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Jan 29, 2005
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UFC has 4 bidders looking to buy the company for 3.5 - 4 billion dollars. The leading bidder is the guy I posted an article about in this thread a couple months ago about wanting to buy the UFC. Richest guy in China worth 34 billion.

I'm guessing Zuffa sees the future and see the company stagnating and starting not to make nearly as much money and want to cash out now.

UFC owners in advanced talks to sell promotion

The owners of the UFC are in advanced talks to sell the business, sources told ESPN.com.

At least four bidders are believed to have submitted bids for the organization, including WME/IMG, China Media Capital, The Blackstone Group and Dalian Wanda Group. The winning bid, should things proceed, is expected to be for a valuation between $3.5 billion and $4 billion, multiple sources with knowledge of the negotiations told ESPN.com.

UFC President Dana White said reports of the promotion being on the market are not true, telling the Las Vegas Review-Journal that "the UFC is not for sale."

"As a private company, we don't discuss speculation or rumors related to our business," said Dave Sholler, vice president of public relations and athlete marketing for the UFC.


Lorenzo Fertitta, left, and Dana White are both part of UFC's group of owners. Chance Yeh/WireImage
Investment bank Goldman Sachs has been representing Zuffa LLC, which bought the UFC in 2001 for only $2 million. Sources with knowledge of the numbers presented to potential investors said that Goldman Sachs had represented UFC's last full year earnings in the $200 million to $250 million range, before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. A new television rights deal, which would begin in 2019, could add an additional $250 million in annual revenue to the bottom line, investors were advised.

Lorenzo Fertitta, who with his brother Frank owned more than 80 percent of the business at last public acknowledgment, told CNN in December that the private company grossed about $600 million in revenue last year. Besides the Fertittas, who are each worth about $1.6 billion, according to Forbes, the company has two other minority investors: White and the Abu Dhabi government, which, under its Flash Entertainment arm, bought a 10 percent stake in the business for an undisclosed sum in 2010.

The leader in the bid to buy the biggest mixed martial arts business in the world is said to be Chinese-based conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, sources said. Its chairman, Wang Jianlin, is the richest man in China, worth nearly $35 billion, according to Forbes Magazine.

The company has slowly been getting into sports. Last year, Wanda bought a 20 percent stake in soccer superpower Atletico Madrid for a reported $48 million. In March, amid the FIFA scandal, the company agreed to sign on as a FIFA partner, the highest level of sponsorship, through 2030.

In January, Dalian Wanda Group became the first Chinese company to become owners of a major Hollywood film studio when it agreed to buy Legendary Entertainment from Pittsburgh Steelers minority owner Thomas Tull for about $3.5 billion.

The UFC, under parent company Zuffa, is privately owned and does not publicly reveal financial information. It's safe to say, however, the company is coming off a monster financial year in 2015, led by the emergence of crossover stars in Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor.

Rousey and McGregor each headlined three UFC events in 2015. Rousey's title fight against Holly Holm in November set a new company attendance record at Etihad Stadium. One month later, McGregor's title fight against Jose Aldo in Las Vegas drew the promotion's second-highest gate receipts in its history, with ticket sales grossing more than $10 million.

Other bidders said to be in the mix are WME/IMG, which owns media properties and represents athletes, including Rousey, the former UFC bantamweight champion. Blackstone Group is also believed to be a bidder. A senior executive at the private equity firm, David Blitzer, owns a minority stake in the New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia 76ers and British soccer team Crystal Palace.

Another bidder is state-backed investment firm China Media Capital, which in October beat out Dalian Wanda and national broadcaster CCTV to win the broadcast rights for the Chinese Super League, the highest level of soccer in the country. In December, CMC, with another Chinese investment group, Citic Capital, bought a 13 percent stake of British soccer team Manchester City for a reported $400 million. UFC executive vice president Garry Cook was CEO of Manchester City from 2008 to 2011.

It's not surprising that the leading bid is said to be from China. Chinese companies have made $110.8 billion worth of deals in 2016 compared with $106 billion for all of 2015, according to Dealogic, a financial markets data provider.
 
