[mrchitown]

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/page/U...painful-hit-all

Now this article was just barely over a yr ago. What's changed since then? Nothing at all

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/rampage-jacks...47654--mma.html

One of their best fighters sums the UFC up nicely here

I'm not trying to bash the UFC but to say their model is working better is debatable. When you go down fight cards for both boxing averages out better. You can afford to pay fighters 10k when after its all said and done GSP and Silva are getting 4-5 mil per fight. Miguel Cotto is the 3rd highest draw in boxing as far as PPV and he gets more then these two and their top dog in the UFC. Both sports have their flaws, the UFC just keeps theirs a secret

[Southeastpaw]

Boxing would keep their's a secret if the could.

When you get a chance, watch this video. It is an interview with Lorenzo Fertitta on the UFC business model and pay.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=playe...p;v=ck0Lb8pDmVg

[daprofessor]

Boxing would keep their's a secret if the could.

When you get a chance, watch this video. It is an interview with Lorenzo Fertitta on the UFC business model and pay.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=playe...p;v=ck0Lb8pDmVg

fertitta is keeping his secret. he says they don't have to report the bonuses to the commission...they just have to report the contracted pay. no doubt, the ufc has done something special. it's a small organization in comparison to boxing and the smaller ship is easier to steer. i didn't watch the whole video but one thing is clear....this guy is a salesman. almost talks as good as a lawyer. i wouldn't expect him to bad mouth his own business....and of course he's going to make it sound bigger than it really is, that's what he's supposed to do.

aiba is attempting to do for boxing what the ufc has done mma. it basically comes down to capitalism(the current way) vs socialism(ufc/aiba way) the way i see. both have their advantages and disadvantages.

if you haven't had a chance to check it out...visit their website.

This post has been edited by daprofessor: Jan 17 2013, 06:29 PM

[Cheesey1]

I don't pay attention to MMA and wasn't going to comment except that I like the idea of there being a base pay for athletes.
As mentioned already in this thread, a union and central authority would be very beneficial to athletes and the sport.
DaProf, you're the man, but to me a system that guarantees a certain level of wage security isn't socialism. If so then the filthy rich athletes in the NFL, NBA, MLB, PGA etc. are all pinkos.
Boxing is a global sport and should look to other global sports such as soccer/football, tennis and athletics for guidance.

Boxers not named Mayweather, Pacquaio etc. do make money. Just one example, the youngster Jesse Vargas was making a $100k for matches in late 2011 and early 2012. There's a reason that many internatinal boxers have no interest in leaving their homelands. No doubt that you have to pay your dues in boxing and don't make much in the beginning, but there's a lot of money to go around. The fault is the promoters and doofus press for not truly advocating for the boxers.

The earlier comments about the MMA not airing their dirty laundry, to me, are spot on. How many people know that the UFC's ratings are apparently decreasing?
There's an article on SportsIllustrated.com about it. UFC's TV ratings

Even though the UFC's ratings are questionable, American advertisers/broadcasters aren't ready to give up on the UFC because of the demographic that watches it...not because the sport is taking over. The press won't give up on it because they are the same guys who were crowing at any chance they could that "boxing is dead, long live MMA."
MMA/cage fighting is popular here and in other countries, but it definitely isn't a global sport and I sincerely doubt that it will ever reach that level.

There are only a few truly global sports - soccer/football, tennis, athletics and boxing, (golf too?). Baseball is only popular in North America (South America/Latin America?), a few islands in the caribbean, Japan and Korea.

This post has been edited by Cheesey1: Jan 18 2013, 01:42 AM

[daprofessor]

I don't pay attention to MMA and wasn't going to comment except that I like the idea of there being a base pay for athletes.
As mentioned already in this thread, a union and central authority would be very beneficial to athletes and the sport.
DaProf, you're the man, but to me a system that guarantees a certain level of wage security isn't socialism. If so then the filthy rich athletes in the NFL, NBA, MLB, PGA etc. are all pinkos.
Boxing is a global sport and should look to other global sports such as soccer/football, tennis and athletics for guidance.

Boxers not named Mayweather, Pacquaio etc. do make money. Just one example, the youngster Jesse Vargas was making a $100k for matches in late 2011 and early 2012. There's a reason that many internatinal boxers have no interest in leaving their homelands. No doubt that you have to pay your dues in boxing and don't make much in the beginning, but there's a lot of money to go around. The fault is the promoters and doofus press for not truly advocating for the boxers.

