Tag: tom wright

UFC Canada Head Tom Wright Laid Off By New UFC Owners

The layoffs promised by the new UFC owners have hit the promotion fast and hard. Following a report that owners WME-IMG would lay off ‘under 15 percent’ of the company’s current employment following their record-setting $4.2 billion purchase of the world’s biggest MMA promotion this summer, the talent industry giant has put into motion a

The post UFC Canada Head Tom Wright Laid Off By New UFC Owners appeared first on LowKick MMA.

The layoffs promised by the new UFC owners have hit the promotion fast and hard.

Following a report that owners WME-IMG would lay off ‘under 15 percent’ of the company’s current employment following their record-setting $4.2 billion purchase of the world’s biggest MMA promotion this summer, the talent industry giant has put into motion a far larger impact on the UFC’s floundering Canadian division.

Word arrived from MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani today (Wed., October 19, 2016) that the new owners laid off roughly 80 percent of the company’s Toronto office, with head man Tom Wright, the UFC Executive Vice President and General Manager for Operations in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Wright had been employed by the company since 2010 after leaving the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Wright’s departure comes one day after WME-IMG let go of top senior executives Garry Cook, Marshall Zelaznik, Ken Berger, and Jaime Pollack. The layoffs reportedly affected UFC offices in Las Vegas, Europe, Brazil, Canada, Latin America, and Asia, and could include others before all is done.

According to Helwani, approximately 60-80 overall employees out of the company’s roughly 350 were affected. New ownership has declined to comment on the reporting.

The move brings the future of the UFC’s once-thriving Canadian division into serious question, as Wright’s departure comes during a week when legendary Canadian star Georges St-Pierre revealed that WME-IMG allegedly took a deal he had with former UFC owner Lorenzo Fertitta off the table before leading him on without a concrete fight offer. St-Pierre says he’s a free agent, but his employers, who are interestingly the direct competitors of GSP’s own talent agency CAA, insist he’s still under contract and will remain that way.

The promotion clearly missed a golden opportunity to explode back into the Canadian market in a big way with the UFC 206 pay-per-view headed to Toronto in December. St-Pierre headlining it would have most likely all but guaranteed a million-plus buy card, and now the Daniel Cormier vs. Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson headliner just doesn’t have the same appeal.

In any case, the UFC is about to look a whole lot different heading into 2017.

The post UFC Canada Head Tom Wright Laid Off By New UFC Owners appeared first on LowKick MMA.

UFC Executive Addresses Lombard-Magny Controversy At UFC Fight Night 85

A UFC event wouldn’t be a UFC event without controversy. UFC Fight Night 85 was no exception, as it had its’ fair share of controversial moments this past Saturday evening in Brisbane, Australia.

The biggest controversy coming out of the show stems …

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A UFC event wouldn’t be a UFC event without controversy. UFC Fight Night 85 was no exception, as it had its’ fair share of controversial moments this past Saturday evening in Brisbane, Australia.

The biggest controversy coming out of the show stems from the co-main event between Hector Lombard and Neil Magny. Referee Steve Perceval is being heavily criticized for not stopping the bout at the end of the second round, as Magny was teeing off on Lombard well past the point that most referees would allow.

Magny would go on to TKO Lombard in the third round, however UFC’s managing director for operations in Canada, Tom Wright, didn’t forget what he and the rest of the UFC executives in attendance saw during the end of the second round.

Wright spoke about the controversy in the Lombard-Magny fight during the UFC Fight Night 85 post-fight press conference held after event in Brisbane on Saturday.

“We were a lot concerned,” Wright said regarding the fact that referee Steve Perceval failed to stop the fight at the end of the second round. “I think [Magny] said it best. It’s the referee’s job, is to make sure that a fight is stopped, that the athlete can protect himself or herself. I’m sitting not quite as close as the referee was, but I thought that fight should’ve been stopped and it should’ve been stopped a long time before.”

You can watch video highlights of the controversial Magny-Lombard bout by clicking here.

For complete UFC Fight Night 85 results, click here.

Are Cautious Fans to Blame for UFC 154?s Slow Ticket Sales?


(Yes, Georges, your knees are fine, and you can still curtsy like a little princess, we get it.)

According to a new report by the Vancouver Sun, UFC 154: St. Pierre vs. Condit (November 17th, Montreal) is suffering from slow ticket sales, with large groups of seats available less than three weeks out from the show. Though the UFC still expects a capacity crowd at the Bell Centre, it’s a noticeable shift from the promotion’s four previous stops in Montreal, three of which set UFC attendance records. According to UFC Director of Canadian Operations Tom Wright, fans may be spooked by the UFC’s recent injury apocalypse, which absolutely destroyed their July stop in Calgary:

“There’s been many examples over the last several fights — UFC 151 and 149 in Calgary is a good example of it — where fighters got injured and there were changes to the card. I think there are fans who are saying, ‘You know what? I’m really excited about GSP‘s return and I love the fact that we’ve got (Martin) Kampmann versus (Johny) Hendricks in the co-main event, and we’ve got a bunch of Canadians on the card. But you know what? I bought my tickets 12 weeks out for Calgary and a whole bunch of things happened. I’m going to wait until it’s a little closer’…I absolutely think that you’re seeing that. I think you’re going to see that going forward.”

