View Full Version : Apparently the UFC finally...
bought Pride!
That's all the rage on the UG at the moment - Greg Savage on Sherdog radio has said great sources have said the price tag was $65 million.
I have no idea how true this is, but if true, it has been the worst kept secret in MMA as this has been rumoured for a while now.
If true:
How would an effective monopoly go? I feel the IFL with it's team structure is no threat, but perhaps Shaw/Showtimes Elite EX can fill the void as main competitor to the UFC now?
I have mixed feelings with this. On one hand we can now see ALL the best fighters in the ring together, on the downside we'll have UFC rules, like an octagon and no kicking on the ground (gay).
...Will Pride keep their name but just operate differently with new management (doubt it) or will the UFC totally take over the Pride name and infrustructure?
IMO there will be no competition to the UFC if they have taken Pride - it will be a monopoly. At least for the mid-term... There will be the minor leagues (IFL, XFC, etc), but if this goes through, the UFC will be the 'one' and all the other 'competitors' will be like the VFL is to the AFL.
I don't see this as a bad thing necessarily. Boxing credibility is tarnished by the multiple "world" titles. But at least you have unification fights. The way PRIDE is/was going you weren't going to get Chuck Liddell v Wandieli Silva. And I hear that it was all PRIDE's friction stopping this. On the down side we might end up with a Formula 1, Bernie Eccleston type thing where Zuffa an Dana White rule with an iron fist and turn it into something that makes money but loses it's tough.
I don't see this as a bad thing necessarily. Boxing credibility is tarnished by the multiple "world" titles. But at least you have unification fights. The way PRIDE is/was going you weren't going to get Chuck Liddell v Wandieli Silva. And I hear that it was all PRIDE's friction stopping this. On the down side we might end up with a Formula 1, Bernie Eccleston type thing where Zuffa an Dana White rule with an iron fist and turn it into something that makes money but loses it's tough.
Yeah, I agree on both points. I guess we can just hope that it's for the positive.
I dont know if we werent going down this path anyway - from all reports Pride is/was f*&K3D in any event. The UFC was slowly taking the fighters they wanted, either directly from Pride or through other organisations. There was probably only another handful of guys the UFC would have wanted.
From a boxing perspective, yes, multiple sanctioning bodies means multiple champions etc, however there is a difference as the sanctioning bodies are not promoters. The UFC is effectively its own organisation, as was Pride, and the rest. There is no set structure to MMA rules etc and global rankings, like boxing has. So it's not exactly the same.
I see it more as the WWE - Zuffa will rule its own organisation, and effectively the sport, as they are the sport for the most part.
Having said that, Hero's has announced they are going to the USA, and have hinted at a deal/partnership with Showtime and Elite XC.
Elite XC is there, and have the exposure of a network like Showtime. They should only grow from here.
It will mean better fights in the short term, but in the long term, the UFC/Pride thing will probably be absorbed into itself, with no clear distinction, and back to all fighters being UFC fighters and at square one again, just without Pride, but other orgnaisations showcasing the other fighters.
I'd like to see Pride retaining their brand, and definitely stay in the ring not the octagon, but i'd like to see a uniform set of fighting rules apply right across the sport. ie.if you can't stop in UFC then no stomps in Pride, if there's no elbows in Pride then no elbows in UFC either, etc. If the Fertittas buy pride as is rumoured then get a gun jap bloke to run it, fk the yakuza connection out of things as much as possible and get back in with a TV network and spread PrideFC right across Asia, Oceania and Europe. Make UFC the Nth/Sth American org and have once a year extravaganzas maybe Dec 30th each year when it's UFC vs PrideFC and all the champs of each weight division bang heads to decide the World MMA champ for that year. All the Brasilians/Canadians/Yanks fight in UFC, all the Russians/Japs/Aussies/Europeans fight in PrideFC. The Dec30 event is shown live right around the world on PPV and possibly you could pad the card with the 2nd ranked fighters of each org fighting against each other too, to get your 3rd and 4th ranked fighters decided.
Reckon it'd work?
from a fans perspective that would be great.
However, who knows how much $h!t they up against in Japan/Asia? DSE was reportedly making great money, had huge shows with huge crowds and TV ratings, and if you believe the reports, the organised crime involvement/angle was the catalyst in bringing it down.