The earlier comments about the MMA not airing their dirty laundry, to me, are spot on. How many people know that the UFC's ratings are apparently decreasing?
There's an article on SportsIllustrated.com about it. UFC's TV ratings

Even though the UFC's ratings are questionable, American advertisers/broadcasters aren't ready to give up on the UFC because of the demographic that watches it...not because the sport is taking over. The press won't give up on it because they are the same guys who were crowing at any chance they could that "boxing is dead, long live MMA."
MMA/cage fighting is popular here and in other countries, but it definitely isn't a global sport and I sincerely doubt that it will ever reach that level.

There are only a few truly global sports - soccer/football, tennis, athletics and boxing, (golf too?). Baseball is only popular in North America (South America/Latin America?), a few islands in the caribbean, Japan and Korea.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) the nfl wasn't what i had in mind when i mention socialism. here's the plan aiba has... aiba pro boxing

in essence...what they are trying to do is put everyone else out of business and drive down the wages up top. there will be no more mega stars earning millions like floyd, dlh, tyson..etc.

[Southeastpaw]

fertitta is keeping his secret. he says they don't have to report the bonuses to the commission...they just have to report the contracted pay. no doubt, the ufc has done something special. it's a small organization in comparison to boxing and the smaller ship is easier to steer. i didn't watch the whole video but one thing is clear....this guy is a salesman. almost talks as good as a lawyer. i wouldn't expect him to bad mouth his own business....and of course he's going to make it sound bigger than it really is, that's what he's supposed to do.

aiba is attempting to do for boxing what the ufc has done mma. it basically comes down to capitalism(the current way) vs socialism(ufc/aiba way) the way i see. both have their advantages and disadvantages.

if you haven't had a chance to check it out...visit their website.

Thanks for giving the video a gander. I will check out that site when I get a chance.

It's hard to make everyone happy I suppose. I know the UFC model is not the end all, be all perfect model. There will never be. And while the superstars of the sport don't get paid as much as the superstars in boxing, they still do very well. And I'd say quite well for how long the sport has been around.

It's just that there are so many obstacles in boxing. For example, if we have a TR fighter that we want to see fight a GBP fight, good luck. I just appreciate that the fights that need to happen happen in the UFC. Sure, there are going to be some unhappy fighters in the UFC. But give me an organization where there aren't some unhappy fighters.

[BrutUalBK]

1. Make it a Sanctioned Sport like NBA, NFL and MLB
2. Give it standardized rules for all states, organizations and promoters no matter where and who they are
3. Standardize mandatory Life and Health Insurance to ensure all are cared for should an accident occur.
4. Change the criteria for judging fights, get rid of CompuBox
5. Institute a longer review period to give judges more time to review the fights on video without the crowd, promoters or whatever other undue influence to ensure that they render the correct decision in close/controversial bouts.
6. Get rid of all of these Alphabet Organizations.
7. Mandatory and Random Blood, Urine/Drug Testing Before, During and After all fights.
8. One belt/one Champion
9. Institute a 4 fight tournament to award the most deserving of the Top 4 fighters in the weight class to get a shot at the champ.
10. PPVs should include 3 Championship fights with Top fighters fighting to see who fights one another in the very next PPV in each weight class.

Yes, I know some of this is radical and unrealistic but these are just amongst my Top 10, imagine what I haven't said here yet. LOL

This post has been edited by BrutUalBK: Jan 18 2013, 09:33 AM

[Cheesey1]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) the nfl wasn't what i had in mind when i mention socialism. here's the plan aiba has... aiba pro boxing

in essence...what they are trying to do is put everyone else out of business and drive down the wages up top. there will be no more mega stars earning millions like floyd, dlh, tyson..etc.

I took a look at the video and skimmed through the brochure. They say a lot of great things, but if it's essentially a deal where the APB/AIBA becomes the 'employer' as opposed to a FIFA like body then yeah, it smells fishy.

(Also didn't help their cause that they got an endorsement from the Holy Hennessey spokesperson...)

[daprofessor]

vision and sobriety tests for all judges.

[mrchitown]

Nice vid, I like Fertitta better then Dana TBH. He said a lot but a lot of the fighters and managers say otherwise in regards to how they treat and pay their fighters. But I'm more interested in seeing how their system works when another company comes along and grows and they won't be able to buy them out like they do their competition.

That's really my main beef with the UFC, they seem to be afraid of competition. But I think a storm is coming their way and they won't be able to get out of it. Their not being challenged yet but it's coming. I don't know if they can handle the competition. They've already got issues with the TRT and the very thing that made them appealing is fading. You brought up that the best fight the best in the UFC which is debatable, but look at Bones and a few other fighters. We're starting to see fighters say no to Dana and the UFC and sit out and wait for the fights THEY want.

They do a tremendous job of maximizing their dollars with the promotional work they do and I do agree that they have some elements that can be incorporated into boxing. But both sports can learn and incorporate certain elements from one another