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Six Reasons The UFC’s New Owners Are Walking Into A Hornet’s Nest

A few months ago, it was confirmed that the UFC had been sold for a record-setting $4.2 billion to a group of investors led by talent agency WME-IMG. Obviously, based on the price at which the company was sold, the UFC is a very lucrative promotion, and the new owners would potentially be reaping the

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However, it could also be argued that the Fertitta brothers, the previous owners of the UFC, escaped at the right time. In other words, WME-IMG may have purchased the promotion with a laundry list of problems they may not have been fully aware of. Let’s take a look at six reasons why the new owners are walking into a hornet’s nest:

A Potential Fighters’ Union

In recent years, fighter treatment and fighter pay have become growing issues within the UFC. Given that fighters are technically ‘independent contractors’, however, they don’t have much say in these areas, and the UFC has been able to hold a death grip and express its power in a system that seems to benefit the promotion much more than the fighters.

That could change if a fighters union were to come to fruition, however, and the talks of such a union forming have increased in recent memory. In fact, just this past August longtime baseball agent Jeff Borris announced that he would be attempting to unionize fighters through the creation of the Professional Fighters Association.

If Borris can indeed spearhead this idea, the UFC may be forced to change the tactics that have made it such a lucrative promotion for years. If fighters were represented correctly and unionized, they would likely demand better pay and better conditions.

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Joe Silva Reportedly Leaves UFC

When the UFC was sold to talent agency WME-IMG for a record setting $4 billion earlier this year, fight fans and pundits alike wondered what, if any, changes would occur within the world’s largest mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion. Perhaps today (August 31, 2016) we have received wind of quite a substantial change. According to

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According to a report from Talk MMA, which was later confirmed by Jason Coles of the MMA Sun, longtime UFC matchmaker Joe Silva has parted was with the promotion:

It is true. Joe Silva is gone. First saw this reported by @TalkMMA …I can 100% confirm.

— Jason Coles (@MMASun) August 31, 2016

Silva has been with the UFC for years now serving as the company’s Vice President for Talent Relations in addition to putting together some of the biggest fights in the history of the sport. This move is a surprising one especially given the fact that Silva was in attendance at the UFC on FOX 21 weigh-ins this past weekend (Sat., August 27, 2016) in Vancouver, Canada.

Details regarding the situation are still scarce as both Silva and the UFC have yet to comment on the situation.

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

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Dana White Says ‘Awesome’ Announcements Regarding Fighter Pay Are Coming

The post Dana White Says ‘Awesome’ Announcements Regarding Fighter Pay Are Coming appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Fighter pay has consistently been a hot topic within the world of mixed martial arts (MMA) in recent years, as a plethora of fighters, specifically regarding the UFC, feel as if they aren’t being treated properly. In fact, talks of the potential formation of a fighters’ union have increased over time, and the Professional Fighters Association (PFA) recently announced its creation in hopes of assisting ‘the fighters in this historic quest to take control of their careers and their future.’

If you ask UFC President Dana White, however, fighters shouldn’t worry, as ‘awesome’ announcements regarding ‘making all of these athletes more money’ are coming in the next few months:

“To make this the biggest sport in the world. We’re not even close. Not even close. Just the announcements we’re going to make in the next three months are so awesome they are going to blow peoples minds, man. This is what I love. I love building, I love winning, I love the grind and getting in any everyday and making this thing bigger and bigger and better and making all of these athletes more money. In the next three months we are going to be popping out announcements left and right.” White told The Herd.

The UFC was recently sold for a record setting $4.2 billion to a team of investors led by WME-IMG, who announced its plans to open up a plethora of new opportunities to fighters. Perhaps this is what White is referring to.

Do you see any noteworthy changes pertaining to fighter pay truly coming to fruition in the future?

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Four Major Changes Coming From The UFC Sale

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With the announced acquisition of the Ultimate Fighting Championship by the William Morris Endeavour – International Management Group, WME-IMG, and speculation has run rampant. The larger than life personality to meet Dana White at the helm of the UFC will be none other than Ari Emanuel, the man often touted as the most powerful agent in Hollywood, alongside his longtime partner Patrick Whitesell. The pair have long, storied backgrounds in media representation on all fronts and larger than life personalities to match, specifically Emanuel.

