Li Kai Wen Offered A UFC Contract But ONE Won't Release Him

[You Will Vote For Dreyga]

Well u fucks he can't fulfill his contract if ONE doesn't give him fights, He is getting the Herbert Burns treatment

Is that what really is happening!?

Oh, well he should have got an agent who read the small print on the contract about how often he was supposed to be offered fights in that case.

From what I’ve read ONEFC is pretty shady. And who knows what kind, if any protection combat athletes get in ONEFC

 

[leto1776]

Is that what really is happening!?





From what I’ve read ONEFC is pretty shady. And who knows what kind, if any protection combat athletes get in ONEFC

They get none.

 

[K4BOSH]

ONE did this to Vuyusille Colossa back when he was supposed to fight in the UFC Macau card. KOTC did this with Lowen Tynanes when they wouldnt let him out of his contract to fight for ONE ironically.

 

[rob mafia]

Agreed, they can field offers all they want, the problem with Li Kai Wen is that he wants out of the contract without fulfilling that contract first.

or he's not being offered fights and not being given a chance to.

 

[careto]

or he's not being offered fights and not being given a chance to.

If that is the case then that is a different story.

 

[Greg House]

I sometimes think smaller promotions should be more open about letting guys go to the UFC sometimes though as that might allow them to sign other up and coming fighters. If someone has a long term goal of the UFC then they might avoid ONE or Bellator or KSW or other places where it's awkward to move on from.

I don't think they see themselves as a "smaller promotion". They make events exclusively on places like Philipines, Malasya, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapur, etc... Never on Brasil, US or Europe which is UFC territory. UFC never goes to that area, not even Japan these days. Only once or twice in the last 5 years. UFC is interested in China though, that's the issue here. Not many chinese fighters around.

ONE have way more subscribers in youtube than any other promotion outside of UFC. They stole Eddie Alvarez and Demetrius Johnson from the UFC when they were in the top 3. They think they are the biggest in the east while UFC is the biggest in the west... and it looks like they are not giving up the chinese market to the UFC easily.

 

[David Street]

Maybe they can trade him?

 

[David Street]

What weight is he

"The Underdog" Kai Wen Li (10-4-0) is a Pro MMA Fighter out of Hunan, China and the #9th ranked Pro Mens Featherweight in China.

 

[Yrat]

Like mentioned above, if you are under contract you are under contract. Why would a promotion let you go when you are under contract just because the UFC called? Same thing that happened to Du Plessis, who signed with KSW then wanted to leave in the middle of the contract because the UFC called. Finish the contract, become a free agent then leave, this is why fighters should sign short-term contracts. Works the same when you hear UFC fighters complain about their pay but they just signed a new contract.

It's not that simple due to many facts

- Ksw can't guarantee a fighter 3 fights per year
- Ksw might just give you very hard fights to spoil your career
- Ksw might not see you as a star for them more like a cannon food.


Same with One, they might just not have him as a priority, they are not obligated to give him. A fight at all.


Ufc always guarantee 2 fights per year if you are healthy, they might give you more on short notice.

Khamzat Chimaev got 3 fights in 70 days in Ufc

So yes there are many reasons why you might want to leave a contract.

 

[Yrat]

why did he sign with ONE if he wanted to keep UFC options open?

Because as many other fighters there are no other options for Asians to make a name unless Rizin.

ONE usually tells the fighters they are going to have 6 fights in 24 months. So of course that makes sense that you can fight 3 times a year when in reality you only fight maybe twice in 24 months


If you are healthy and not picky when you are signed with Ufc and perform well also you can actually get 3 fights per year on Ufc. If you are like Donald Cerrone you can do 5 fights per year

 

[Yosuke]

He says its been 3 years but fought in November 2019. He following some kind of Chinese calendar or what?

 

[careto]

It's not that simple due to many facts

- Ksw can't guarantee a fighter 3 fights per year
- Ksw might just give you very hard fights to spoil your career
- Ksw might not see you as a star for them more like a cannon food.


Same with One, they might just not have him as a priority, they are not obligated to give him. A fight at all.


Ufc always guarantee 2 fights per year if you are healthy, they might give you more on short notice.

Khamzat Chimaev got 3 fights in 70 days in Ufc

So yes there are many reasons why you might want to leave a contract.

I have never heard a fighter complain about getting "hard fights", they literally get paid to fight. As long as they give you enough time to prepare and is against someone in your same weight class, then that is a BS argument. Plus, if a fighter is worried about getting "very hard fights" then maybe they are not ready for the UFC, its not like the UFC will spoil you with easy fights. If the promotion cannot guarantee the fighters with at least 2 fights per year, than yes, that is not fair and should be looking for a way out, but if they are worried about "hard fights" or being "cannon fodder" then its a BS argument.

