Dana White doesn’t see the UFC as a monopoly, it’s simply the most effective sport on the town.
For years, fighters inside the group and people on the skin wanting in have criticized White and Co. for creating what they believe is a monopoly on this planet of combined martial arts.
Dominating the worldwide MMA scene for the final 20 years, or no less than since PRIDE FC collapsed, the UFC has grown exponentially on the again of fighters who’ve been topic to restrictive non-compete clauses and a ridiculously low revenue share when in comparison with that of different main sports activities leagues just like the MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL.
White has routinely defended the topic of fighter pay on numerous events, suggesting that anybody who doesn’t like it’s welcome to begin their very own promotion. He supplied the same sentiment throughout a latest interview with FOX News, telling Brian Kilmeade that the UFC will not be a monopoly and anybody is free to begin their very own firm to attempt to take a bit of the MMA pie.
“Folks have known as us a monopoly and all these things for years,” White stated. “We’re simply the most effective. We’re the most effective at what we do. There’s no barrier to entry. Anyone can get into this. You possibly can begin a league tomorrow and pay the blokes no matter you need.
“A variety of good, gifted, massive enterprise moguls have gotten into this sport and tried to compete with me they usually couldn’t do it. It’s important to have that aggressive spirit. It’s important to wish to compete.”
Former UFC fighter calls the promotion’s $335 million class-action settlement a ‘enormous win’
Earlier this 12 months, TKO Group, the promotion’s mother or father firm, settled a courtroom conflict originating from five interconnected class-action lawsuits by paying out a whopping $335 million to former fighters together with Cung Le, Nate Quarry, Jon Fitch, and greater than 1,200 others who claimed that the promotion violated antitrust legal guidelines meant to advertise competitors and keep away from monopolies.
The group argued that the UFC had used “improper methods to dominate the marketplace for MMA fighter providers” which led to a lower in fighter pay. If discovered responsible, the UFC may have been on the hook for wherever from $800 million to $1.6 billion. As a substitute, the promotion settled for lower than half of the bottom asking worth.
Former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub known as the settlement a giant win for the promotion and positioned a lot of the blame on the fighters for failing to vary something within the business.
“UFC settled the antitrust lawsuit. HUGE win for the UFC. Dangerous for each different group for thus many causes,” Schaub wrote. “UFC stays the king. Till the fighters unionize like MLB, NBA, and NFL nothing will ever change. You might be mad at @danawhite all you need nevertheless it’s not his fault or job.
“His Job is to construct the UFC as massive as attainable and take advantage of revenue. Interval. Which he’s doing at a historic stage. This sadly is on the fighters.”
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