This may be old news but Dana is a jerk!
After Affliction puts on a nice card and has some pretty good fights on it, Dana has to yell at a press conference that they will go broke. Normally when Dana is this agittated something is up. Now I haven't had a chance to watch the free Spike show yet (DVR is great!) but I did watch that Silva- Irvin one punch contest. Affliction Banned was a great card and was probably the best MMA card overall this year. Almost every fight ended in a KO or Submission. As I fast forward to watch Silva KO Irvin, it didn't appear that way on the UFC card. I think Dana's time is about to pass, people are tired of his approach and that he won't work things out. I mean he wants Couture back, but says he owns him? And then says Fedor is overrrated (which he may be, but then UFC's former posterboy Tim Silvia is as well) which doesn't sound good when you tried numerous times to sign him. Dana's brash, over the top, heavy handed style of doing business was good at the beginning and while the UFC was the only game in town. But now as MMA is a world wide phenonenon and organizations are going to come up, maybe its time for him to step back if he can't tone down. Affliction may or may not grow as big as the UFC, but working with other organizations they may have great success. Dana has proven that he won't do that. That may be enough to give Affliction the edge they need.
- wardog's blog
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I've stated in the past that
I've stated in the past that I think White has taken the UFC as far as it can go under his leadership. He's really more promoter than company executive. I think his inability to sign Fedor or come up with a network deal are indicators of this.
He's also a bit hostile and doesn't always appear to understand the value of diplomacy (maybe taking cues from another President, maybe of a country some of us may live in...)
While White is clearly hugely responsible for where the UFC and where MMA are right now, I believe Lorenzo Fertitta's move to full-time with the company speaks volumes. You need a Cuban-level or Trump-level exec to lead the UFC now and White is not that guy.
And, I say this as someone who respects what White has done a tremendous amount. He's been unwilling to accept failure and has led the UFC out of its darkest days...
Agreed Pramit, my only
Agreed Pramit, my only disagreement with wardog is that Dana did say he was impressed by Fedor's performance. I agree at this point he is more of a promoter than anything else, but I really can't disagree with Dana that much.
They didn't get a deal done with Fedor but from everywhere I read it was the exclusivity of the UFC contract which was holding back the deal and nothing to do with money. I don't think the UFC should suddenly change there rules for one fighter, no matter how good he may be.
As for the TV deal, we don't know if Dana is telling the truth but he says he is not going to rush into a deal that isn't a good one. I also agree I would do it with his rules, his announcers and how he wants to. A network at some point will agree to this and it will fit right to UFC.
Overall I have a hard time calling Dana a jerk. None of us would be here today discussing this without him. MMA would not be as big as it is in the USA without Dana White. He's not perfect, he's a bit brash and abbrasive but overall the guy continues to get it done and bringing in Ferritta to help now is tremendous and even Dana admitted that. I think he knows he's in a little over his head and could use a savy business man to help out.
-The Captain
Also, to clarify I don't
Also, to clarify I don't think White is a jerk. He's clever like a fox. When he says something -- good or bad -- there's a reason for it.
For example, notice how much the IFL was mentioned this past weekend? It's because the UFC is buying its assets and the IFL is no longer a threat to them. They've been around for a couple of years but White will only acknowledge the IFL now in order to build up their fighters...
White's biggest problem is
White's biggest problem is that he has a hard time splitting his business side with his personal side. For example the Ortiz situation, although Tito may not be a championship caliber fighter at this time people will still pay to see him and White wanted him to get embarrassed against Machida. Sooner or later his words will come back to bite him in the ass.
Godfather and all-around Mafia Aficionado
Co-Founder of The MMAFIA
Live Blogger for Fightticker.Com
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JERK According to
JERK According to Merriam-Webster:
: an unlikable person; especially : one who is cruel, rude, or small-minded
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jerk
So is DW unlikable and especially F****** rude?
(Note: It also used another definition of 'annoyingly stupid' or 'foolish' which I dont think applied to DW.)
Yes, A-Rod just hit a two
Yes, A-Rod just hit a two run double, Yankees leading 4-0 in the botton of the 6th. They are on their way to their 6th straight win. They are 3 games out of first and considering all the injuries they have had that is an accomplishment.
Godfather and all-around Mafia Aficionado
Co-Founder of The MMAFIA
Live Blogger for Fightticker.Com
I Finally Reached 1000 Posts
what does dana white have to
what does dana white have to do with the yankees?
