. On top of this, Coker went out on a limb and admitted he is also making a run at convincing Fedor Emelianenko to come out of retirement to fight for Bellator. It seems obvious to most experts in the combat sports media that Coker has absolutely zero chance to land either fighter, so flapping his jaws about these signings being somehow possible is clearly going to backfire when nothing happens on either front.
For his part, Fedor commented in an interview with MMA Junkie this past September that he is done fighting, and only God can change that:
As far as Lesnar goes, money talks. The UFC can offer Pay-Per-View revenue sharing, huge sponsorship opportunities (just maybe not with Bud Light), a familiar management structure, and a much higher purse per fight for their former champ. Though Viacom is a vast conglomerate with tremendous wealth and net worth, fight purses still remain much lower than the UFC for even the best fighters under contract. Even though they could make an exception for Lesnar, it's doubtful they could provide a more attractive offer than the UFC.
Even more important than the money factor is the level of competition. Brock Lesnar will not leave the WWE wrestling ring and resume his MMA career just to be a paper champion by beating a few tomato cans. If he does launch an MMA comeback, it's a no-brainer to conclude that his reasoning will have something to do with wanting to prove he can be the best in the world. The best heavyweights are in the UFC, period. The only intriguing match-up for Brock in Bellator is Bobby Lashley.
Brock was not at his peak physical health during his first UFC stint, and maybe he now realizes he has one final window to prove that was the only reason he ultimately could not compete with guys like Cain Velasquez and Alistair Overeem. Still, all this talk of coming back to the MMA fold could just be a publicity stunt perpetrated by Lesnar's camp to drive up the price of his contract renewal with WWE. After all, I have not seen any article quoting Lesnar himself on the subject of where he will land when his wrestling contract expires in March. Most of the conclusions spread across wrestling and combat sports media circles regarding Lesnar's UFC transition point to WWE officials speculating that is what he will do. Yet, recent reports indicate Dana White has yet to have any actual conversations with Lesnar to discuss the conditions of a comeback. That doesn't make much sense. If he's really ready to leave the staged world of pro-wrestling behind, you'd think he'd make a call to White to talk about it. I'm more inclined to think Lesnar is wary of acquiring any more permanent facial scars, and it's going to be an easy decision for him to stay with the promotion that made him famous in the first place. Either way, Lesnar will never sign with Bellator.
Bellator is also about to see one of their most prominent sponsors (Monster) sign on with the UFC. Typically, this means it will have to be an exclusive arrangement. This makes more sense than trying to continue the charade of pretending Xyience and their "Xenergy" drink was a stand-alone sponsor of the UFC (It was actually owned by the same Fertittas who own the UFC). Monster does conflict with NOS, which sponsors UFC programming on Fox and Fox Sports 1, but there doesn't appear to be any direct UFC relationship with the company.
The class-action fighter lawsuits filed in late December make specific mention of how the UFC operates with their sponsors, typically forcing those companies to cease doing business with other promotions if they want to associate with the UFC. Whether or not the UFC will be open to allowing Bellator and Monster to continue their relationship in this situation remains to be seen. The writing on the wall points to Bellator having to shop for a new energy drink sponsor, though.
The UFC had its share of Pay-Per-View struggles in 2014, but that is just one small segment of their business. There are plenty of revenue streams available to appease fighters currently under UFC contract. The organization is forcing a new Reebok uniform policy on fighters that is already leading to major complications with multiple smaller sponsors, but the UFC brass promises "virtually all" the Reebok money will go directly to the fighters. Unless the uniform situation or the class action lawsuits come back to bite them, the mini-revolution against the UFC that started with the Tito Ortiz and Rampage Jackson defections now appears to be fully extinguished. Any chance for Bellator to gain ground on the UFC now seems lost.
Bellator just seems to be squandering all the recent gains they made, and Scott Coker's misguided leadership isn't helping the situation. Conspiracy theorists who look at this situation might even say Coker could be purposely driving his new employer into the ground. Of course, it's highly doubtful he's actually a UFC plant, but Coker's actions would definitely make more sense if that were true.
I honestly cannot see a scenario where Bellator would completely fold, but consider how unlikely it seemed that Affliction would fall apart with backers like Oscar De La Hoya and Donald Trump. It is very disappointing and concerning to see no major benefits materialize from Bellator being backed by Viacom compared to when the promotion's fight cards were just featured on a Viacom network. Rebney obviously had some big plans to take full advantage of the partnership with such a strong conglomerate, but putting his dreams into practice didn't pan out.
Even though Rebney's tournament model wasn't going to work out in the long run, he had the right idea about exploring unique contract opportunities through leveraging Viacom's partnership. The UFC has a huge contract with the Fox network in addition to offering their own exclusive viewing platform (Fight Pass) and garnering millions from Pay-Per-View sales. Fighters who make names for themselves in that environment don't need a Viacom in the picture to get more payment opportunities. Think of all the coaches who were able to get extra recognition and pay from appearing on The Ultimate Fighter. Fox employs multiple fighters as analysts as well. Dominick Cruz landed his Fox job when he was sidelined with one of his multiple knee injuries. Dan Hardy last fought at the end of September, 2012, but he works for the UFC as a color commentator and post-fight interviewer whenever the promotion travels to the UK region.
Ronda Rousey is already becoming a popular movie star, even while she defends her UFC championship belt in dominant fashion. She's appearing in the 2015 Entourage movie, and she is coming fresh off a starring role in the latest Expendables film.Georges St. Pierre is on an extended break from UFC competition, but he's also appearing in a remake of Kickboxer during his time off. Even without a major motion picture company under the UFC's direct ownership, current and former UFC fighters still manage to pick up roles in movies. Viacom has no excuse for not being able to provide Bellator stars more opportunities to break into Hollywood since they actually do own their own studio.
One of the reasons Rampage went back to what he called "the devil you know" related to his frustrations with Viacom's failure to follow through on a planned reality show, TNA wrestling opportunities, and additional movie roles through Viacom's interests in that arena. Viacom's ownership of Paramount Pictures should have made it easy for them to provide Jackson the chance to appear on the silver screen again. Though it was his UFC popularity that helped him get his first major role in The A-Team movie, the UFC did not approach that situation with a cooperative attitude. It was one of Jackson's biggest beefs with his old bosses. At the time, it seemed that the promotion didn't want to see their fighters make the Hollywood transition for good once they realized it would be much easier and more lucrative than fighting for a living. This potential permanent defection obviously became much more of a threat when the UFC's efforts to lure Gina Carano back to fighting fell apart.
Whether Viacom's failure to appease Jackson had anything to do with fear of losing his fighting services is unknown, but even losing Jackson as a fighter would be better than losing him to the UFC after he made such a poignant and potent argument against his former bosses. On top of the loss, other fighters who would otherwise be willing to jump the UFC ship will no doubt be discouraged by Viacom's failure to retain Rampage. This creates an environment where Viacom continues to minimize their advantages over the competition, alienating their fighters in the process and inspiring them to look for greener pastures. Rather than grow and thrive under this huge corporation, Bellator is remaining stagnant and possibly even losing ground in the combat sports niche. Even their "Fight Master" reality show backfired on them when the winner Joe Riggs recently signed with the UFC again thanks to Bellator's help getting him back on the MMA map.
The worst part of Bellator's current reality is they can't really blame the UFC's dominance of the marketplace for their troubles in the industry. Their own actions and failure to act in key situations is what brought them to where they are today, forever locked in a losing battle. Barring a miraculous 2015 turnaround, Bellator's star may continue to fall until Viacom sells the promotion or simply pulls the plug and lets Dana White add a new name to his tombstone.
