Fedor and UFC contract discussion
Date: 2009-07-16 00:00:00
Source: http://www.watchkalibrun.com/2009/7/13/946851/what...
Submitted By: MMA Fight Dump
After UFC 100 Dana White once again assurd us that the consensus #1 heavyweight in the world would be in the UFC, eventually. Time Magazine's recently ran a story pointing out that Fedor's absence from the UFC was a "black eye" for the promotion. Fedor himself commented on the UFC's contract offer, "The bottom line was that the UFC was a one-sided offer, and you know, that's something that can never be acceptable," he says. With the UFC's thin heavyweight division and the possibility (actually extreme probability) that the division could run out of opponents for Brock Lesnar by the middle of 2010 it only makes more sense for the UFC to finally close the deal. However it will take some compromise by both parties if such an event will ever occur. WKR ponders what such compromise could look like and this is what we came up with. Pay him - The UFC has been reluctant to hand over the keys to the vault because Fedor might not be the biggest PPV draw. While many MMA die-hards worship the very mats he trains on it hasn't necessarily built a huge PPV base for Affliction. However, if the UFC wants Fedor to compromise on other issues then they may have to bite the bullet and offer him a sizable chunk of change. Three fight deal - The UFC wants a lock-down on Fedor while Fedor's management wants a one fight deal. Both sides are going to have to compromise and a three fight deal might be just long enough for both sides to agree to. Let him compete in Sambo tournaments- If the UFC is fearful of competition from Russian Sambo events then they are more high-strung then we all thought. A far more likely reason is for fear of injury, a completely reasonable fear. If we are to take Fedor's word as gospel, it appears that he has a strong national commitment to the Russian sport. So why not let him compete in Sambo tournaments and have the UFC take on a role of sponsor. Perhaps it could help expand the brand in Mother Russia. Make M-1 a sponsor - Fedor is attached to M-1 Global and most observers believe that Fedor's camp wants to co-promote the event. If that is the case it is a definite deal breaker for Zuffa and the UFC due to their "don't play nice with others" policy. How do we get around the impasse? Why not make M-1 a sponsor instead. This way they are included without being a promoter. An elegant soulition to a difficult problem.