Apr 25, 2002
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I'm guessing Zuffa sees the future and see the company stagnating and starting not to make nearly as much money and want to cash out now
they need to sell. they grew the company and the sport but they dont know what they're doing to grow it more. they only care about Ronda and McGregor. they need a good tv deal. ppv is quick money but it wont grow the sport. all they do is buy, they dont build. they bought WEC which paved the way to McGregor. they bought Strikeforce which paved the way to Ronda. nothing with them is homegrown. everything was purchased. Silva's old and Bones needs DC to sell.

i dont like the thought of UFC sewin shit up, but they need spectacles like MVP and youngsters like Thug Nasty and Angela Lee and they need a network tv deal.
 
Feb 10, 2006
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yea that succs, might be the last of Anderson as well? Still a stacced card from top to bottom but I was really looking forward to that fight, kind of a passing of the torch type of fight.
 
Feb 10, 2006
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UFC's Dana White again denies sale, teases international expansion deal into Asia

The UFC isn’t up for sale, but a deal to expand the promotion’s presence in Asia is in the works, according to UFC President Dana White.

White appeared today on “The Dan Patrick Show” to again deny a report of the industry-leader’s possible sale, while also conceding that negotiations are underway to give the UFC a bigger global footprint.


“Obviously, if I’m in the middle of a deal right now, there’s a lot of confidentiality involved in it,” White said. “We’re working on expanding. We’re working on growing the company and moving into other territories like China and Japan (and) Korea. So yeah, we’re always working on deals.”

As he said long before rumors of a venture capital buyout began circulating in the MMA industry, White reiterated the promotion is always fielding offers from interested companies and is not interested in selling; he noted the UFC received its first buyout offer in 2010 and turned it down. But the executive also conceded that the $4 billion price tag named by ESPN was hard not to entertain.

“We’re always working on deals and our expansion globally,” he said. “I’ve been saying since this thing came out, no, we’re not for sale. But let me tell you what: If somebody shows up with $4 billion, we can talk. We can definitely talk.”

According to the ESPN report, Dalian Wanda Group, a China-based real estate and media conglomerate headed by Chinese billionaire Wang Jianlin, is the leading candidate in buyout talks, with talent agency WME/IMG, China Media Capital and The Blackstone Group also in the running. Earnings for the promotion for its last full year of business were reported at between $200 million and $250 million before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, with a potential $250 million added to the bottom line for a new TV deal.

The UFC is a privately held company and does not make its financial information public. The promotion currently is owned by four parties: the Lorenzo Fertitta and Frank Fertitta, who hold more than an 81 percent stake in the company; White, who owns 9 percent, and Flash Entertainment, owned by the Abu Dhabi government, which has a 10 percent stake.

Asked whether a potential sale would involve his departure from the UFC, White indicated he had no desire to leave the MMA business.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t know how that would all work out, but I’ll tell you this: The day we decide to sell, I probably don’t want to do this any more. I love this. I love this business. I love the sport. I jump out of bed every day excited to go to work.

“Me and the Fertitta brothers have been together for a long time. We’re very close friends. We work well together. Something we did would be a mutual decision, and we’d probably all be looking to get out if we sold.”
 
Feb 10, 2006
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Reps: Anderson Silva undergoes successful surgery after UFC 198 withdrawal (Updated)

(UPDATED on 5/11/16 at 11:15 a.m. ET with a statement from Dr. Marcio Tannure.)

Anderson Silva is resting comfortably after successful surgery this morning.

Silva’s physician, Dr. Marcio Tannure, today told MMAjunkie the former longtime UFC middleweight champion successfully had his gallbladder removed. He expects Silva to leave the hospital on Friday.

As reported on Tuesday, Silva (33-7 MMA, 16-3 UFC), who was slated to fight fellow 185-pounder Uriah Hall (12-6 MMA, 5-4 UFC) on Saturday’s UFC 198 pay-per-view main card, was forced off off the lineup after experiencing abdominal pain.