To prevent the total loss of their hefty investment, Viacom must take a more capitalistic approach in the new year. Scott Coker has to stop trying to accomplish the impossible and focus on what he actually has the power to change and improve. Bellator's whole management team needs to convince Viacom to go all in and spend some money to make some money. Of all the excuses people come up with for not having any interest in MMA, the top one is typically that they just don't know enough about the fighters. This is precisely the area where Viacom is best-suited to make an impact, but so far they've shown they can't even corner their own market. Bellator also needs to stop throwing all their hard work in recruiting top talent out the window.
The only logical excuse their parent company has for failing to elevate the brand is that the company executives just don't have the passion it takes to build a truly dominant MMA promotion out of what they currently have. If that's not the source of the problem, only outright incompetence can explain the current state of Bellator's affairs. Either way, it will take some deep investments and much more hard work in the MMA trenches to at least maintain the appearance that Bellator is still a direct UFC competitor.
The only organization in Mixed Martial Arts that still tries to really compete with The Ultimate Fighting Championship is Bellator MMA. Yet, their latest maneuverings seem wholly defensive, and all hopes of the giant Viacom conglomerate taking this league to lofty new heights now seem inevitably doomed.
Some of the second-fiddle organization's fans might blame the recently-deposed Bjorn Rebney, the Former CEO of Bellator. Rebney reportedly let his mouth write a few checks his backers couldn't cash, especially in light of recent reports from Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's camp. Rebney did his best to capitalize on the Viacom connection, promising fighters like Jackson and "King" Mo Lawal opportunities with TNA Wrestling when that promotion was also running on the same Spike TV network that broadcasts all Bellator shows. Today, TNA is relegated to the Destination America channel, which commands less than half the audience of Spike.
Though Jackson stood by Rebney and seemed obviously distraught when the man who recruited him left the promotion, Lawal famously accused his then-acting boss (on Spike TV's air) of "dick riding" his new rival. It would be easy to imagine what Dana White would do in Rebney's place if one of his fighters pulled such a stunt on a UFC show. Rebney did absolutely nothing to discipline Lawal for his blatant disrespect and salty language. That incident itself didn't inspire his Viacom bosses to tell Rebney to take a hike, but it likely hastened Rebney's departure from the promotion he founded. The whole debacle, which concluded with Former Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker taking Bellator's reigns, won the distinction of being dubbed Sherdog's 2014 Story of the Year.
Coker traditionally gets all the credit for the success of Strikeforce, despite the crumbling of the promotion after the UFC purchased the entire operation. While many Strikeforce fighters made the quick transition to the UFC in the wake of the fold up, Coker ended up getting lost in the shuffle. Still, Dana White's history with Coker is all positive, and he's obviously still appreciative of Coker's efforts with Strikeforce. Rebney often drew White's ire, to the point where "The Baldfather" typically referred to the rival CEO as "Bjork." Dana obviously doesn't harbor the same animosity when it comes to Coker.
Still, the UFC is by no means above taking every opportunity available to acquire Bellator's best and most-recognized fighters. Eddie Alvarez came over to the UFC recently after a long, arduous and unsuccessful court battle to obtain his services even earlier. Rampage Jackson's Bellator contract didn't stop him from jumping ship, but Coker's response to the announced defection indicated that Bellator may be willing to fight for their rights to Rampage in another court setting.
Bellator is no stranger itself to poaching former UFC fighters, but to my knowledge it's never been done by that promotion with any fighter who is still under UFC contract. Even in Rampage's situation, though, there's not a whole lot of back and forth banter between Coker and White over this or any other issue. It's all being approached in a much more professional manner than we're used to seeing "Uncle Dana" treat past competitors:
The UFC likely has no chance to buy out or completely kill Bellator, but the top dog MMA company doesn't have to. First of all, Bellator is not an actual threat to the UFC model. Their free fights don't typically compete with UFC offerings, and the Pay-Per-View model Bellator experimented with in 2014 failed miserably. Secondly, Bellator is doing a fantastic job of making itself look irrelevant and hopeless.
Consider Coker's recent boasting about trying to recruit WWE Wrestler and Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar to be the biggest fish in his little pond. On top of this, Coker went out on a limb and admitted he is also making a run at convincing Fedor Emelianenko to come out of retirement to fight for Bellator. It seems obvious to most experts in the combat sports media that Coker has absolutely zero chance to land either fighter, so flapping his jaws about these signings being somehow possible is clearly going to backfire when nothing happens on either front.
For his part, Fedor commented in an interview with MMA Junkie this past September that he is done fighting, and only God can change that:
“I already fought my share,” Emelianenko said. “God gave me a rich and eventful career. I gave God everything. I’m done fighting. Only God’s will (can bring me back).”
As far as Lesnar goes, money talks. The UFC can offer Pay-Per-View revenue sharing, huge sponsorship opportunities (just maybe not with Bud Light), a familiar management structure, and a much higher purse per fight for their former champ. Though Viacom is a vast conglomerate with tremendous wealth and net worth, fight purses still remain much lower than the UFC for even the best fighters under contract. Even though they could make an exception for Lesnar, it's doubtful they could provide a more attractive offer than the UFC.
Even more important than the money factor is the level of competition. Brock Lesnar will not leave the WWE wrestling ring and resume his MMA career just to be a paper champion by beating a few tomato cans. If he does launch an MMA comeback, it's a no-brainer to conclude that his reasoning will have something to do with wanting to prove he can be the best in the world. The best heavyweights are in the UFC, period. The only intriguing match-up for Brock in Bellator is Bobby Lashley.
Brock was not at his peak physical health during his first UFC stint, and maybe he now realizes he has one final window to prove that was the only reason he ultimately could not compete with guys like Cain Velasquez and Alistair Overeem. Still, all this talk of coming back to the MMA fold could just be a publicity stunt perpetrated by Lesnar's camp to drive up the price of his contract renewal with WWE. After all, I have not seen any article quoting Lesnar himself on the subject of where he will land when his wrestling contract expires in March. Most of the conclusions spread across wrestling and combat sports media circles regarding Lesnar's UFC transition point to WWE officials speculating that is what he will do. Yet, recent reports indicate Dana White has yet to have any actual conversations with Lesnar to discuss the conditions of a comeback. That doesn't make much sense. If he's really ready to leave the staged world of pro-wrestling behind, you'd think he'd make a call to White to talk about it. I'm more inclined to think Lesnar is wary of acquiring any more permanent facial scars, and it's going to be an easy decision for him to stay with the promotion that made him famous in the first place. Either way, Lesnar will never sign with Bellator.
Bellator is also about to see one of their most prominent sponsors (Monster) sign on with the UFC. Typically, this means it will have to be an exclusive arrangement. This makes more sense than trying to continue the charade of pretending Xyience and their "Xenergy" drink was a stand-alone sponsor of the UFC (It was actually owned by the same Fertittas who own the UFC). Monster does conflict with NOS, which sponsors UFC programming on Fox and Fox Sports 1, but there doesn't appear to be any direct UFC relationship with the company.
The class-action fighter lawsuits filed in late December make specific mention of how the UFC operates with their sponsors, typically forcing those companies to cease doing business with other promotions if they want to associate with the UFC. Whether or not the UFC will be open to allowing Bellator and Monster to continue their relationship in this situation remains to be seen. The writing on the wall points to Bellator having to shop for a new energy drink sponsor, though.
