Tag: UFC Sale

UFC Exec Denies Reports That Company Has Been Sold

Rumors regarding the potential sale of the UFC have been swirling for months now, but the situation reached a new height yesterday (June 20, 2016) when a report surfaced indicating that one hundred percent of the promotion had been sold for a record setting $4.2 billion. Flocombat.com claimed that “a group consisting of WME-IMG, the

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Rumors regarding the potential sale of the UFC have been swirling for months now, but the situation reached a new height yesterday (June 20, 2016) when a report surfaced indicating that one hundred percent of the promotion had been sold for a record setting $4.2 billion. Flocombat.com claimed that “a group consisting of WME-IMG, the Dalian Wanda Group, The Kraft Group and Tencent Holdings” had submitted the bid, and that the bid had essentially been accepted.

UFC Vice President of Public Relations Dave Sholler begs to differ, however, as he recently cited the reports as ‘false’:

“FloCombat.com’s report indicating that the UFC has been sold is false,” Sholler told MMAjunkie. “We’ve communicated that to our staff members tonight via an internal memo.”

The email in which Sholler referenced can be read in full below:

“A report today by FloCombat.com indicating that the company has been sold is false,” the email read. “This follows other false speculation in the press recently.

“Such misrepresentation of facts in the media negatively impacts our business, staff members and athletes. We have instructed our attorneys to investigate and take all appropriate legal actions against the parties publishing and contributing to these false stories.

“With International Fight Week and the historic UFC 200 rapidly approaching, we look forward to once again delivering a series of events that our fans won’s soon forget. We appreciate your hard work, diligence and commitment, and thank you for your focus as we continue to take the sport to new heights.”

The UFC has had a tendency in the past to shut down reports regarding huge news that they hadn’t yet announced themselves, but what do you make of the situation? The story regarding the potential sale of the UFC has been a popular one in recent weeks with some of the industry’s most well-respected reporters claiming that the move was almost a sure thing.

Stay tuned to LowKickMMA as more news regarding the situation unfolds.

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Report: UFC Sale Finalized With $4.2 Billion Bid

It sounds like the UFC will be under new ownership soon. A report has arrived from The Score MMA this afternoon (Mon., June 20, 2016) that the UFC has apparently accepted a $4.2 billion bid from one potential buyer among the group of reported bidders William Morris Endeavor-IMG, Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda, The Kraft Group, and

The post Report: UFC Sale Finalized With $4.2 Billion Bid appeared first on LowKick MMA.

It sounds like the UFC will be under new ownership soon.

A report has arrived from The Score MMA this afternoon (Mon., June 20, 2016) that the UFC has apparently accepted a $4.2 billion bid from one potential buyer among the group of reported bidders William Morris Endeavor-IMG, Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda, The Kraft Group, and Chinese investment company Tencent Holdings Limited.

Bids had come in the reported neighborhood of $4 billion, and it was announced that official bids were to be opened by the company very soon. Apparently those bids were opened, and a $4.2 billion number by an undisclosed buyer was accepted:

Talks about the UFC being sold have heated up lately, and it appears those talks have been fruitful despite UFC President Dana White stating that the promotion was ‘not for sale.’

Now, with the Ali Act potentially making overarching impacts on fighter pay, their biggest star in Ronda Rousey uncertain to return, and the Reebok sponsorship deal earning seemingly never-ending criticism for taking fighters’ sponsorship money, now may be the perfect time for the Fertitta brothers to get out.

It appears they’re doing just that. Stay tuned to LowKick for any and all updates on the game-changing sale.

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Poll: Will A UFC Sale Help Or Hurt MMA?

Last night (Tues., May 10, 2016), the somewhat shocking news arose that the UFC was apparently in ‘advanced talks’ for a potential sale to a group of four possible buyers in a report from ESPN’s Darren Rovell. UFC President Dana White quickly denied the report and blasted Rovell to The Las Vegas Review-Journal, but Rovell

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Last night (Tues., May 10, 2016), the somewhat shocking news arose that the UFC was apparently in ‘advanced talks’ for a potential sale to a group of four possible buyers in a report from ESPN’s Darren Rovell.

UFC President Dana White quickly denied the report and blasted Rovell to The Las Vegas Review-Journal, but Rovell noted that a company that is not up for sale most likely would not enlist the help of financial giant Goldman-Sachs.

White then appeared on ESPN’s The Dan Patrick Show this morning to address the report, affirming that while the UFC is not up for sale as of now, they are always fielding offers, and if they were to indeed sale the promotion, that would probably be when he stepped down.

It’s a lot to digest, and foreseeing what the UFC would become under new ownership without White is a tough proposition as of now. With that said, many have been griping about how the UFC has been doing business in recent years, mainly in the areas of fighter pay and the Reebok sponsorship deal.

What do you think? Would a UFC sale to new ownership be good or bad for the sport of MMA?

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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,

The post Dana White Responds To UFC Sale Rumors: ‘Couldn’t Be Farther Off’ appeared first on LowKick MMA.

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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