http://mmamania.com/2009/07/24/ufc-quic ... contracts/ “I told him, ‘I hope you idiots stay in business.’ We had a record year in 2007. We had a record year in 2008. And we’re going to have an even bigger record year in 2009. I said, ‘I hope you … stay around in 2010 and burn every dollar you have.’ What they do is of no concern to me.”
– UFC President Dana White tells Yahoo!Sports.com that an Affliction attorney “flew to Las Vegas only days after UFC 100 and offered to fold and turn its contracts over to the UFC if the UFC would remove its ban on its fighters wearing Affliction T-shirts.” White, allegedly, told him he wasn’t interested (in his own unique way its seems) — perhaps because Affliction contracts are non-exclusive and/or they would be difficult to transfer similar to the Pride FC debacle. If the statement is accurate then it would clearly indicate that Affliction is no longer interested in promoting mixed martial arts events long-term. However, it contradicts a statement today about the cancelation of its most recent event on Aug. 1, in which Affliction said that its “first priority is to ensure that all future events live up to the company’s high standards.” On another note, the Yahoo!Sports report indicates “several sources” revealed that the promotion turned to “Plan B” and is currently in the process of merging with Strikeforce. Officials from Affliction and Strikeforce could not be reached for comment on the possibility. Lot’s of mixed messages out there right now. Only time will really tell the true tale. In the meantime, interested in telling us what you think is the best possible outcome for the fighters and the fans?