The UFC had its share of Pay-Per-View struggles in 2014, but that is just one small segment of their business. There are plenty of revenue streams available to appease fighters currently under UFC contract. The organization is forcing a new Reebok uniform policy on fighters that is already leading to major complications with multiple smaller sponsors, but the UFC brass promises "virtually all" the Reebok money will go directly to the fighters. Unless the uniform situation or the class action lawsuits come back to bite them, the mini-revolution against the UFC that started with the Tito Ortiz and Rampage Jackson defections now appears to be fully extinguished. Any chance for Bellator to gain ground on the UFC now seems lost.
Bellator just seems to be squandering all the recent gains they made, and Scott Coker's misguided leadership isn't helping the situation. Conspiracy theorists who look at this situation might even say Coker could be purposely driving his new employer into the ground. Of course, it's highly doubtful he's actually a UFC plant, but Coker's actions would definitely make more sense if that were true.
I honestly cannot see a scenario where Bellator would completely fold, but consider how unlikely it seemed that Affliction would fall apart with backers like Oscar De La Hoya and Donald Trump. It is very disappointing and concerning to see no major benefits materialize from Bellator being backed by Viacom compared to when the promotion's fight cards were just featured on a Viacom network. Rebney obviously had some big plans to take full advantage of the partnership with such a strong conglomerate, but putting his dreams into practice didn't pan out.
Even though Rebney's tournament model wasn't going to work out in the long run, he had the right idea about exploring unique contract opportunities through leveraging Viacom's partnership. The UFC has a huge contract with the Fox network in addition to offering their own exclusive viewing platform (Fight Pass) and garnering millions from Pay-Per-View sales. Fighters who make names for themselves in that environment don't need a Viacom in the picture to get more payment opportunities. Think of all the coaches who were able to get extra recognition and pay from appearing on The Ultimate Fighter. Fox employs multiple fighters as analysts as well. Dominick Cruz landed his Fox job when he was sidelined with one of his multiple knee injuries. Dan Hardy last fought at the end of September, 2012, but he works for the UFC as a color commentator and post-fight interviewer whenever the promotion travels to the UK region.
Ronda Rousey is already becoming a popular movie star, even while she defends her UFC championship belt in dominant fashion. She's appearing in the 2015 Entourage movie, and she is coming fresh off a starring role in the latest Expendables film.Georges St. Pierre is on an extended break from UFC competition, but he's also appearing in a remake of Kickboxer during his time off. Even without a major motion picture company under the UFC's direct ownership, current and former UFC fighters still manage to pick up roles in movies. Viacom has no excuse for not being able to provide Bellator stars more opportunities to break into Hollywood since they actually do own their own studio.
One of the reasons Rampage went back to what he called "the devil you know" related to his frustrations with Viacom's failure to follow through on a planned reality show, TNA wrestling opportunities, and additional movie roles through Viacom's interests in that arena. Viacom's ownership of Paramount Pictures should have made it easy for them to provide Jackson the chance to appear on the silver screen again. Though it was his UFC popularity that helped him get his first major role in The A-Team movie, the UFC did not approach that situation with a cooperative attitude. It was one of Jackson's biggest beefs with his old bosses. At the time, it seemed that the promotion didn't want to see their fighters make the Hollywood transition for good once they realized it would be much easier and more lucrative than fighting for a living. This potential permanent defection obviously became much more of a threat when the UFC's efforts to lure Gina Carano back to fighting fell apart.
Whether Viacom's failure to appease Jackson had anything to do with fear of losing his fighting services is unknown, but even losing Jackson as a fighter would be better than losing him to the UFC after he made such a poignant and potent argument against his former bosses. On top of the loss, other fighters who would otherwise be willing to jump the UFC ship will no doubt be discouraged by Viacom's failure to retain Rampage. This creates an environment where Viacom continues to minimize their advantages over the competition, alienating their fighters in the process and inspiring them to look for greener pastures. Rather than grow and thrive under this huge corporation, Bellator is remaining stagnant and possibly even losing ground in the combat sports niche. Even their "Fight Master" reality show backfired on them when the winner Joe Riggs recently signed with the UFC again thanks to Bellator's help getting him back on the MMA map.
The worst part of Bellator's current reality is they can't really blame the UFC's dominance of the marketplace for their troubles in the industry. Their own actions and failure to act in key situations is what brought them to where they are today, forever locked in a losing battle. Barring a miraculous 2015 turnaround, Bellator's star may continue to fall until Viacom sells the promotion or simply pulls the plug and lets Dana White add a new name to his tombstone.
To prevent the total loss of their hefty investment, Viacom must take a more capitalistic approach in the new year. Scott Coker has to stop trying to accomplish the impossible and focus on what he actually has the power to change and improve. Bellator's whole management team needs to convince Viacom to go all in and spend some money to make some money. Of all the excuses people come up with for not having any interest in MMA, the top one is typically that they just don't know enough about the fighters. This is precisely the area where Viacom is best-suited to make an impact, but so far they've shown they can't even corner their own market. Bellator also needs to stop throwing all their hard work in recruiting top talent out the window.
The only logical excuse their parent company has for failing to elevate the brand is that the company executives just don't have the passion it takes to build a truly dominant MMA promotion out of what they currently have. If that's not the source of the problem, only outright incompetence can explain the current state of Bellator's affairs. Either way, it will take some deep investments and much more hard work in the MMA trenches to at least maintain the appearance that Bellator is still a direct UFC competitor.
Friday, December 26, 2014
M-1 GLOBAL 2014 SEASON IN REVIEW HIGHLIGHT VIDEO
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Tuesday, December 23, 2014
UFC Class Action Lawsuits Have a Point, But Do They Have a Chance?
By: Rich Bergeron
Before you read this story, listen to Comedian Jim Gaffigan's take on legal documents for a good laugh:
Recently-filed class action cases brought by former and current UFC fighters against Zuffa, LLC are generating controversy and discussion from all corners of the MMA media. The first of these California-based cases hit the docket just as press releases went out to announce the filing. There was also a full-blown press conference celebrating the filing.
At first, Cung Le, Nate Quarry and Jon Fitch were the three faces of the legal action. Another filing naming plaintiffs Javier Vasquez and Dennis Hallman hit the California docket Tuesday with language that is reportedly nearly identical to the other case.
A statement from the UFC indicated that they had not even been served the documents yet after the first round of stories emerged on the subject last week. Lawsuits traditionally begin with prompt service of documents, which involves someone called a process server, or in some cases a deputy sheriff or even a U.S. Marshall actually handing the lawsuit documents to the company representative. This is serious legal business, since you can't win if the opposition isn't even aware you're suing them. Some defendants try to play games to refuse or avoid service, but once they are served, the case is official. If the UFC persists in saying they have not seen the documents, the plaintiffs can also argue that service is already accomplished through publication, which is sometimes a last resort.
Examining the crux of the legal arguments in the initial filing, I can only conclude that the case makes a ton of legal sense to me. I would even say it does not go far enough. As a person who can say I've done legal battle with the attorneys for Fertitta Enterprises (a holdings and investment company owned by the same Fertitta family that owns the UFC), I'm also convinced the UFC's parent company will attack this with a relentless army of specialized attorneys. They won't be the ones who charge $500 an hour that Gaffigan mentions above. Some of them will charge much more than that for a phone call or a short consultation. The Fertitta-owned Station Casinos chain paid some of their bankruptcy lawyers as much as $900 per hour or more to carry that case through the court process.
These firms backing these fighters will have to be ready for all out war, and in many ways it was a crafty and cunning move to publicize this effort before it even became an official legal action. It also makes sense to duplicate the proceedings on the off chance that the cases end up before two different judges as two stand-alone litigation streams instead of being consolidated at some point. Legal battles often hinge on the paperwork, and well-heeled firms aren't afraid to kill a few trees to overwhelm their opponents with copious amounts of reading material.