Sounds like a logical hypothesis to me. I’m not going to go as far as to call UFC 154’s supporting card garbage-ass, but you have to ask yourself — if, God forbid, either GSP or Carlos Condit suffered a freak injury at the eleventh hour, is the rest of the lineup strong enough to soldier on without them? The co-main event of Kampmann vs. Hendricks is solid enough to headline a FUEL or FX card, but would be a tough sell for a pay-per-view headliner at the Bell Centre. And outside of the top two fights, the biggest name on the main card is Mark Hominick, who is riding an agonizing three-fight losing streak, and facing the inconsistent (and not-particuarly-relevant) Pablo Garza.


(Yes, Georges, your knees are fine, and you can still curtsy like a little princess, we get it.)

According to a new report by the Vancouver Sun, UFC 154: St. Pierre vs. Condit (November 17th, Montreal) is suffering from slow ticket sales, with large groups of seats available less than three weeks out from the show. Though the UFC still expects a capacity crowd at the Bell Centre, it’s a noticeable shift from the promotion’s four previous stops in Montreal, three of which set UFC attendance records. According to UFC Director of Canadian Operations Tom Wright, fans may be spooked by the UFC’s recent injury apocalypse, which absolutely destroyed their July stop in Calgary:

“There’s been many examples over the last several fights — UFC 151 and 149 in Calgary is a good example of it — where fighters got injured and there were changes to the card. I think there are fans who are saying, ‘You know what? I’m really excited about GSP‘s return and I love the fact that we’ve got (Martin) Kampmann versus (Johny) Hendricks in the co-main event, and we’ve got a bunch of Canadians on the card. But you know what? I bought my tickets 12 weeks out for Calgary and a whole bunch of things happened. I’m going to wait until it’s a little closer’…I absolutely think that you’re seeing that. I think you’re going to see that going forward.”

Sounds like a logical hypothesis to me. I’m not going to go as far as to call UFC 154′s supporting card garbage-ass, but you have to ask yourself — if, God forbid, either GSP or Carlos Condit suffered a freak injury at the eleventh hour, is the rest of the lineup strong enough to soldier on without them? The co-main event of Kampmann vs. Hendricks is solid enough to headline a FUEL or FX card, but would be a tough sell for a pay-per-view headliner at the Bell Centre. And outside of the top two fights, the biggest name on the main card is Mark Hominick, who is riding an agonizing three-fight losing streak, and facing the inconsistent (and not-particuarly-relevant) Pablo Garza.

As Wright points out, the nightmare scenarios of UFC 151 and UFC 149 may have changed fans’ approach to ticket-buying. But while it may be true that local fans are playing the wait-and-see game before deciding to buy tickets and drive down to the venue on  11/17, fans outside of the Montreal area might not be buying at all. Think of everybody who bought non-refundable airfare to Las Vegas for UFC 151, who wound up watching Cirque du Soleil that weekend. Now that event-cancellations are within the realm of possibility, you’ll see less fans willing to roll the dice to travel to a UFC show.

Plus, Canadians might be ravenous MMA fans, but you can’t assume that all of them revere Georges St. Pierre as their personal hero. GSP headlined the UFC’s last Montreal show in December 2011, as well as their first Montreal show in April 2008. If you already spent $500 for a pair of semi-decent seats to watch GSP dominate somebody once before, you might not be as likely to do it again.

So what do you think? Can slow ticket sales be blamed indirectly on the UFC’s injury curse, or are there other factors at work here?

Tom Wright Discusses UFC’s Return to Toronto, Future Events in Canada

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TORONTO — Watch below as the UFC‘s director of Canadian operations Tom Wright discusses all the storylines heading into the UFC’s return to Toronto and the promotion’s plans for the Great White North come 2012 and beyond.

 

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TORONTO — Watch below as the UFC‘s director of Canadian operations Tom Wright discusses all the storylines heading into the UFC’s return to Toronto and the promotion’s plans for the Great White North come 2012 and beyond.

 

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UFC Holds ‘Community Works’ Event in Toronto for Youth and Reveal Plans to Implement Anti-Bullying Program in Canada

(Video courtesy of YouTube/ BlahBlahBlah2145)

While in attendance at the UFC press conference in which the promotion announced announced that it would be making it’s long-awaited debut in Ontario last year, I asked the company’s newly-appointed Canadian director of operations, Tom Wright, whether or not there were plans to implement any community-based programs such as in-school anti-bullying initiatives. Although it was early in his tenure, Wright told me that it was definitely something that they would be looking at and that programs such as these were some of the most rewarding he experienced as the head of the Canadian Football League Commissioner.

