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There’s just no getting Mixed Martial Arts down. Every day I seem to pick up the phone to hear a host of exciting new developments in the fighting world. The latest and biggest business change of late has been the acquisition of Strikeforce by Zuffa.
Although some had speculated it many times, I’m not so sure many saw this one coming right now, especially as Strikeforce really seemed to have hit their stride.
While the show will go on almost unaffected for some time, this buyout certainly raises a myriad of questions.
For fight fans, it may certainly provide some long-awaited showdowns between their favourite fighters that have been fighting for separate promotions. For the longtime fans, the most obvious question is to whether Fedor will finally fight for the UFC. Like anything to do with the Russian, the answer is anything but simple. Just as the PRIDE acquisition proved, it doesn’t mean the big man automatically ends up in the UFC, especially as he obviously doesn’t have a run-of-the-mill contract, with complications always arising from M-1 and their co-production requests. Not to mention the fact that Fedor may in-fact be contemplating retirement. A hopeful light-heavyweight matchup against Dan Henderson will surely seal the fate on which way Fedor will roll in the future.
Also on the upside is the fact that the sport is certainly more easily digestible for the masses when it comes in one big brand, such as the NBA, NFL, AFL or NRL. The people know where to turn to follow the elite ranks of the sport and all the fighters will be there. Dana White recently hinted that Strikeforce could be sent on the road as another promotion reaching out to the world for them. He also talked about an idea to have two big shows a year in Australia, with up to six smaller promotions as well. That’s a lot of top-end MMA for Oz.
On the downside is the obvious concern that one corporation is running the entire sport. In some ways, this is fair, seeing as they are really the ones that kicked the whole thing off for the Western audiences in the first place. But when any single company controls an entire playing field, it does tend to set alarm bells off.
One of the biggest concerns will be for the fighters and their pay checks. If there is only one elite promotion, then there is little competition for the UFC and with that, means there is nowhere else to go for the fighters, which will essentially mean that the UFC makes its own price on fighter payment and, well… everything else too. I’m sure this will give rise to a fighter’s union of some kind and no doubt other promotions will rise up in the absence of Strikeforce anyway.
Whether we like the deal or not, I think it undoubtedly leads to growth in the sport on a worldwide scale.
On another note, I would like to take the time to thank my good friend and our long-time National Advertising Manager Perry Cale, who has always been a big part of this magazine and a well-loved personality in the Australian fighting industry. Perry has decided to move on with his career, but I’m sure we will see plenty of him and hear his infamous voice on TV and fight shows all around the world. He will be sorely missed and I wish him the best of luck.