Unfortunately, much of the mainstream combat sports media wants to remain in the UFC's good graces and will not publish a crooked word about the company. Most of the "news" sites that support the UFC no matter what will dismiss these legal proceedings as worthless and hopeless. That's really too bad, since the UFC's objectionable and corrupt business practices are laid bare in these legal documents. If you really count yourself as a fan or supporter of this promotion you should read this whole case despite the difficulty of the language and the dozens of pages involved. To access the full case document from the opening action, click here.
Trying as hard as I can to look at this case objectively, I do have some important questions to raise.
The first question is where are the financial figures coming from in these documents? There are claims like, "On information and belief, UFC Fighters are paid approximately 10-17% of total UFC revenues generated from bouts." Yet, there is no exhibit or affidavit this statement points to for proof. This is not to say I do not believe this could be possible. I just want to see where these financial estimations are coming from.
The second major question is why are these lawyers only pursuing this action on behalf of such a narrow group of the larger spectrum of victims that their described monopsony/monopoly scheme impacts? The reality of conditions exposed in these documents cries out for other promotions, individual promoters, managers, agents, burned sponsors, trainers and other supporting staff to be included as plaintiffs.
Finally, what is the average fighter's costs for a year of full time training? There ought to be a reflection of this somewhere in this suit. I would love to see a poll of UFC fighters asking this question. Also, what is the average yearly income of a mid-level UFC fighter, and what percentage does he or she keep after taxes and expenses? Some of this information could come out of the discovery process if the case goes that far.
This case tackles a plethora of actions the UFC took to lock down the MMA marketplace as the dominant, controlling force. The Federal Trade Commission investigated many of the same circumstances and found no evidence that would lead to any formal action. The fact that the FTC was even looking into the fight promotion at all was headline news, but their lack of action made the UFC look as if it was vindicated of all monopoly and monospony claims. The reality is there are just too many obstacles to a government entity bringing such an action against such well-funded and positioned opponents. These agencies have to deal with red tape, politics, and influence peddling on top of trying to build a rock solid case while fighting against highly skilled corporate attorneys.
The Fertittas are notorious wheel greasers, and they promote and support powerful politicians like Harry Reid with frequent donations and endorsements. They are also traditionally very supportive of the Republican Party. Just because all their direct Mafia ties are long gone does not mean they forgot the art of maintaining "connected" status. This is why the FTC's refusal to bring charges does not really mean there was nothing concrete behind their concerns. The Fertittas are also responsible for a large chunk of taxes paid in the state of Nevada and California, and wherever else they do business across the country. Being an average Joe taxpayer isn't going to get you out of many major jams, but things change when you pay the kind of epic tax bills the Fertittas foot every year.
At the same time, a civil law firm does not have the same constraints to worry about. They're not playing with taxpayer money. They listen to their clients, not constituents or powerful politicians. They don't have to fear a backlash. Still, the court system can also be influenced through political channels.It's an uphill battle either way. So, even when there's plenty of smoke, there's no guarantee any of it will catch fire unless conditions are absolutely perfect. This may just be that time when the blaze finally erupts, but I would be more inclined to expect a quiet settlement once the first flicker of flame becomes visible here.
Reading this suit reminded me of so many cases of fighter favoritism, payment complaints, and the UFC's many moves made to squash the competition. I am reminded first of the IFL's demise and their longtime feud with the UFC. The creators of the IFL allegedly took the UFC's proprietary information when they left the company's employ to start their new team-based fight league. The resulting lawsuit revealed that Dana White personally threatened company employees at the time with termination if they did not all immediately sign a formal non-compete agreement.
I also served as an informal consultant to one of the lawyers handling the PRIDE suit against the UFC after promises to keep the top-tier MMA promotion viable were quickly broken. The money to purchase PRIDE actually came from something called a "senior secured credit facility" that is due next year. This complex loan and credit package totaled around $400 million, and even Billionaire Mark Cuban invested in the debt. This is ironic, especially since I actually received correspondence from Cuban during the time when he was battling the UFC in court to retain the services of Randy Couture in his own fledgling fight league (HDNet Fights) that never quite got off the ground. Cuban was trying to put together a Couture vs. Emelianenko fight, but the bout fans were screaming for would never happen due to the whole ugly legal debacle.
Cuban told me in a personal email that he was keeping an eye on my case against the Fertittas, and it came as a bit of a shock. A true financial genius, he eventually figured out how to make money off the UFC with or without Randy on his payroll. I later questioned Cuban on the Fertittas owning Xyience, which at the same time was sponsoring the UFC. Cuban wrote back and explained that there is nothing inherently wrong with them doing that from a business ethics standpoint and the arrangement was perfectly above board. Still, I thought it was strange that the Fertittas seemed to go out of their way to obscure their ownership of their own sponsor.
The lawsuit takes time to further explain Couture's issues with the UFC, including his refusal to sign over his lifetime rights. At the time Couture took a stand against his former bosses, it was a move that was unheard of. Most fighters knew if they wanted to get anywhere in the industry, they had to maintain a friendly relationship with the UFC bosses and toe the company line. Couture was one of the promotion's success stories and could claim a healthy fan base and a huge part of the UFC's history. Still, the feud was a bitter one. It's actually still simmering quietly with Couture being excluded from even being able to corner his own son when Ryan Couture was a UFC fighter for a brief stint. I interviewed Ryan personally in Las Vegas a few years ago, and he told me off camera that his father encouraged him to join Strikeforce because, "The UFC likes to keep you under their thumb."
So, I have intimate knowledge of how this climate of dominance developed and how fighters have been conditioned to think that you can't fight the UFC, even if you have a legitimate beef. UFC fighters are taught from their earliest involvement with the company that you're better off being blindly loyal, staying perpetually quiet about any grievances you might harbor. Typically, fighters who do speak out are those who are above reprisal (i.e. Jose Aldo or Jon Jones) or obscure enough to dismiss as lone nuts (i.e. Jacob Volkmann and John Cholish). The bulk of the UFC masses want to remain employed and on the rise, hoping for brighter days and bigger paychecks. Criticizing the company leadership is a great way to earn a demotion or guarantee that you'll never get a fight bonus again.
The case also highlights Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's past run-ins with the promotion he just recently re-joined after referring to his old bosses as "the devil you know" in a Twitter post. The complaint, which Jackson is not a party to but could still actually benefit from, describes how Jackson secured individual deals with a figurine company called Round 5 and sneaker giant Reebok before the UFC moved in and blocked these moves in favor of arranging their own longtime agreements with these companies.
Jackson and Tito Ortiz both departed the UFC for Bellator amidst very public disputes regarding how their careers progressed under their UFC contracts. They both once had plenty to say about how much they were mistreated, but now they are singing what sounds like the same tune and avoiding run ins with this all-powerful force in the industry. Business is business, explains Jackson. Ortiz officially turned down the opportunity to join this round of lawsuits, citing his ongoing responsibilities as a manager and agent for fighters. In other words, he doesn't want to burn down the bridge he just began to rebuild after burning down the first one.
The basic gist behind Ortiz's motivation for opting out of the court battle is actually explained on page 47-48 of the initial complaint by Le, Quarry and Fitch:
So, if that statement is indeed correct, it's highly likely that Ortiz will bite his tongue and wind up following Jackson back to the UFC in the near future. Still, where some fighters are convinced the UFC will have their backs in the long run, others are buoyed by the suit and want in. One such fighter is Sean Sherk, who retired with a 36-4-1 record that included a long stint in the UFC. Like many fighters who are no longer in the inner circle of the company as fighting superstars or honorary executives, Sherk can't help but look back and feel cheated. What he put in seems to be exponentially greater than what he was able to reap in return as far as purses, profits and residual income. Sherk is the first fighter I've heard of supporting this case who actually owned a UFC belt at one time, so if he gets formally involved it will certainly be monumental.
