New filings from the UFC anti-trust lawsuit detail some of the hardball tactics Dana White used to buy and shut down competitor Strikeforce.
Nice promotion you got there. Would be a real shame if something bad happened to it.
That’s the vibe we’re getting from court documents coming out of the UFC anti-trust lawsuit regarding the UFC’s 2011 purchase of Strikeforce. These filings are giving us some serious insider information on how the UFC was run from 2005-2015, and we are not shocked at confirmations that cut-throat business tactics were often used.
“In November 2010, the Strikeforce owners met with representatives of the UFC concerning the potential acquisition of Strikeforce at the offices of WME,” a filing detailed. “At the meeting, Lorenzo Fertitta reportedly stated that he thought ‘Strikeforce is building a great brand, but Zuffa feels there should only be one brand, so Zuffa would like to buy Strikeforce.”
Hmm wonder why Strikeforce sold? Company looking at very small profits and then White is threatening to increase their expenses unless they sell. https://t.co/quPhk9PCt6 pic.twitter.com/CwJ4fJfnDo
— John S. Nash (@heynottheface) November 4, 2023
“For it’s part, Zuffa’s internal correspondence in 2012 indicates that the UFC sought, by its Strikeforce acquisition, to eliminate it as a competitor.”
Based on these documents, Strikeforce president and founder Scott Coker wasn’t enthused about the idea of selling to UFC.
“If you can’t battle these guys it’s over for the MMA industry,” Coker said in a deposition. “UFC will be the only one left. We’re the last chance. Otherwise, fighters’ purses will go down if the UFC is the only one — is the only one, period. We’re Luke Skywalker and the UFC is Darth Vader and the Death Star.”
As usual, it was Lorenzo Fertitta with the carrot and Dana White with the stick.
The document states “Coker testified that after negotiations stalled, Dana White threatened that he would ‘come after Strikeforce’s fighters, and he would make our life hard, and, you know, give us a bad time.’”
History tells us what happened next: Strikeforce sold to UFC in March 2011. The UFC shut down the promotion and swallowed their roster. In a paper on the Obama administration’s anti-trust policies, the Strikeforce sale was noted as a clear failure.
In a paper on the Obama administration’s antitrust enforcement (or lack of it) it cites the UFC’s acquisition of Strikeforce as an example of one of its failures https://t.co/fpz3gYApPX pic.twitter.com/TodvWH7Uru
— John S. Nash (@heynottheface) January 12, 2021
“Fighters who had received 45 to 63 percent of Strikeforce revenue prior to the merger now reportedly receive roughly 20 percent,” it read.