Why it's a bad idea to pay the fighters more...

[Snowfist]

Problem: Some fighters are making peanuts for their fights. They get beat up, they break down and it's pretty depressing to think that a lot of these guys are going to wind up brain damaged with very little means to provide for themselves.

Some fighters (looking at you Conor and Nate), are acting spoiled, demanding preferential treatment and if this continues...down the line we could have an MMA climate similar to boxing where top guys are able to manipulate the game and choose their opponents or threaten to leave certain promotions...then we the fans will no longer get to see the best fights.

Solution: Some people think if the UFC loses its monopoly on MMA that fighters will receive higher pay and the UFC will need to pay their fighters more and respect them more. That makes sense...however, you will then have a bunch of overpaid fighters who can cherry pick opponents and have less motivation to actually make things work (more bullshit where guys are holding out to fight special opponents of their choosing).

Do we really want to go back to the days of multiple legit organizations where we have to just wonder how such and such fight would pan out?

Why not have a large portion of fighter pay reserved for a pension which increases with every fight (As fighter damage increases over the course of fights, so will the need for a pension). This way guys don't stop fighting because they received a big pay day....or demand to fight who they want or just wait it out because they have the cash....

They remain hungry...they keep training hard and fighting hard. When the time comes and their career ends (Which should be a lot sooner for the sake of there health)...they can sail off into the sunset with their pension.

 

[Aranha21]

In an ideal world they would all be fighting only for food and water. And to minimize injuries, should be stored in bubble wrap at reebok warehouses at all times other than fight week

 

[soulsstealer]

Yes I agree more should be paid to the owners.

 

[iknowthefuture]

So you don't care about fighters pay because you aren't one? Ok. I care about fighters pay because I support the guys that actually go there and do the damn thing and not greedy money inheriting scum bags,

 

[HelloJapan]

Lol.

 

[ThulsaDooom]

How about just having fighters fight to the death? That way, you're only paying one fighter because the other one is dead, lol. Imagine how hyped up a multiple fight winning streak would be and how it'll capture hearts around the world. There's over 2 billion people between China and India, plenty of potential gladiators there! Imagine the promos, "I'm telling you, this kid is a fucking stud. I've seen him rip a man's eye out in the first round. He's a beast." -- Kenny Florian

 

[SCTwins]

In an ideal world they would all be fighting only for food and water. And to minimize injuries, should be stored in bubble wrap at reebok warehouses at all times other than fight week

I think you're going a bit overboard. I mean that's a lot of bubble wrap.

 

[ZuffaExecutive]

In an ideal world they would all be fighting only for food and water. And to minimize injuries, should be stored in bubble wrap at reebok warehouses at all times other than fight week

Have you ever thought about applying for a job at zuffa

 

[SlicerDM]

Ok, only if we get to deduct your pay income by 25% and add your idea to your work life.

 

[AP_RESURRECTION]

i actually agree w a lot of what you said - the issues though are the that the ufc just has a huge advantage - they wont want to pay out too much of their profits as they think of themself as the real product vs. the fighters -

if there are any 'regulators' or whatever, i would expect it to be like the NSAC where lorenzo used to work there and has full control over stuff behind the scenes - fighters dont hav ethat kind of influence unless they 'become entitled' like you said - both sides will want to be entitled to get more money, the end result of that is both sides fight and go on strike etc. - that is what to expect unless one side has ridiculous influence -

things like unions could change that, but it wll lead to even more 'entitled' fighters - at the end of the day, fans dont care much about fighters, they want them to fight, they dont care what they are paid

 

[h0lydiver]

if i skimmed that correctly I think you want to ufc to remain the only big org to avoid losing the big fights and the job become more "9-to-5-ish"? 401k, etc. (they have health benefits already).

I think instead they should pay the people that rise to the top a ton and you should be able to get there QUICK once you are in the ufc (which *should* mean you are already near the top). If you don't get there quick I think they should cycle you out and you should get another job (hopefully a career since many of the fighters are college educated).

The fight game is not something you should toil in for decades. It's not good for your health. These guys have opportunities when they exit- open a gym/train folks, clothing line, broadcast, etc. even beyond the typical 9-5. You see many of the last gen doing this (although most stayed in the game too long imo).

 

[Bogeyman]

It's inevitable that it will end up like boxing with a load of different promoters representing groups of fighters and co-promoting to get the fights made. That's really the lesson learned from all this, the thing that UFC prided itself on (being one promotion with all the best fighters) is completely unsustainable. The fighters are the draw, not the promotion. We've already seen that with Fedor. We haven't seen it with a UFC fighter yet, but it seems like it's being played out now.

This isn't "no-holds barred" in hicksville, alabama anymore, it's an international sport that's being contested among high level martial artists. They're the ones that deserve the biggest slice of the pie and it looks like they're starting to realise it.

 

[Aranha21]

Have you ever thought about applying for a job at zuffa

There was a reason the UFC introduced 125 and 115 women, and the heavier divisions are deteriorating.
Why sign new heavyweights when you can store 2 Mightymouses and a Carla Esparza with the same amount of bubble wrap.