Though many experts might think most current UFC fighters will refuse to sign up as plaintiffs for fear of reprisals or retaliation, it might also be hard for some to explain why they signed a petition that was reportedly circulated to UFC fighters in 2012 (as described by Pablo Garza). The petition reportedly asked fighters to confirm the promotion was not a monopoly and that all its fighters were treated fairly. The signatories of this petition might be used against the plaintiffs in these class action cases as proof that the UFC is running a reputable and upstanding operation with no hint of monopoly involved.
The reality is, there really are "company" fighters who get all the breaks while their lesser or equal counterparts continue to get the short end of the stick. This group of pampered active and retired insiders includes Chuck Liddell, Dominick Cruz, Gilbert Melendez, Daniel Cormier, Brian Stann, Dan Hardy and Kenny Florian (among others). Other than Liddell, they all have lucrative television gigs. Liddell has commercials instead with Duralast and Bud Light. I have never personally heard any of these guys present an argument that the UFC is in any way corrupt, greedy, or worthy of any significant criticism. Their loyalty and sticking to the old company line is obviously being rewarded.
The only hint of any animosity shown toward the promotion by any of the above-named insiders in my recollection was when Brian Stann retired and cited major concerns regarding PED usage in the sport, the same sentiment Longtime UFC Welterweight Champion George St. Pierre pointed to as the main reason for his departure from the sport.
Stann also recently made a telling remark during last Saturday's UFC broadcast. During one fight that didn't live up to expectations, Stann stated that as a fighter, "You have to take risks if you want to make a name for yourself in the UFC." If anyone should know, it's Stann. At the same time, it is guys like him who should be involved in this lawsuit instead of continuing to collect a paycheck from work that highlights and champions the same organization that allowed juiced up fighters in their cage when they could have prevented it.
If you end up washed up or not making enough money, so many fans and UFC supporters (often called nuthuggers on MMA forums) will condemn you for not trying hard enough. It's your fault, no matter what, even if you spent half your own life savings trying to make it in the sport. Yet, the UFC is not a powerhouse because it has only successful and dynamic fighters. It takes some fighters who are not so dynamic and amazing to actually show how good the best fighters really are. Having these lower-tier fighters on board is essential, but their lack of extraordinary talent also makes it easier for the UFC brass to abuse these folks. The very design of the bonus system and the fighter pay structure encourages fighters to take risks in every fight in order to achieve success in the UFC. You can't just win by split decision on a smart, boring strategy and expect to get all the spoils of fame and fortune that fighters who always win by knockout get. It's no longer a case of winning being enough. You also have to put on a show to get anywhere in this organization.
Even though he's not a perfect poster child for fighters who did everything right and still got shafted, Cody McKenzie's recent retirement is worth noting here. He recently expressed some major issues he had with working for the UFC and trying to survive on the outer fringes of the sport and failing. Though it would be easy to argue Cody and other complainers like the Diaz brothers just don't work hard enough, you could also make the claim that they were convinced at some point along the line that working harder just wouldn't matter. Some people just either don't have that natural talent or simply have no chance of getting to the elite level of the sport. The cards really are stacked against some fighters, even though some of them possess all the talent in the world.
Whatever the reason a particular contender has for lacking supreme ass-kicking ability, being a halfway decent fighter also takes a tremendous amount of work and sacrifice in this sport. The effort put in by these less than superior combatants in the UFC is just as tremendous at times as those fighters who hold championship belts. Yet, the same effort rarely earns the same return under the UFC umbrella. It's all about popularity, positioning and performance in the UFC. You can't just work hard. You also have to suck up to the brass, align yourself with the right people, and just be a good soldier in general. Even if you get booted at some stage of your career from the UFC, you still have to keep quiet about your bad experiences if you ever want to make it back into the fold.
The UFC taught Cody McKenzie a hard life lesson. They basically told him to "go fish," which is actually a career the Alaskan native would have probably been better off pursuing. After all, everything on the boat is paid for. There's no travel expenses, trainer and management fees, or dependence on extra bonus money for superior performance. You show up, you work hard, you get paid, and you go home if you don't wind up in the hospital or the bottom of the ocean due to some kind of tragic accident.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship has a serious problem with the way they treat fighters, plain and simple. Does this lawsuit do enough to put a stop to it? I doubt it, personally. I envision this whole situation fading away quietly with each fighter getting a few million and the lawyers getting all their fees paid. All it will take is one or two bigger names coming out in support of or actually joining one of these classes of plaintiffs. There will be a point when the bad publicity and mounting sense of revolution will become too much for the UFC brass to bear, and they will pay a settlement. Nothing will actually change for the better in the long run if that happens.
For sweeping change to come out of any of this litigation, it will have to go to trial. People will have to testify, damning documents will have to be exposed in discovery, and fighters will have to tell the sordid details of their awful personal experiences with this all-powerful promoter for the record. No matter how dedicated the plaintiffs and their attorneys are, I doubt California's political climate and the possible favoritism of the Fertittas due to their casino and property interests in the state will allow this case to get to trial.
So, it makes for a good story and promotes healthy debate on the monopoly subject, but if any changes do eventually come out of this court battle, it will take years for them to take effect. That could be too late to help many of the fighters these lawsuits are purportedly designed to benefit. The worst case scenario would be a climate where the lawsuit is actually killed before it gets off the ground, which is entirely possible if the UFC has that much behind-the-scenes influence in California.
Nevertheless, this is a fantastic start in the quest to bring this organization to task for the way their overbearing actions negatively impact the sport of MMA as a whole. It is one thing to build something great while focusing only on your own business model and building it up from the initial concept into a worldwide force to be reckoned with. It is something else entirely to focus on destroying and/or minimizing everyone else in your niche to get to the top. Honesty is hardly ever the best policy in our capitalist way of doing business, though. Sometimes keeping secrets is actually crucial to a company's survival.
Consider the case of a guy named Ken Pavia who used to be a big player in the MMA industry and is now far removed from the sport. Pavia shared some UFC contracts with Bellator and wound up on the business end of a Zuffa lawsuit against him. The debacle eventually led to Pavia leaving the country to work for an overseas fight promotion. Pavia told me during this period that Dana White personally threatened him over the situation, telling him that the company would do everything in its power to get revenge. He even claimed White told him he would not be happy until Pavia's fiance left him and he committed suicide. A countersuit filed on behalf of Bellator and Pavia helped initiate a settlement in the case that is not allowed to be discussed by either party. So, now the outcome of a case about company secrets is itself a company secret.
The point is, the UFC is constantly building up their power base, and they have tremendous pull when it comes to making or breaking a fighter under their employ. They can also make life difficult for anyone who may rely on their support to do business in the industry.
Often the courtroom can be the last place to look for any semblance of real justice, but the tide has to turn somewhere. Maybe it will turn here, but my outlook on the situation is colored by skepticism and personal experience with the type of lawyers the Fertittas hire and how they operate. I'm more inclined to think more publication and less legalese would be a better way to inspire change. A blockbuster documentary exposing fighter complaints, maybe with a few blurred faces and distorted voices, might go a lot further in blowing the lid off this corruption.
Unfortunately, there's also a chance that this behemoth is just too big already and nothing will be able to keep it in line. As these class action cases outline, the UFC has been at this monopoly building for a long time, and they're very adept at avoiding culpability for their worst transgressions. Still, all it will take is one honest judge in California who is willing to hear the case out and let it continue to a final conclusion. And it would certainly help to have a few more high caliber fighters coming out of the woodwork to join the cause and levy their own personalized complaints and grievances.