It’s been 19 months since Wright was hired and Zuffa announced this week that it’s planning on working with local schools in the Greater Toronto Area, where it’s Canadian branch is located, to implement a mentoring program for youth who have experienced bullying. Though it’s too early to tell, there are indications that a regular stream of fighters could speak to Toronto kids about their own experiences with bullying as youth, teachers and parents and if all goes well, it could become a implemented in schools across the country.


(Video courtesy of YouTube/ BlahBlahBlah2145)

While in attendance at the UFC press conference in which the promotion announced announced that it would be making it’s long-awaited debut in Ontario last year, I asked the company’s newly-appointed Canadian director of operations, Tom Wright, whether or not there were plans to implement any community-based programs such as in-school anti-bullying initiatives. Although it was early in his tenure, Wright told me that it was definitely something that they would be looking at and that programs such as these were some of the most rewarding he experienced as the head of the Canadian Football League Commissioner.

It’s been 19 months since Wright was hired and Zuffa announced this week that it’s planning on working with local schools in the Greater Toronto Area, where it’s Canadian branch is located, to implement a mentoring program for youth who have experienced bullying. Though it’s too early to tell, there are indications that a regular stream of fighters could speak to Toronto kids about their own experiences with bullying as youth, teachers and parents and if all goes well, it could become a implemented in schools across the country.

Ahead of this weekend’s UFC 140 event in the city, the UFC, in conjunction with the Toronto Police Services held a special event today at Saturday’s venue featuring some local fighters like Mark Hominick, Sean Pierson and Sam Stout and American fighters like bantamweight champion, Dominick Cruz and ex-NFL player-turned UFC heavyweight Matt Mitrione.

During the two-hour event, which wrapped up minutes ago, students listened to short speeches by the fighters about their own trials and tribulations with bullying growing up and were given an opportunity during a Q&A period to ask the fighters questions.

Critics of the sport have been vocal of their opposition to having fighters who punch, kick and choke their opponents for a living into the schools to tell kids to not do what they do outside of competition. Ironically, the same critics have been mostly silent about local boxing legend George Chuvalo and former Toronto Argonaut Mike “Pinball” Clemons visiting schools dozens of times every year.

Toronto City Councillor Doug Ford, whose brother Rob is the city’s mayor, told reporters over the weekend that he supported the initiative and that he hoped the city would embrace the program that will help at-risk youth, but his comments were met with a furor by his fellow municipal politicians who don’t agree with the partnership with schools in the city, even if bullying is a real epidemic there.

The question is, does fighting for a living actually make a person less credible when it comes to talking to kids about bullying?

Leave your thoughts in the comment section.

Report: Vancouver Likely Not on UFC’s Calendar in 2012

Filed under: UFC, NewsAfter bringing MMA’s biggest traveling road show to Vancouver in both 2010 and 2011, the UFC is unlikely to return to the picturesque British Columbian city in 2012.

That news comes from the UFC’s director of operations in Canada…

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Junior Dos Santos defeated Shane Carwin at UFC 131.After bringing MMA’s biggest traveling road show to Vancouver in both 2010 and 2011, the UFC is unlikely to return to the picturesque British Columbian city in 2012.

That news comes from the UFC’s director of operations in Canada, Tom Wright, who told The Canadian Press that the promotion would visit three of the country’s cities next year, and Vancouver isn’t expected to be one of them.

The reason? The shows certainly weren’t financial failures. 2010’s UFC 115 did a $4.2 million gate, while UFC 131, held this past June, drew a $2.8 million gate. Instead, the problem is regulatory stalling. Both of the UFC’s events were held during a two-year test period held by the city after overturning a previous ban on MMA. That test period will end in the coming months and apparently, the prospects of sanctioned MMA will go with it.

“And the disappointing thing for our sport is that after a two-year test period, they’ve had two tests — ours,” Wright said. “Because no other promotion could afford the indemnification or the insurance costs or the other things — or actually have the perseverance to get an event to be held there.”

While the MMA events were both financial boons for the city and promotion, UFC officials navigated a rocky road with Vancouver officials over several issues, including insurance costs. Most recently, before the UFC’s scheduled June 11 event, Vancouver police chief Jim Chu requested that the promotion contribute to policing costs “to prevent what might occur in terms of neighborhood problems.”

The UFC refused the request, saying they weren’t prepared to be treated differently than other events held there. Ironically, at the time, Wright told MMA Fighting that he explained to Chu, “If I were the Chief, I’d be more worried about Canuck fans (celebrating or crying in their beers) than UFC fans.”

The UFC event came and went with no problems, but just days later, after the hometown Canucks lost in the Stanley Cup Finals, over 100 people were arrested as riots erupted on the city’s streets.

According to Wright, Toronto and Montreal will see major UFC shows in 2012, but the third Canadian host city remains undetermined. It’s possible the third show will be a smaller “Fight Night” event.

 

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