It was a landmark deal and the first of its kind for the UFC. But, if the words of Dana White are anything to go by, the promotion will never again sponsor one of its own fighters.
Back in April, after Jon Jones lost his K-Swiss deal following the collapse of its subsidiary FORM Athletics, the young light heavyweight champion was left looking for a recognised brand to take its place.
Amid dreams of Nike, the UFC took the unprecedented step to sponsor Jones himself in his fight against Rashad Evans in April.
That was a controversial move by the organisation which seemed to be playing favourites between two of its own fighters.
Evans at the time was philosophical about his paymasters choosing to back his opponent, but since Jones switched to Nike after the fight, White has made it clear that it will be unlikely that the promotion ever makes the move to brand one of its own fighters again.
The UFC president was speaking at a post-fight media scrum following UFC on Fuel 5, which took place in Nottingham, England, on Saturday when he said:
“I’m still not a big fan of [the UFC sponsoring fighters]. I still don’t like it. I hope we’re on our way to phasing it out. I don’t like it. It was a decision that was made and I don’t think it was the best decision, so, we’ll see what happens.”
That move will surely settle any controversies of conflicts of interests. Especially among fighters who are already concerned that the promotion is playing favourites with its own athletes.
Jones has since gone on to sign a lucrative global sponsorship deal with Nike, which in itself is a landmark move for any UFC fighter. With a brand like Nike getting involved with MMA, it hardly seems necessary for the UFC to try and step in and fill any sponsorship holes itself.
Especially considering the UFC brand is all over Jones already—he is, after all, the UFC light heavyweight champion. Not to mention he exclusively fights for the UFC promotion.
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