I have been harping on the possibility of a legal action like this against the UFC for a long time, ever since Dana White started saying he wanted the UFC to be as popular and powerful as the NFL someday. I predicted years ago that a class action lawsuit could be the only way to stop the rampant abuse many fighters under UFC contract face in trying to earn a respectable and comfortable living. Even the highest paid UFC athletes no doubt make a huge chunk of their income from sponsors and endorsements. The most famous fighters also get movie roles on top of all that, so there's not much to complain about. Yet, what does it say about the sport and the owners of the biggest promotion in the sport when even their top athletes aren't making a luxurious living off the actual wages they're paid? Why should they need to depend on all this outside income when the profits of the promotion make it possible for them to be compensated much better without all that hoopla?
The answer to those questions may be more simple than you think. It all amounts to one short word, just five letters long: GREED. And the UFC brass is so downright greedy that I can't imagine them spending more on a settlement than they would be willing to shell out on the army of legal bulldogs it will take for them to crush their opposition here. When you are as corrupt and conniving as the Fertittas and Dana White, lawyers can be the most important piece of the puzzle. Some of the sleaziest attorneys are just as likely to advise you on how to break the law as they are to help you make sure to follow it. The kind of lawyers employed by these folks are the ones all the lawyer jokes are really made for. Many of them already sold their souls to the highest bidder, and they have no scruples or morals remaining to stop them from taking these valid fighter complaints and turning them into a puff of smoke. The UFC already promised they will vigorously defend themselves in the case, so if the plaintiffs and their attorneys are ready, willing and able to keep the fight going this will be a real war unfolding before our eyes as it all progresses through the different stages of litigation.
I, for one, will be rooting for the fighters to score a key victory here that finally exposes the UFC for taking advantage of the very people who made the organization what it is today. The publication of the suit itself goes a long way in doing just that, but results are what will really matter in this case. This legal team has the personnel and the persistence to make things interesting, but what they really need is to secure a final judgment or at the very least get to trial.
Stay tuned as we follow this case to see if any of this legal wrangling will pan out for the plaintiffs in the long run. I know one of the folks behind this case is interested in starting a fighters union at some point, so even if the case settles it might lead to some financing for that future endeavor. This development might not represent a perfect plan to revolutionize the way the UFC does business, but it's a damn good start as far as attempting to root out some of the corruption and mistreatment some of the promotion's fighters endure. I will keep a sharp eye on these cases as they play out and pass on new documents and developments as I acquire them.
Before you read this story, listen to Comedian Jim Gaffigan's take on legal documents for a good laugh:
Recently-filed class action cases brought by former and current UFC fighters against Zuffa, LLC are generating controversy and discussion from all corners of the MMA media. The first of these California-based cases hit the docket just as press releases went out to announce the filing. There was also a full-blown press conference celebrating the filing.
At first, Cung Le, Nate Quarry and Jon Fitch were the three faces of the legal action. Another filing naming plaintiffs Javier Vasquez and Dennis Hallman hit the California docket Tuesday with language that is reportedly nearly identical to the other case.
A statement from the UFC indicated that they had not even been served the documents yet after the first round of stories emerged on the subject last week. Lawsuits traditionally begin with prompt service of documents, which involves someone called a process server, or in some cases a deputy sheriff or even a U.S. Marshall actually handing the lawsuit documents to the company representative. This is serious legal business, since you can't win if the opposition isn't even aware you're suing them. Some defendants try to play games to refuse or avoid service, but once they are served, the case is official. If the UFC persists in saying they have not seen the documents, the plaintiffs can also argue that service is already accomplished through publication, which is sometimes a last resort.
Examining the crux of the legal arguments in the initial filing, I can only conclude that the case makes a ton of legal sense to me. I would even say it does not go far enough. As a person who can say I've done legal battle with the attorneys for Fertitta Enterprises (a holdings and investment company owned by the same Fertitta family that owns the UFC), I'm also convinced the UFC's parent company will attack this with a relentless army of specialized attorneys. They won't be the ones who charge $500 an hour that Gaffigan mentions above. Some of them will charge much more than that for a phone call or a short consultation. The Fertitta-owned Station Casinos chain paid some of their bankruptcy lawyers as much as $900 per hour or more to carry that case through the court process.
These firms backing these fighters will have to be ready for all out war, and in many ways it was a crafty and cunning move to publicize this effort before it even became an official legal action. It also makes sense to duplicate the proceedings on the off chance that the cases end up before two different judges as two stand-alone litigation streams instead of being consolidated at some point. Legal battles often hinge on the paperwork, and well-heeled firms aren't afraid to kill a few trees to overwhelm their opponents with copious amounts of reading material.
Unfortunately, much of the mainstream combat sports media wants to remain in the UFC's good graces and will not publish a crooked word about the company. Most of the "news" sites that support the UFC no matter what will dismiss these legal proceedings as worthless and hopeless. That's really too bad, since the UFC's objectionable and corrupt business practices are laid bare in these legal documents. If you really count yourself as a fan or supporter of this promotion you should read this whole case despite the difficulty of the language and the dozens of pages involved. To access the full case document from the opening action, click here.
Trying as hard as I can to look at this case objectively, I do have some important questions to raise.
The first question is where are the financial figures coming from in these documents? There are claims like, "On information and belief, UFC Fighters are paid approximately 10-17% of total UFC revenues generated from bouts." Yet, there is no exhibit or affidavit this statement points to for proof. This is not to say I do not believe this could be possible. I just want to see where these financial estimations are coming from.
The second major question is why are these lawyers only pursuing this action on behalf of such a narrow group of the larger spectrum of victims that their described monopsony/monopoly scheme impacts? The reality of conditions exposed in these documents cries out for other promotions, individual promoters, managers, agents, burned sponsors, trainers and other supporting staff to be included as plaintiffs.
Finally, what is the average fighter's costs for a year of full time training? There ought to be a reflection of this somewhere in this suit. I would love to see a poll of UFC fighters asking this question. Also, what is the average yearly income of a mid-level UFC fighter, and what percentage does he or she keep after taxes and expenses? Some of this information could come out of the discovery process if the case goes that far.
This case tackles a plethora of actions the UFC took to lock down the MMA marketplace as the dominant, controlling force. The Federal Trade Commission investigated many of the same circumstances and found no evidence that would lead to any formal action. The fact that the FTC was even looking into the fight promotion at all was headline news, but their lack of action made the UFC look as if it was vindicated of all monopoly and monospony claims. The reality is there are just too many obstacles to a government entity bringing such an action against such well-funded and positioned opponents. These agencies have to deal with red tape, politics, and influence peddling on top of trying to build a rock solid case while fighting against highly skilled corporate attorneys.
The Fertittas are notorious wheel greasers, and they promote and support powerful politicians like Harry Reid with frequent donations and endorsements. They are also traditionally very supportive of the Republican Party. Just because all their direct Mafia ties are long gone does not mean they forgot the art of maintaining "connected" status. This is why the FTC's refusal to bring charges does not really mean there was nothing concrete behind their concerns. The Fertittas are also responsible for a large chunk of taxes paid in the state of Nevada and California, and wherever else they do business across the country. Being an average Joe taxpayer isn't going to get you out of many major jams, but things change when you pay the kind of epic tax bills the Fertittas foot every year.
At the same time, a civil law firm does not have the same constraints to worry about. They're not playing with taxpayer money. They listen to their clients, not constituents or powerful politicians. They don't have to fear a backlash. Still, the court system can also be influenced through political channels.It's an uphill battle either way. So, even when there's plenty of smoke, there's no guarantee any of it will catch fire unless conditions are absolutely perfect. This may just be that time when the blaze finally erupts, but I would be more inclined to expect a quiet settlement once the first flicker of flame becomes visible here.