The UFC is notorious for giving BS fights in order to fuck with fighter's contracts, Gray Maynard, Josh Thomson, Lyotto Machida, Roy Nelson, Mark Hunt etc. have talked extensively about it. When your contract is about to expire and you dont want to re-sign they offer you a very short notice fight against someone outside your weight class and if you dont take it, then your contract extends for 2 more years, for example. Or they offer you a shit fight in the prelims and if you dont accept it they will shelf you and dont offer you another fight until the end of said contract. Every fighter's dream is the UFC but is not like once in the UFC is all peaches and plums and rainbows, they also have shitty business practices.

BTW, Chimaev is the exception, not the rule. He got 3 fights in 70 days but is not like every fighter gets to fight that much, the UFC roster is over 600 fighters, not everyone will fights more than 2 times a year; its just not possible.

 

[CC27]

seems like One is the toughest org to get out of, they just dont let people go.

When you read shit like this

One fighter was approached to sign with them and the athlete declined for the following reasons:

“They pay shit. And when you’re signed, (it’s) exclusively with them. It doesn’t guarantee that they will keep you busy or give you fights.“

So with the exclusivity clause enforced without any obligation on behalf of the promoter to offer fights, the independent contractors remain locked in with nowhere to go or any way to earn their keep in the meantime. Above all else, they can’t talk about it without concerns of serious repercussions.

Got guys like Burns who left Evolve gym and got benched for 2 years.

One aint the place you say I'll go sign for 4 fights and then in 18 months I'll try to go to UFC or Bellator.

 

[CC27]

I have never heard a fighter complain about getting "hard fights", they literally get paid to fight. As long as they give you enough time to prepare and is against someone in your same weight class, then that is a BS argument. Plus, if a fighter is worried about getting "very hard fights" then maybe they are not ready for the UFC, its not like the UFC will spoil you with easy fights. If the promotion cannot guarantee the fighters with at least 2 fights per year, than yes, that is not fair and should be looking for a way out, but if they are worried about "hard fights" or being "cannon fodder" then its a BS argument.

The UFC is notorious for giving BS fights in order to fuck with fighter's contracts, Gray Maynard, Josh Thomson, Lyotto Machida, Roy Nelson, Mark Hunt etc. have talked extensively about it. When your contract is about to expire and you dont want to re-sign they offer you a very short notice fight against someone outside your weight class and if you dont take it, then your contract extends for 2 more years, for example. Or they offer you a shit fight in the prelims and if you dont accept it they will shelf you and dont offer you another fight until the end of said contract. Every fighter's dream is the UFC but is not like once in the UFC is all peaches and plums and rainbows, they also have shitty business practices.

BTW, Chimaev is the exception, not the rule. He got 3 fights in 70 days but is not like every fighter gets to fight that much, the UFC roster is over 600 fighters, not everyone will fights more than 2 times a year; its just not possible.

If you decline a fight or get injured the contract extends 6 months, not 2 years, Bellator has the same clause.

They also dont do any of that stuff anymore, they did play game with guys like Huerta waiting until the end of their contract was gonna expire before giving him that last fight. Not illegal since its part of the contract but shitty.

But they havent done that stuff in years. They release guys like Sonnen or Rumble or Wandy without sitting them. Havent enforced any matching clause since Gilbert, they arent holding guys out who are about to leave not giving them fights. They just gave Pettis a short notice fight he wanted so his contract could end. Could have sat on him and waiting till his deal was gonna expire however long that was but they gave him a quick fight he wanted knowing he was gonna leave.

Those shitty tactics dont seem to be used much anymore which is a good thing. Even guys coming up to end of their contract they havent been giving worst matchups to get them a loss to hurt their stock.

 

[careto]

If you decline a fight or get injured the contract extends 6 months, not 2 years, Bellator has the same clause.

They also dont do any of that stuff anymore, they did play game with guys like Huerta waiting until the end of their contract was gonna expire before giving him that last fight. Not illegal since its part of the contract but shitty.

But they havent done that stuff in years. They release guys like Sonnen or Rumble or Wandy without sitting them. Havent enforced any matching clause since Gilbert, they arent holding guys out who are about to leave not giving them fights. They just gave Pettis a short notice fight he wanted so his contract could end. Could have sat on him and waiting till his deal was gonna expire however long that was but they gave him a quick fight he wanted knowing he was gonna leave.

Those shitty tactics dont seem to be used much anymore which is a good thing. Even guys coming up to end of their contract they havent been giving worst matchups to get them a loss to hurt their stock.

You are right, 2 years is part of the champions clause, not the refusing of a fight clause. And also yes, both promotions have such clauses, I guess the UFC is more known for such tactics because they are the much bigger organization and Joe Silva was notorious for being an asshole. As far as guys coming up to the end of their contracts, PVZ is the only one I can remember this past year who was given the worst match up possible to hurt her stock before leaving. Aside from that, I guess you are correct in assuming that all those tactics havent been so prevalent in these past years.

 

[careto]

If you decline a fight or get injured the contract extends 6 months, not 2 years, Bellator has the same clause.

They also dont do any of that stuff anymore, they did play game with guys like Huerta waiting until the end of their contract was gonna expire before giving him that last fight. Not illegal since its part of the contract but shitty.