“Anderson Silva started feeling abdominal pain and cramps from Monday to Tuesday,” stated Tannure, who’s also a medical consultant for the UFC in Brazil. “He was seen by a doctor at the hospital, where they did a few (lab tests) and didn’t detect anything out of the ordinary. He came home on Tuesday, but he was still in pain, still feverish, so he contacted me, and I told him to go (to the hospital) to see the medical staff I knew. They did all the labs, and he was diagnosed with acute cholecystitis, which is an inflammation of the gallbladder. It doesn’t really have a specific cause. It can happen at any time.

“The surgeon decided it was a surgical case, and he was hospitalized at that same moment. I was there. I followed the procedure. Everything went well. It went as expected. He is expected to be discharged on Friday. The medical staff is going to follow his recovery and see when he’ll be able to get back to doing physical activities. With this type of surgery, recovery usually takes from four to six weeks. We expect everything to go well and that he returns as soon as possible.”


As a result of Silva’s surgery, Hall has also been forced off the card, which takes place at Arena da Baixada in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil.

Silva’s coach Luiz Dorea told MMAjunkie the Brazilian fighter complained of “very, very strong” and “unbearable” pain prior to his scheduled flight to Curitiba on Tuesday. Silva, who was also vomiting, then went to the hospital to undergo tests while Dorea boarded.

The coach said Silva, who looked to rebound from a January loss to Michael Bisping, was disappointed by the bad luck. However, he said they’re fortunate that the symptoms appeared when they did.

“It could have burst, and it would have been more serious,” he said. “He was doing so well, so motivated. It’s a shame. What a horrible situation. We’ve been in the fight business for so long. We couldn’t imagine something like this. He was so motivated to fight in Brazil, in Curitiba, and this happens. Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do. He did his part. He trained, he worked hard, he was ready … (and) almost on weight. And then out of the blue, the night before (his flight), the unbearable pain (arrived). We’re all shocked.

“I can imagine he’s very upset because he did everything he could to fight here. Thankfully, it wasn’t worse – this pain that comes out of the blue didn’t happen during the fight. It’s very dangerous when it bursts.”
 
Apr 25, 2002
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yea that succs, might be the last of Anderson as well? Still a stacced card from top to bottom but I was really looking forward to that fight, kind of a passing of the torch type of fight.
you think Hall would have beat him? i think Silva would have slaughtered him. Silva beat Bisping (imo) but he was super bullshittin and i think he learned from that.
 
Jan 29, 2005
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LMAO Bellator Champ Will Brooks said he's having to apply for jobs to keep his bills paid because he can't get fights. Said he got offered a part time job at Target that he might have to take.

Think Bellator got upset, cause he deleted the tweets. That's fucked up though they only give him fights every 6 months.
 
Apr 25, 2002
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LMAO Bellator Champ Will Brooks said he's having to apply for jobs to keep his bills paid because he can't get fights. Said he got offered a part time job at Target that he might have to take.

Think Bellator got upset, cause he deleted the tweets. That's fucked up though they only give him fights every 6 months.

they do be fuckin him. LW's the deepest division in the world. this shouldn't be an issue. he can be UFC champ imo and Bellator's fuckin up with him.
 
Apr 25, 2002
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Anderson looks the way RJJ did, his reflexes are shot and that's what 90% of his game is. Hall's a flake so it was tough to call that fight tho
Hall's good, but people hype him because of a couple flashy finishes. he got the Silva fight because of his fight against Mousasi, which was skill, but also some luck with that kick landing on Mousasi's face. i don't think he called it like people like to think. Werdum called the knee to Hunt. that was strategic. Hall was going for a kick to Mousasi's body. Mousasi just happened to duck and got caught in the face.

i don't think Silva is what he was but i still think he is elite. above Hall. i don't know what he was doing with Diaz or Bisping. with Diaz it looked like he couldn't find any openings and respected Diaz's hands too much. with Bisping it looked like he was clowning around.
 
Feb 10, 2006
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you think Hall would have beat him? i think Silva would have slaughtered him. Silva beat Bisping (imo) but he was super bullshittin and i think he learned from that.


it could have gone two ways...

1. a bad ass fight with both guys giving their all in the cage and Anderson looking like a beast in front of his fans.

