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Rumor: UFC Could Be Sold Today In $4 Billion Range

The talk about Zuffa LLC selling the UFC has been brewing in the MMA community for quite awhile now, and it’s also taken a step up in recent weeks. Now, however, reports have surfaced from MMA Fighting’s Dave Meltzer that the UFC may be sold as soon as today (June 16, 2016), with the price

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The talk about Zuffa LLC selling the UFC has been brewing in the MMA community for quite awhile now, and it’s also taken a step up in recent weeks.

Now, however, reports have surfaced from MMA Fighting’s Dave Meltzer that the UFC may be sold as soon as today (June 16, 2016), with the price reportedly targeted at or around $4 billion for complete ownership of the company:

“The bidding period is expected to end this week, on or around 6/16, regarding a sale that is expected to be in the $4 billion price range for 100 percent ownership of the UFC.”

Three potential buyers are in the running for the MMA frontrunner, with William Morris Endeavor/IMG, China Media Capital, and the Dalian Wanda Group being named the candidates. White has vehemently denied that the UFC is for sale in the media as always, but did note that they were “fielding offers.”

White owns 9% of the company himself, the Fertittas own 81%, and the remaining 10% is owned by a third party investor. If and when the UFC is sold, it’s hard to imagine the company being run without White as the public face, but there is a distinct possibility that both White and the Fertittas would relinquish their heavily involved roles with the company if it were sold.

Meltzer did reveal that the bidders may want White to stay on as head man, possibly even while keeping some of his ownership stake.

The UFC recently enlisted financial giant Goldman Sachs to assist with a potential sale, signifying that they were serious about unloading the world’s name brand for MMA. Nothing is official as of now, but the company’s recent signing of former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar to compete at UFC 200 could certainly be a play to bolster numbers, which have been soaring since a down 2014, up for the potential sale.

The UFC could also reject any or all bids and retain ownership, so it appears today and the next few days could be a critical negotiating period for the future direction of the company.

Either way, the UFC and obviously MMA as a whole is going to change in a big way if the UFC does accept one of the supposedly forthcoming bids and decide to sell. We’ll keep you updated on any developments as they arise.

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Tito Ortiz: It’s A Girlfriend-Boyfriend Relationship, Dana White Is The Girlfriend

There’s been a lot of talk recently about the UFC being up for sale. Multiple credible sources reported that the promotion was up for grabs at a hefty price tag of four billion US dollars, but UFC president Dana White shot down the reports soon after. Yet still news continues to emerge about a potential

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So what would happen if the UFC sold? Potentially with the Muhammad Ali act being pushed through congress towards MMA as a sport, the days of the Zuffa brand ball-and-chaining their fighters is going to be coming to an end very soon. Maybe right now would be the best and most profitable time for the Fertittas to exit as UFC owners, but what would the impact be on the promotion as a whole?

Former UFC light-heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz shared his opinion on the UFC being for sale, and the probably accurate assumption that Dana White would probably retire if the company changed hands. As per MMAFighting.com:

Last week in an interview with RJ Clifford and Steve Cofield on SiriusXM Rush Fight Club, Ortiz spoke about the possibility of a UFC sale:

“I think the promotion would completely fail. I think it would crash and burn, that’s my opinion. I think Dana does a great job with the promotion. Sometimes we don’t agree on the same things but that’s just between me and him. Like I say, it’s a girlfriend-boyfriend type of relationship, him being the girlfriend of course.”

“Dana does a great job with what he does and that’s why the company is worth four billion dollars. Lorenzo [Fertitta] has stepped in and is doing an amazing job – from stepping down from Station Casinos – for what he does now. And giving the opportunity to Cris, I’m very thankful for that. But at the end of the day this is a business to them and if they’re able to sell it off for four billion, do what’s needed. I gave my heart and soul, blood, sweat, and tears to the company. I’ve gone on with my business and that’s the way it is.”

It’s no secret that White and Ortiz don’t see eye-to-eye, and they came close to having a boxing match once, before ‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ no-showed. The former champion once famously wore a shirt bearing the slogan ‘Dana is my bitch,’ and was later dumped by the promotion in a rather sour ending.

“I think if the Chinese company didn’t bring Dana in it would crash and burn. It would be a lost cause but I guess it’s up to Dana to make those decisions.”

“This is the last fight on my contract, it’s the last fight that I want to compete. I’m 41 years old. I was supposed to be retired and done with this business at 40. Nineteen years I think is good enough for me. So let’s go out with a bang. Let’s go out with one of the biggest names in the world of mixed martial arts.

“Royce Gracie is here, he’s competing. He just stopped Ken Shamrock super quick. I think that would be a fun fight. I got caught with a submission by a black belt, Liam McGeary. Royce Gracie’s a black belt. Can he catch me? That’s a question. We’re both old pioneers of the sport, legends of the sport. I think the names would sell. Let’s give the fans something exciting.”

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Dana White Responds To UFC Sale Rumors: ‘Couldn’t Be Farther Off’

The MMA world was sent into minor upheaval earlier tonight (Tues., May 10, 2016) when a report surfaced from ESPN’s Darren Rovell that the UFC was allegedly in ‘advanced talks’ to sell the company to a host of four potential bidders. Those bidders supposedly include WME/IMG, China Media Capital, The Blackstone Group and Dalian Wanda Group,

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The MMA world was sent into minor upheaval earlier tonight (Tues., May 10, 2016) when a report surfaced from ESPN’s Darren Rovell that the UFC was allegedly in ‘advanced talks’ to sell the company to a host of four potential bidders.

Those bidders supposedly include WME/IMG, China Media Capital, The Blackstone Group and Dalian Wanda Group, with the final group being backed up by China’s richest man, Wang Jianlin, and his $35 billion net worth. The asking price for the UFC was reported to be in the $3.5 billion to $4 billion range, and the UFC was supposedly being represented in the potential sale by financial giant Goldman-Sachs, at least to ESPN’s unnamed sources.

However, UFC President Dana White quickly refuted that report in a discussion with The Las Vegas Review-Journal, offering his always outspoken opinion that Rovell ‘does not like facts’ in his ‘overblown’ story:

“The UFC is not for sale,” White told the Review-Journal on Tuesday evening. “The ESPN story is overblown. Darren Rovell is not a fan of facts. His facts could not be further off.”

White can often be seen denying most breaking stories that he or his team did not drum up himself, and indeed, rumors of a potential sale by UFC owners Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta have been looming for months. Yet Rovell’s sources have not been confirmed, and until a deal is made official, then we’ll have to listen to White’s rebuttal otherwise there’s proof otherwise.

What do you think? Will be big, overarching change at the top soon be on the horizon for the world’s biggest MMA promotion?

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