Who knows if it's repairable? If DSE dont think they can make a go of it anymore, how the hell will Zuffa? Is it worth their while, when they can run everything out of North America and Europe?
from a fans perspective that would be great.
However, who knows how much $h!t they up against in Japan/Asia? DSE was reportedly making great money, had huge shows with huge crowds and TV ratings, and if you believe the reports, the organised crime involvement/angle was the catalyst in bringing it down.
Who knows if it's repairable? If DSE dont think they can make a go of it anymore, how the hell will Zuffa? Is it worth their while, when they can run everything out of North America and Europe?
Bottom line I don't think there is a demand problem in Japan. From an outsiders perspective looking in I'd say the overheads re PRIDE would be a major reason for financial difficulties there. As far as the Yakuza is concerned I'm not qualified to comment, or even knowledgeable enough from a "true fans" perspective to say I've done the research. But organised crime in Japan is very different from basically every where else in the world. They organise and function more like a legitimate business then the stereo typical mafia type crime syndicate. I personally couldn't see MMA in Japan as a liability, on the contrary. If managed in a culturally properly way it should be a major cash cow. Looks to me like DSE bit off more then they could chew.
From Sherdog: http://www.sherdog.com/news/news.asp?n_id=7048
Thursday, March 22, 2007
by Sherdog.com Staff
PRIDE CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara informed staff inside the Japanese promoter's Los Angeles office Wednesday that he was stepping down as part of an agreement to sell the company to Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, who own the UFC.
According to a report by Dave Meltzer at wrestlingobserver.com, Sakakibara suggested only minor points separate the deal, which Sherdog.com first rumored on Monday, from reaching its conclusion. No contract has been signed, the report said.
While Sakakibara appears to be leaving a company he's been a part of since its inception in 1997, the man who stepped in as PRIDE CEO after Naoto Mori****a committed suicide told his staff that the company would remain intact and autonomous from the UFC, but that hurdles no longer remain between UFC versus PRIDE cards, Meltzer reported.
From Sherdog: http://www.sherdog.com/news/news.asp?n_id=7048
Thursday, March 22, 2007
by Sherdog.com Staff
PRIDE CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara informed staff inside the Japanese promoter's Los Angeles office Wednesday that he was stepping down as part of an agreement to sell the company to Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, who own the UFC.
According to a report by Dave Meltzer at wrestlingobserver.com, Sakakibara suggested only minor points separate the deal, which Sherdog.com first rumored on Monday, from reaching its conclusion. No contract has been signed, the report said.
While Sakakibara appears to be leaving a company he's been a part of since its inception in 1997, the man who stepped in as PRIDE CEO after Naoto Mori****a committed suicide told his staff that the company would remain intact and autonomous from the UFC, but that hurdles no longer remain between UFC versus PRIDE cards, Meltzer reported.
Apparently one thing that's been holding up the sale was some of the contracts with the fighters were a bit sloppy, and so would become free agents should Pride be sold. Sakakibara recently went down and saw Arona, Rua, Silva in Brasil and apparently it was to get them onboard water tight. Forgot where i read about this, maybe on the UG.
Presti_is_god
23 Mar 2007, 16:10
Apparently one thing that's been holding up the sale was some of the contracts with the fighters were a bit sloppy, and so would become free agents should Pride be sold. Sakakibara recently went down and saw Arona, Rua, Silva in Brasil and apparently it was to get them onboard water tight. Forgot where i read about this, maybe on the UG.
Josh Gross said on Beatdown that rumour out of ChuteBoxe Rua has signed a 4 fight deal, 2 in Pride 2 in UFC. Silva rejected because he wants PPV %.
Pride have been known for alot of 1 fight deals even just handshake agreements.
Josh Gross said on Beatdown that rumour out of ChuteBoxe Rua has signed a 4 fight deal, 2 in Pride 2 in UFC. Silva rejected because he wants PPV %.
Pride have been known for alot of 1 fight deals even just handshake agreements.
Yeah i listened to that beatdown, did you here the caller who said the couture-sylvia fight was a setup? That was funny.
Also has one of my fav fighters in diesel riggs on, i hope he wipes the floor in WEC this weekend.