But they havent done that stuff in years. They release guys like Sonnen or Rumble or Wandy without sitting them. Havent enforced any matching clause since Gilbert, they arent holding guys out who are about to leave not giving them fights. They just gave Pettis a short notice fight he wanted so his contract could end. Could have sat on him and waiting till his deal was gonna expire however long that was but they gave him a quick fight he wanted knowing he was gonna leave.

Those shitty tactics dont seem to be used much anymore which is a good thing. Even guys coming up to end of their contract they havent been giving worst matchups to get them a loss to hurt their stock.

BTW, this hasnt happened yet, it is just my opinion but I think the UFC will do something similar to Yair Rodriguez. Dana seems pretty pissed off and tired of his antics. Now with the doping violation he has him by the balls. I think he will cut him but will wait until the suspension is over then add some more time to his contract and wait until last minute to release him or give him a shitty match up. Again, it hasnt happened but I think Dana will screw him over, which TBH, I cant say I blame him.

 

[Yrat]

I have never heard a fighter complain about getting "hard fights", they literally get paid to fight. As long as they give you enough time to prepare and is against someone in your same weight class, then that is a BS argument. Plus, if a fighter is worried about getting "very hard fights" then maybe they are not ready for the UFC, its not like the UFC will spoil you with easy fights. If the promotion cannot guarantee the fighters with at least 2 fights per year, than yes, that is not fair and should be looking for a way out, but if they are worried about "hard fights" or being "cannon fodder" then its a BS argument.

The UFC is notorious for giving BS fights in order to fuck with fighter's contracts, Gray Maynard, Josh Thomson, Lyotto Machida, Roy Nelson, Mark Hunt etc. have talked extensively about it. When your contract is about to expire and you dont want to re-sign they offer you a very short notice fight against someone outside your weight class and if you dont take it, then your contract extends for 2 more years, for example. Or they offer you a shit fight in the prelims and if you dont accept it they will shelf you and dont offer you another fight until the end of said contract. Every fighter's dream is the UFC but is not like once in the UFC is all peaches and plums and rainbows, they also have shitty business practices.

BTW, Chimaev is the exception, not the rule. He got 3 fights in 70 days but is not like every fighter gets to fight that much, the UFC roster is over 600 fighters, not everyone will fights more than 2 times a year; its just not possible.

Still, Ufc has the best treatment based by payment, media and matchmaking and 8 weeks preparation

One can do the worst scenario in combat sport they can pay fighters from Egypt 1500$ for two weeks notice that will only work as a can crusher for Evolve mma fighters. Zero matchmaking there,you might just have two weeks notice.

Ufc, yes you usually get short notice but in most cases you will face an opponent with similar record, if you lose they will give you an another fight. If you win with a head kick, believe it or not you can get 50 000 usd and Dana does not care which gym, religion, ethnicity you belong. There is no way One would give a fighter a bonus if you do the best head kick in mma history against an opponent from evolve mma

If we except the media issues ufc has with Conor and Mike Perry they work pretty well as and organization. Don't forget that Ufc actually does doping tests


My point here is, if Li was part of Evolve mma no doubt they would release him

 

[careto]

Still, Ufc has the best treatment based by payment, media and matchmaking and 8 weeks preparation

One can do the worst scenario in combat sport they can pay fighters from Egypt 1500$ for two weeks notice that will only work as a can crusher for Evolve mma fighters. Zero matchmaking there,you might just have two weeks notice.

Ufc, yes you usually get short notice but in most cases you will face an opponent with similar record, if you lose they will give you an another fight. If you win with a head kick, believe it or not you can get 50 000 usd and Dana does not care which gym, religion, ethnicity you belong. There is no way One would give a fighter a bonus if you do the best head kick in mma history against an opponent from evolve mma

If we except the media issues ufc has with Conor and Mike Perry they work pretty well as and organization. Don't forget that Ufc actually does doping tests


My point here is, if Li was part of Evolve mma no doubt they would release him

The UFC has the best matchmaking by far out of all MMA organizations, that is true. You will never or very rarely see a mismatch like you tend to see in all other promotions to build a certain fighter.

And although Dana has had some questionable POTN bonuses to favor fighters he wants to market, he tends to be pretty consistent in giving bonuses to the more deserving fighter.

The whole issue with Evolve MMA and ONE is very strange and tbh i dont know what to make of it. But if ONE is offering fights and Li just wants to leave because he wants to then that is not right. If he is not being offered fights and its affecting his livelihood then yes, by all means he should leave.

 

[chiefwiggum]

Sucks for the guy but if you're under contract you're under contract.

I sometimes think smaller promotions should be more open about letting guys go to the UFC sometimes though as that might allow them to sign other up and coming fighters. If someone has a long term goal of the UFC then they might avoid ONE or Bellator or KSW or other places where it's awkward to move on from.

the ufc does the same and much worse. They made Wanderlei Silva sit out for 5 years.

 

[maximus__]

the ufc does the same and much worse. They made Wanderlei Silva sit out for 5 years.

Didn't Wanderlei run from a USADA test and get suspended for a good portion of that?