Given their insightful reputation surrounding media properties, experts were surprised by the UFC’s sale price not only for the amount but for the fact that it was agreed upon by Emanuel and Whitesell, which alone speaks to the validity of the UFC’s deemed worth.

With Dana White’s experience and strong visionary qualities that have helped the UFC reach the heights in which it resides today, fans are curious to see how the addition of Emanuel and Whitesell will shape the organization going forward. Visionaries in their own right, the WME-IMG pair have connected the dots on the biggest media properties for years in terms of music, movies and sports- even having a hand in the sale of the UFC’s TV rights prior to the purchase.

In this article, we take a look at four distinct ways the UFC is about change following the sale. Given the hefty purchase price, the resources available by the new owners and the potential for more funding from it’s new equity partners like Silver Lake, the UFC is about to scale drastically and we outline exactly how they’ll do it.

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Dana White Signs New Five Year Contract

When it was confirmed earlier this week that the UFC had indeed been purchased for a record setting $4 billion by WME-IMG, it was also reported that UFC President Dana White would keep his position while UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta would be stepping down from his day to day responsibilities. Not only will White be

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According to a report from ESPN’s Darren Rovell, White’s new contract is a five year deal that includes him earning nine percent of the company’s future net profits. The UFC boss had previously owned approximately nine percent of the company meaning he’ll receive a hefty $360 million from the promotion’s sale. The report also indicated that it’s currently unknown whether or not White will continue to own a percentage of the world’s largest mixed martial arts organization.

As for what the future now holds for White in terms of his financial earnings, Rovell claimed that based off of an estimated $200 million yearly net profit for the UFC, White could earn roughly $18 million a year. That number would also increase as the UFC’s profits increase which of course is the ultimate goal.

After purchasing the UFC in 2001 for $2 million, White along with the Fertitta brothers have essentially built the sport of mixed martial arts from the ground up. The trio deserves a tremendous amount of credit for all they’ve done, and White’s new contract displays his value to the sport.

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Dana White Reveals Plans Of New UFC Owners

With the UFC officially selling for a record setting $4 billion yesterday (July 11, 2016), many questions have arisen regarding the largest transaction in sports history. As for what specific changes will be implemented by new owners WME-IMG, the answer is currently unclear, although UFC President Dana White, who will remain in his role, recently

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White continued to reiterate his idea that WME-IMG will take the UFC to the next level, and he claimed that the new owners will offer increased fighter pay, more sponsors, and increased opportunities for fighters outside of the cage:

“One of the things that we have always done since the day we have bought this company is we have taken this to the next level. I didn’t sleep too well last night. I was reading a lot of stuff and watching a lot of stuff, and obviously there was a lot of positive. But then there’s negative people out there, the naysayers, all this and that. Listen, this is gonna be massive,” White promised.

“Every year that we’ve owned this, fighter pay has gone up every year,” the UFC president continued. “I think that Ari (Emanuel), IMG, they’re gonna really bring in a lot more sponsors, there’s gonna be television and movie opportunities for these guys. Again, we’re just gonna continue to make this thing bigger globally and make this sport more popular. People can’t wrap their brains around the fact that we don’t even have scratched the surface of how big this sport’s gonna be. And Ari and his team get it, my team definitely gets it, and I’m ready.”

White once again confirmed that Emanuel, who is the head of the talent agency known as WME-IMG, will offer a plethora of different opportunities to hundreds of ‘talented’ fighters on the UFC:

“Absolutely. Listen, I come up with lots of content,” White said. “The library that I have from the past, the live fights, the ability to do all the different television shows, the talent that I have, I have 500 men and women under contract, talented people. Ari’s gonna help take that to the next level. I’m telling you guys. Look at these things that I said 15 years ago and listen to what I’m telling you today: Watch what happens in the next five years.”

What do you make of White’s latest comments?

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