Underboss MMAfia
Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion
Absolutely nothing, I am
Absolutely nothing, I am watching the game as I was reading and wanted to give an update, do you have a problem with it bee-yatch?
Godfather and all-around Mafia Aficionado
Co-Founder of The MMAFIA
Live Blogger for Fightticker.Com
I Finally Reached 1000 Posts
yes i do vanilla face. let's
yes i do vanilla face. let's take this outside sucka
Underboss MMAfia
Head of the West Coast Family
2x Ultimate Challenge Champion
Interesting article on our
Interesting article on our boy at MMA Payout:
http://www.mmapayout.com/2008/07/fight-biz-quote-dana-white-2/
DW seems to be the one
DW seems to be the one everyone loves to hate. Personally, I like the dude. Without him, we wouldn't have MMA on tv every day, and splattered everywhere online. I think he has a few more tricks up his sleeve yet that will even further skyrocket MMA's popularity. Or shall I say something about a meteoric rise there? LOL! I can't just discount all he's done for the sport and push him aside like a lot these days. Everyone out there is saying the Affliction card was the bomb, for the most part. What everyone forgets is w/o DW, there would be no Affliction, EXC, or whatever promotion is yet to come. He paved the way and deserves to keep his "f***ing" crown. (Sorry, had to include at least one **** in there when referencing the baldfather! LOL!)
Hating DW is like being a
Hating DW is like being a Yankee fan but still hating Steinbrenner. The guy is a jerk, he is arrogant and is directly or indirectly responsible for a lot of BS that's happened in baseball over the last 20+ years. However... he wins championships and if you're a Yankee fan you might hate him... you cant hate him THAT much!
Well to tell you the type of
Well to tell you the type of person I am, I was a Yankees fan until Steinbrenner got rid of Graig Nettles (1983). Dana did do SO much for MMA it's not funny, but he has made himself into Don King Jr. I wouldn't know the Fertitta brothers if I was playing poker with them in their crappy casinos. Hell there are some decent UFC fighters I may not know their names, but you will d**n sure know Dana's if you watch the UFC! I think he's watched too many mafia movies!
Wardog
Dana will definatly pull a
Dana will definatly pull a few more tricks. He will eventually get a network deal that works for the UFC. Once all these crappy leagues disappear that are willing to bend over backwards just to get on the tube. Dana has a good deal with Spike and continues to work on a major network. Dana and the UFC have built this sport up. Anyone that enjoys MMA should thank him. That goes for Randy Couture as well. If Dana and his group hadn't invested their money into the UFC and worked their asses off promoting the sport Randy wouldn't be the multi-millionaire he is today. Randy should be kissing the UFC's feet not suing them. I hate people in sports that don't honour their contracts. You think you can get more money down the road sign a shorter deal.
Where were all these "promoters" when MMA was on its last breath and Dana and his group invested. These guys waited for Dana to get the sport turned around then tried to jump on the bandwagon. Dana and his group deserve to reap the rewards. They did all the work.
Sixtus wrote: Hating DW is
Hating DW is like being a Yankee fan but still hating Steinbrenner. The guy is a jerk, he is arrogant and is directly or indirectly responsible for a lot of BS that's happened in baseball over the last 20+ years. However... he wins championships and if you're a Yankee fan you might hate him... you cant hate him THAT much!
Speaking as an O's "fan", Steinbrenner doesn't win championships, he buys them (which is possible in salary cap-free MLB). But, he hasn't been able to purchase one in a number of years, which is the only thing that makes me happy when it comes to baseball since the O's are mired in mediocrity...
I watch fights because of
I watch fights because of fighters, not some guy who wants to be more famous than them! Problem with Dana is he did save MMA (with Zuffa's money remember), but do we have to hear about it every ten seconds! Pete Rozell made the NFL but more people knew Joe Namath back then. And yes Dana and them promoted and did all of that and are reaping the rewards and pretty much all of it. But the Ortizs, Liddells, Coutures, etc... were fighting and bringing in the people. So now they need to share the wealth. And if Dana doesn't change his tune someone will come along and take over. It happened in boxing and it can happen in MMA.
Wardog
Check out bank accounts of
Check out bank accounts of Tito, Chuck and Randy before they met Dana White and then look at them today...I think you will find Dana hasn't hurt their net worth much.