Dana White Says UFC’s ESPN Deal is ‘Going to Be Very Big for the Fighters’
Fighter compensation is one of the hottest topics right now in mixed martial arts and in particular the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which is the market leader in MMA. If you believe the men and women who compete professionally in the sport and what they put their bodies through to prepare for fighting in a cage and the mental load it takes on them and their families, the pay is simply not adequate.
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ESPN is the world’s sports leader and the deal will ensure the UFC is exposed to more viewers worldwide, including Russia and China. There will also be 20 exclusive events on their streaming service ESPN+.
The UFC debuted on Fox in November 2011 and it’ll be seven years by
the time the deal concludes at the end of this year.
UFC President Dana White told the Las Vegas-Review Journal that he was excited by the potential of the deal, given the kind of exposure it will give to the UFC brand and the sport of MMA to grow it even further:
“The deal with ESPN will take the sport to the next level. We’re becoming a global brand, and we’re able to deliver the sport to different countries -- Russia, China and Brazil. We’re going to different countries to put on the biggest fights in the world. We make sure that the best fight the best. We’re not as fragmented and as broken as boxing is. We keep our events in competitive alignment, absolutely.”
When the deal was originally announced back in May, White was very optimistic believing that it is a perfect partnership as he feels both brands are on the same page:
“ESPN has shown its commitment to not only UFC, but MMA. The amount of promotion our athletes are going to get now, and what ESPN is doing with this new platform, it’s going to be very big for the fighters.”
White did state to fans and the media that the UFC will maintain control of the production of its shows on ESPN.
