Dear Dana:
Above being the president of the UFC, you are the greatest fight promoter in MMA history. You have taken MMA fighters into mainstream popularity, and you have made the likes of Chuck Liddell and Georges St. Pierre household names.
Lately though, you have been less of a fighter promoter. You have been looking to protect your own image, and the image of the company, and in doing so, you are burying fighters.
“Nate Diaz Doesn’t Push Needle”
The latest incident involves one of the more polarizing figures in the UFC that has been grabbing headlines on all MMA websites. Nate Diaz has been in a bitter contract dispute with you. Recently you commented to Diaz’s manager that Diaz would be paid more if he could move the needle, meaning that Diaz is not a ratings draw.
“Lowest rated FOX show ever. Lowest rated FOX show ever. His numbers, he doesn’t pull the numbers in. Nick (Diaz) is a needle mover. Nick moves the needle. [Nate] doesn’t pull good numbers.”
For a fight promoter to go out and say that one of his more popular fighters is not a draw is terrible. You are suppose to be telling the fans that Nate Diaz is an incredible fighter that has headlined 3 cards in the past 2 years, not that he doesn’t draw. Do you really think fans will want to watch a fight headlined by a fighter that you yourself say isn’t a draw?
“Jose Aldo Needs To Sell His Fights”
Recently you called out one of your own champions for not being a draw, and yet again it went back to fighter pay. Jose Aldo is one of the most underpaid champions, and here’s how you responded to the criticism.
“I love Jose Aldo. He’s the best p4p fighter in the world……for 2 rounds. Then he starts to slide off. It’s up to Jose Aldo to make people want to care, and buy his fights”
YOU ARE THE PROMOTER DANA!!!
You are suppose to be the one making people care about Aldo. He is one of the greatest lighter-weight fighters in the history of MMA, has had some brutal knockout victories, and has a high pace style, yet you say he needs to do more?
Jose Aldo is very popular in Brazil, but probably has a hard time appealing to American audiences due to the language barrier. It’s then up to the promoter to hype up a fight, and get people interested in an Aldo title defence. Instead, you tell us that Aldo needs to do more to be interesting, and that people don’t care about his fights.
Not Everyone is Chael Sonnen
We know that you love fighters like Chael Sonnen and Conor McGregor who can promote and sell their own fights, but you have to remember that the fighters are athletes above all else, not media personalities. These are people that spend hours in the gym, and are even socially awkward because of it.
Rory MacDonald is the perfect example of someone who is absolutely obsessed with the sport and has been training day and night since he was little. He’s an exciting fighter who has a tough time on the media circuit due to his awkward mannerisms. MacDonald has been training to become the best fighter in the world, so in his life, socializing and public speaking have probably taken a back seat to his fighting skills.
This new generation of fighters will probably all be similar to MacDonald in that regard. They will be people who have been obsessed with the sport since childhood, training endless hours and sacrificing a social life in order to train. No longer are fighters the badass, tough guys of the early 2000’s. You will see younger, baby faced athletes taking over, and what they lack in promoting ability they’ll make up for in skill.
What I’m trying to say Dana is that you cannot continue to expect fighters to promote themselves by forcing them to talk trash and bring in ratings. People like Aldo and Diaz are exciting, talented and well established UFC fighters who have headlined cards before. Give them more credit, promote them as the talented athletes that they are, and maybe pay them a little more too.
Just remember that the UFC became big due to the fighters, and how they were promoted. The UFC wouldn’t be this big if Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz and Georges St. Pierre were promoted the way they were. Continue to promote the best fighters, and stop worrying about your own image.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @MikeHutchLWOS. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
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