WAMMA'S True Intentions Revealed

In Rob Meysey MMAFA blog, he explores WAMMA's organizational structure and motives in latest post.

On June 20, 2008, when asked about whether WAMMA will charge sanctioning fees for its title matches, Szady replied: "No. We are not taking any sanctioning fee from a promoter nor are we taking any percentage of a purse from a fighter. Our business model and our revenue stream come strictly from our sponsors for the WAMMA belt or for sponsoring the events themselves along with the promoters." Lynch, echoing Szady, replied: "WAMMA is in no way charging a sanctioning fee from the Affliction promotion nor are we asking for a percentage of the fighter’s purses. As Dave said we truly are trying to emulate the best aspects of boxing’s sanctioning bodies while eliminating all the aspects of sanctioning bodies that we find in boxing that will be a detriment to the sport."24 Szady’s response above is unqualified as to whether WAMMA will charge sanctioning fees. The response of Lynch however, who is a lawyer, may leave room for maneuver. Lynch’s reply in regards to WAMMA not charging sanctioning fees may be read as applying only to the Fedor Emelianenko-Tim Sylvia title bout in the Affliction promotion. In order to eliminate the possibility of any misunderstanding, I asked Lynch whether WAMMA can state, "with 100% certainty, that sanctioning fees will never be sought and/or collected from any promotion and/or any fighters purse." Lynch replied, "Yes. . . Most importantly, WAMMA will NEVER make a living off a fighter’s back by taxing a fighter’s purse." However, in WAMMA’s materials presented to athletic commissions at the ABC Convention for MMA held in Montreal, WAMMA indicates that it will "receive revenue from title sponsors, online portal subscriptions, sale of unique digital content, merchandising, and in the future sanctioning fees."25 The WAMMA brand is not yet established, and networks are not yet utilizing its rankings. Thus, the necessary traction does not yet exist for WAMMA to require sanctioning fees. If the WAMMA brand becomes entrenched, however, sanctioning fees, as WAMMA’s own presentation materials indicate, will follow.

This article includes more comprehensive examination on WAMMA's goals and structure. This article is a must read.