The UFC Empire, in its quest for global domination, has effectively caused the expiration of one colony and the evisceration of another. One’s from another continent across the Pacific Ocean, the other more accessible in Northern California from UFC’s home base in Las Vegas.
In the first quarter of 2007, the MMA world—with the exception of the legendary Japanese promotion’s head honchos and a couple of hard-nosed sports journalists—was surprised to find out that Pride Fighting Championships was hanging on life support.
In March of the aforementioned year, Zuffa, UFC’s parent company, presumably came to the rescue. Trumping with triumphalism, it bought Pride FC out, with what many thought for the altruistic goal of resuscitating its erstwhile leading competitor.
It didn’t take long for the excited but equally apprehensive fight fans to realize that Zuffa did enter the intensive care unit, only to milk Pride FC of its remaining top fighters before pulling out its life-support instruments. Then finally throwing its corpse to memory for all eternity.
By October 2007, Pride’s Japanese staff was laid off, officially ending the organization’s business of MMA promotion. (If ever Pride FC miraculously rises from its tomb someday, Lazarus-like—complete with fireworks and entrance music—then we’ll surely know about it.)
The demise of Pride FC may be due to a multitude of factors; some may not be Zuffa’s fault at all. Perhaps UFC president Dana White was right in saying then about his Japanese counterparts what has become his catchphrase now regarding M-1 Global’s, “It’s hard to do business with them.”
But in light of all the developments since Zuffa purchased Strikeforce, its closest competitor at home in the US, one can’t help but think that the sorry fate of Pride FC has been part of a malevolent imperialist master plan all along: Buy ‘em out then kill ‘em softly.
Here are excerpts from the excellent slideshow “Business as Usual?: 10 Major Events in the Year Since Zuffa Bought Strikeforce” of Bleacher Report MMA lead writer Jonathan Snowden:
In the most transparent bit of double dealing, wink, wink, tomfoolery, Alistair Overeem is “released” by Strikeforce after an injury forces him to delay the Heavyweight Grand Prix.
Overeem, of course, almost immediately signed with the UFC and headlined a December card against Brock Lesnar. […]
Dan Henderson, the MMA legend who abandoned the UFC for a shot at superstardom in Strikeforce, returned to the loving embrace of UFC President Dana White. […]
Dana White announced that the [heavyweight] division was on life support. After the Grand Prix and “one more fight,” the Strikeforce heavyweights would be no more.
Isn’t it eerie how the long shadow of Pride FC—until now projected from the shining light of its former fighters—was, until recently, still sprawled all over Strikeforce? (Heavyweight Josh Barnett, another Pride FC veteran, remains there, though.)
Now, Strikeforce is desperately clinging on its last threads: Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate, and, representing the less beautiful half of our species, Barnett and Daniel Cormier.
In hindsight, Pride FC’s appears to be an execution by musketry, though a considerable waiting period lapsed before the act of murder was finally consummated. Strikeforce’s is a slower death by garrote vil—the medieval instrument of choice used to subject unlucky victims to guillotine choke, with the coldest disregard for even the healthiest tapout.
Making analogic examples from the Philippines’ Spanish colonial history, Pride FC suffered the same death of Jose Rizal, while Strikeforce is currently undergoing what befell the three martyr-priests collectively immortalized as Gomburza.
The abovementioned martyrs underwent their respective mock trials before meeting their Maker. In the same way, Pride FC suffered, and Strikeforce suffers, from a mockery of good faith with regard to their perpetuation in the hands of their common new master, the UFC.
Here’s to the glory that was Pride FC and the grand challenge that was Strikeforce.
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