2. a counter striking fest, which lets be honest is both guys main trait. like B-Buzz @B-Buzz said his reflexes are shot so I was leaning towards Hall just because he's the younger, faster fighter with a lot more flashy stuff than the spider.
 
Apr 25, 2002
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i was just reading that. fuckin nuts. releasing the LW champ. they needed him to help build themselves. he talked mad shit but i dont blame him. he wanted to fight. i'd love to see him get an immediate title shot against RDA. Gilbert and Nick got an immediate shot, granted they were from Strikeforce which Zuffa bought.
 
Jan 29, 2005
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New UFC Weight Cutting Policy Starting at 200

UFC trying to get somebody killed lol fighters gonna have to do two weight cuts now to "stop weight cutting" dumb ass logic. Just tell every fighter on the roster to go up a weight class instead of doing this. 125 is gonna die with this new rule in place.

The funniest part is "if they show any signs of dehydration during fight week, their fight will be pulled". Are they going to cancel the entire card on weigh in day? lol

Beginning at UFC 200, fighters must check-in within 8% of fight weight - Bloody Elbow

Unsafe weight-cutting has been a major issue in the sport of mixed martial arts for years, but recently reached a peak with the death of ONE Championship fighter Yang Jian Bing due to weight-cutting complications last year. The death caused multiple commissions and organizations to re-consider weight-cutting, and also to introduce new policies and rules.

After the passing of Bing, ONE Championship announced a brand new weight-cutting policy, essentially eliminating the entire weight-cutting process altogether. The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) and Kansas State Athletic Commission (KSAC) have both worked to resolve the issue in recent months. California hosted a weight-cutting summit late last year and in February, banned severe weight cutting and the use of IVs with a set of new rules. Earlier this year, the KSAC allowed Bellator 150 fighters to weigh-in earlier than usual, giving them more time to re-hydrate. With all of this occurring, it seems like MMA organizations and commissions across the globe are headed in the right steps to make weight cutting healthier and safer for athletes.

The UFC hasn't had much to do with the idea of making weight cutting safer -- up until now.

According to a report from the Las Vegas Review Journal, the premier MMA organization has adopted a new weight-cutting policy which will go into effect at UFC 200 in July. "The UFC has introduced a system of data collection and athlete monitoring of weight and vital signs that will enable the organization to create a database to track and analyze information on each fighter," the report stated.

Fighters must be within eight percent of their official fight weight when they check-in at the beginning of fight week, which usually occurs on a Tuesday night. If fighters check-in more than eight percent overweight, they are subject to daily weight checks and vitals from the UFC and will be required to attend weight management counseling. Their scheduled fights will not be cancelled, however.

"The only hard and fast rule in there, and I think it’s probably the most important thing in terms of the guidelines, is that 8 percent number," Jeff Novitzky, the UFC vice president of athlete health and performance, said (via Las Vegas Review Journal). "If they’re not, it’s not in the rules the fight won’t happen, but we sure are going to pay very close attention to them, including taking daily weight, daily vitals, and as it progresses, if they show signs of being dehydrated, they will be pulled from the fight."

Since the IV ban went into effect in October, Novitzky claims the majority of fighters have checked-in less than eight percent over their fight weight. He also says the IV ban has really affected the way most fighters cut weight.

"It had a very surprising side effect in that it helped curtail extreme weight cuts," he said. "You also see a whole bunch of fighters employing the services of nutritionists, so they are being smart about managing their weight. And the UFC is trying to provide as much as we can for the fighters that can’t afford a nutritionist. We’ve consulted with experts who have told us, ‘Hey, here’s the optimal things you want to be eating or drinking 24 hours before your fight, after the weigh in.’ So we provide that for the fighters."

As of UFC 196 last month, the organization now offers a wide variety of approved food and beverages in a special room on fight night. Prior to this, fighters were only allowed sealed bottled water in locker rooms.

Fighters are used to regular weight-cutting procedures -- a large cut just prior to their fight -- and the new policy will force them to cut earlier, possibly making weight-cutting even less safe than it already is.