Reading this suit reminded me of so many cases of fighter favoritism, payment complaints, and the UFC's many moves made to squash the competition. I am reminded first of the IFL's demise and their longtime feud with the UFC. The creators of the IFL allegedly took the UFC's proprietary information when they left the company's employ to start their new team-based fight league. The resulting lawsuit revealed that Dana White personally threatened company employees at the time with termination if they did not all immediately sign a formal non-compete agreement.
I also served as an informal consultant to one of the lawyers handling the PRIDE suit against the UFC after promises to keep the top-tier MMA promotion viable were quickly broken. The money to purchase PRIDE actually came from something called a "senior secured credit facility" that is due next year. This complex loan and credit package totaled around $400 million, and even Billionaire Mark Cuban invested in the debt. This is ironic, especially since I actually received correspondence from Cuban during the time when he was battling the UFC in court to retain the services of Randy Couture in his own fledgling fight league (HDNet Fights) that never quite got off the ground. Cuban was trying to put together a Couture vs. Emelianenko fight, but the bout fans were screaming for would never happen due to the whole ugly legal debacle.
Cuban told me in a personal email that he was keeping an eye on my case against the Fertittas, and it came as a bit of a shock. A true financial genius, he eventually figured out how to make money off the UFC with or without Randy on his payroll. I later questioned Cuban on the Fertittas owning Xyience, which at the same time was sponsoring the UFC. Cuban wrote back and explained that there is nothing inherently wrong with them doing that from a business ethics standpoint and the arrangement was perfectly above board. Still, I thought it was strange that the Fertittas seemed to go out of their way to obscure their ownership of their own sponsor.
The lawsuit takes time to further explain Couture's issues with the UFC, including his refusal to sign over his lifetime rights. At the time Couture took a stand against his former bosses, it was a move that was unheard of. Most fighters knew if they wanted to get anywhere in the industry, they had to maintain a friendly relationship with the UFC bosses and toe the company line. Couture was one of the promotion's success stories and could claim a healthy fan base and a huge part of the UFC's history. Still, the feud was a bitter one. It's actually still simmering quietly with Couture being excluded from even being able to corner his own son when Ryan Couture was a UFC fighter for a brief stint. I interviewed Ryan personally in Las Vegas a few years ago, and he told me off camera that his father encouraged him to join Strikeforce because, "The UFC likes to keep you under their thumb."
So, I have intimate knowledge of how this climate of dominance developed and how fighters have been conditioned to think that you can't fight the UFC, even if you have a legitimate beef. UFC fighters are taught from their earliest involvement with the company that you're better off being blindly loyal, staying perpetually quiet about any grievances you might harbor. Typically, fighters who do speak out are those who are above reprisal (i.e. Jose Aldo or Jon Jones) or obscure enough to dismiss as lone nuts (i.e. Jacob Volkmann and John Cholish). The bulk of the UFC masses want to remain employed and on the rise, hoping for brighter days and bigger paychecks. Criticizing the company leadership is a great way to earn a demotion or guarantee that you'll never get a fight bonus again.
The case also highlights Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's past run-ins with the promotion he just recently re-joined after referring to his old bosses as "the devil you know" in a Twitter post. The complaint, which Jackson is not a party to but could still actually benefit from, describes how Jackson secured individual deals with a figurine company called Round 5 and sneaker giant Reebok before the UFC moved in and blocked these moves in favor of arranging their own longtime agreements with these companies.
Jackson and Tito Ortiz both departed the UFC for Bellator amidst very public disputes regarding how their careers progressed under their UFC contracts. They both once had plenty to say about how much they were mistreated, but now they are singing what sounds like the same tune and avoiding run ins with this all-powerful force in the industry. Business is business, explains Jackson. Ortiz officially turned down the opportunity to join this round of lawsuits, citing his ongoing responsibilities as a manager and agent for fighters. In other words, he doesn't want to burn down the bridge he just began to rebuild after burning down the first one.
The basic gist behind Ortiz's motivation for opting out of the court battle is actually explained on page 47-48 of the initial complaint by Le, Quarry and Fitch:
"Professional MMA Fighters who compete at the highest level of the sport cannot 'opt out' of UFC because the UFC’s anticompetitive conduct has made it impossible to maintain a successful MMA fighting career outside of the UFC."
So, if that statement is indeed correct, it's highly likely that Ortiz will bite his tongue and wind up following Jackson back to the UFC in the near future. Still, where some fighters are convinced the UFC will have their backs in the long run, others are buoyed by the suit and want in. One such fighter is Sean Sherk, who retired with a 36-4-1 record that included a long stint in the UFC. Like many fighters who are no longer in the inner circle of the company as fighting superstars or honorary executives, Sherk can't help but look back and feel cheated. What he put in seems to be exponentially greater than what he was able to reap in return as far as purses, profits and residual income. Sherk is the first fighter I've heard of supporting this case who actually owned a UFC belt at one time, so if he gets formally involved it will certainly be monumental.
Though many experts might think most current UFC fighters will refuse to sign up as plaintiffs for fear of reprisals or retaliation, it might also be hard for some to explain why they signed a petition that was reportedly circulated to UFC fighters in 2012 (as described by Pablo Garza). The petition reportedly asked fighters to confirm the promotion was not a monopoly and that all its fighters were treated fairly. The signatories of this petition might be used against the plaintiffs in these class action cases as proof that the UFC is running a reputable and upstanding operation with no hint of monopoly involved.
The reality is, there really are "company" fighters who get all the breaks while their lesser or equal counterparts continue to get the short end of the stick. This group of pampered active and retired insiders includes Chuck Liddell, Dominick Cruz, Gilbert Melendez, Daniel Cormier, Brian Stann, Dan Hardy and Kenny Florian (among others). Other than Liddell, they all have lucrative television gigs. Liddell has commercials instead with Duralast and Bud Light. I have never personally heard any of these guys present an argument that the UFC is in any way corrupt, greedy, or worthy of any significant criticism. Their loyalty and sticking to the old company line is obviously being rewarded.
The only hint of any animosity shown toward the promotion by any of the above-named insiders in my recollection was when Brian Stann retired and cited major concerns regarding PED usage in the sport, the same sentiment Longtime UFC Welterweight Champion George St. Pierre pointed to as the main reason for his departure from the sport.
Stann also recently made a telling remark during last Saturday's UFC broadcast. During one fight that didn't live up to expectations, Stann stated that as a fighter, "You have to take risks if you want to make a name for yourself in the UFC." If anyone should know, it's Stann. At the same time, it is guys like him who should be involved in this lawsuit instead of continuing to collect a paycheck from work that highlights and champions the same organization that allowed juiced up fighters in their cage when they could have prevented it.
If you end up washed up or not making enough money, so many fans and UFC supporters (often called nuthuggers on MMA forums) will condemn you for not trying hard enough. It's your fault, no matter what, even if you spent half your own life savings trying to make it in the sport. Yet, the UFC is not a powerhouse because it has only successful and dynamic fighters. It takes some fighters who are not so dynamic and amazing to actually show how good the best fighters really are. Having these lower-tier fighters on board is essential, but their lack of extraordinary talent also makes it easier for the UFC brass to abuse these folks. The very design of the bonus system and the fighter pay structure encourages fighters to take risks in every fight in order to achieve success in the UFC. You can't just win by split decision on a smart, boring strategy and expect to get all the spoils of fame and fortune that fighters who always win by knockout get. It's no longer a case of winning being enough. You also have to put on a show to get anywhere in this organization.
