UFC: AFFLICTION DONE, NOW UFC SPONSOR
Friday, July 24, 2009 - by Steven Marrocco and Ken Pishna - MMAWeekly.com

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In a sea change for the promotional landscape of mixed martial arts, Affliction has agreed to cease promoting fights and become an official sponsor of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports first reported the news on Friday afternoon, and a UFC official confirmed the report to MMAWeekly.

A joint announcement between the Las Vegas-based promotion and California-based clothing maker is expected soon.

Few details about the deal are known, but the popular clothing brand could be seen on Zuffa fighters as soon as Aug. 8, when UFC 101 lands in Philadelphia.

A similar deal was first proposed last October after the postponement of Affliction’s second event, “Day of Reckoning.” Executives from the UFC and Affliction met in secret in Las Vegas and offered to take Affliction on as a sponsor and co-branded apparel maker in exchange for ceasing to promote fights. Affliction executives rejected the offer after a fiery confrontation between co-founder Todd Beard and UFC co-owner Lorenzo Ferttita.

The fate of fighters marooned by Affliction’s cancellation of its third show, “Trilogy,” is unknown at this time.

Check back with MMAWeekly for more updates on this story as it develops.