Even though he's not a perfect poster child for fighters who did everything right and still got shafted, Cody McKenzie's recent retirement is worth noting here. He recently expressed some major issues he had with working for the UFC and trying to survive on the outer fringes of the sport and failing. Though it would be easy to argue Cody and other complainers like the Diaz brothers just don't work hard enough, you could also make the claim that they were convinced at some point along the line that working harder just wouldn't matter. Some people just either don't have that natural talent or simply have no chance of getting to the elite level of the sport. The cards really are stacked against some fighters, even though some of them possess all the talent in the world.
Whatever the reason a particular contender has for lacking supreme ass-kicking ability, being a halfway decent fighter also takes a tremendous amount of work and sacrifice in this sport. The effort put in by these less than superior combatants in the UFC is just as tremendous at times as those fighters who hold championship belts. Yet, the same effort rarely earns the same return under the UFC umbrella. It's all about popularity, positioning and performance in the UFC. You can't just work hard. You also have to suck up to the brass, align yourself with the right people, and just be a good soldier in general. Even if you get booted at some stage of your career from the UFC, you still have to keep quiet about your bad experiences if you ever want to make it back into the fold.
The UFC taught Cody McKenzie a hard life lesson. They basically told him to "go fish," which is actually a career the Alaskan native would have probably been better off pursuing. After all, everything on the boat is paid for. There's no travel expenses, trainer and management fees, or dependence on extra bonus money for superior performance. You show up, you work hard, you get paid, and you go home if you don't wind up in the hospital or the bottom of the ocean due to some kind of tragic accident.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship has a serious problem with the way they treat fighters, plain and simple. Does this lawsuit do enough to put a stop to it? I doubt it, personally. I envision this whole situation fading away quietly with each fighter getting a few million and the lawyers getting all their fees paid. All it will take is one or two bigger names coming out in support of or actually joining one of these classes of plaintiffs. There will be a point when the bad publicity and mounting sense of revolution will become too much for the UFC brass to bear, and they will pay a settlement. Nothing will actually change for the better in the long run if that happens.
For sweeping change to come out of any of this litigation, it will have to go to trial. People will have to testify, damning documents will have to be exposed in discovery, and fighters will have to tell the sordid details of their awful personal experiences with this all-powerful promoter for the record. No matter how dedicated the plaintiffs and their attorneys are, I doubt California's political climate and the possible favoritism of the Fertittas due to their casino and property interests in the state will allow this case to get to trial.
So, it makes for a good story and promotes healthy debate on the monopoly subject, but if any changes do eventually come out of this court battle, it will take years for them to take effect. That could be too late to help many of the fighters these lawsuits are purportedly designed to benefit. The worst case scenario would be a climate where the lawsuit is actually killed before it gets off the ground, which is entirely possible if the UFC has that much behind-the-scenes influence in California.
Nevertheless, this is a fantastic start in the quest to bring this organization to task for the way their overbearing actions negatively impact the sport of MMA as a whole. It is one thing to build something great while focusing only on your own business model and building it up from the initial concept into a worldwide force to be reckoned with. It is something else entirely to focus on destroying and/or minimizing everyone else in your niche to get to the top. Honesty is hardly ever the best policy in our capitalist way of doing business, though. Sometimes keeping secrets is actually crucial to a company's survival.
Consider the case of a guy named Ken Pavia who used to be a big player in the MMA industry and is now far removed from the sport. Pavia shared some UFC contracts with Bellator and wound up on the business end of a Zuffa lawsuit against him. The debacle eventually led to Pavia leaving the country to work for an overseas fight promotion. Pavia told me during this period that Dana White personally threatened him over the situation, telling him that the company would do everything in its power to get revenge. He even claimed White told him he would not be happy until Pavia's fiance left him and he committed suicide. A countersuit filed on behalf of Bellator and Pavia helped initiate a settlement in the case that is not allowed to be discussed by either party. So, now the outcome of a case about company secrets is itself a company secret.
The point is, the UFC is constantly building up their power base, and they have tremendous pull when it comes to making or breaking a fighter under their employ. They can also make life difficult for anyone who may rely on their support to do business in the industry.
Often the courtroom can be the last place to look for any semblance of real justice, but the tide has to turn somewhere. Maybe it will turn here, but my outlook on the situation is colored by skepticism and personal experience with the type of lawyers the Fertittas hire and how they operate. I'm more inclined to think more publication and less legalese would be a better way to inspire change. A blockbuster documentary exposing fighter complaints, maybe with a few blurred faces and distorted voices, might go a lot further in blowing the lid off this corruption.
Unfortunately, there's also a chance that this behemoth is just too big already and nothing will be able to keep it in line. As these class action cases outline, the UFC has been at this monopoly building for a long time, and they're very adept at avoiding culpability for their worst transgressions. Still, all it will take is one honest judge in California who is willing to hear the case out and let it continue to a final conclusion. And it would certainly help to have a few more high caliber fighters coming out of the woodwork to join the cause and levy their own personalized complaints and grievances.
I have been harping on the possibility of a legal action like this against the UFC for a long time, ever since Dana White started saying he wanted the UFC to be as popular and powerful as the NFL someday. I predicted years ago that a class action lawsuit could be the only way to stop the rampant abuse many fighters under UFC contract face in trying to earn a respectable and comfortable living. Even the highest paid UFC athletes no doubt make a huge chunk of their income from sponsors and endorsements. The most famous fighters also get movie roles on top of all that, so there's not much to complain about. Yet, what does it say about the sport and the owners of the biggest promotion in the sport when even their top athletes aren't making a luxurious living off the actual wages they're paid? Why should they need to depend on all this outside income when the profits of the promotion make it possible for them to be compensated much better without all that hoopla?
The answer to those questions may be more simple than you think. It all amounts to one short word, just five letters long: GREED. And the UFC brass is so downright greedy that I can't imagine them spending more on a settlement than they would be willing to shell out on the army of legal bulldogs it will take for them to crush their opposition here. When you are as corrupt and conniving as the Fertittas and Dana White, lawyers can be the most important piece of the puzzle. Some of the sleaziest attorneys are just as likely to advise you on how to break the law as they are to help you make sure to follow it. The kind of lawyers employed by these folks are the ones all the lawyer jokes are really made for. Many of them already sold their souls to the highest bidder, and they have no scruples or morals remaining to stop them from taking these valid fighter complaints and turning them into a puff of smoke. The UFC already promised they will vigorously defend themselves in the case, so if the plaintiffs and their attorneys are ready, willing and able to keep the fight going this will be a real war unfolding before our eyes as it all progresses through the different stages of litigation.
I, for one, will be rooting for the fighters to score a key victory here that finally exposes the UFC for taking advantage of the very people who made the organization what it is today. The publication of the suit itself goes a long way in doing just that, but results are what will really matter in this case. This legal team has the personnel and the persistence to make things interesting, but what they really need is to secure a final judgment or at the very least get to trial.
Stay tuned as we follow this case to see if any of this legal wrangling will pan out for the plaintiffs in the long run. I know one of the folks behind this case is interested in starting a fighters union at some point, so even if the case settles it might lead to some financing for that future endeavor. This development might not represent a perfect plan to revolutionize the way the UFC does business, but it's a damn good start as far as attempting to root out some of the corruption and mistreatment some of the promotion's fighters endure. I will keep a sharp eye on these cases as they play out and pass on new documents and developments as I acquire them.
Saturday, December 20, 2014
$10 Tuff-N-Uff tickets for the holidays!
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Thursday, December 18, 2014
M-1 Challenge 54 & ACB 12 OFFICIAL RESULTS
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