There are two sides of the story. Dana tells his version of the story, of course Lorenzo would agree with it. Then he talks to Fitch and listen to Fitch’s side of the story (and then, Fitch has backed down from his demands).

Perhaps Lorenzo is no saint, but it seems so far fetched to me that Lorenzo would scheme this good cop/bad cop thing just to get Fitch to sign. Most AKA members would have fallen in line anyway with Fitch getting cut. Why throw out this elaborate PR stunt just to get Fitch to sign? There is absolutely no reason for Lorenzo to resign Fitch if he didn’t believe that Dana is in the wrong. This is not a positive PR stunt (and no, it’s not only on the message board considering MMA news media are reporting it) no matter how you spin it. To play good cop/bad cop just to get Fitch to sign seems awfully silly to me.

People choose to fit stories into their own view of reality,

I agree with that since it cuts both ways.

Lorenzo may have been just as upset about the situation, but if he was only hearing about negotiations from Dana without being directly involved, he’s going to get a skewed version of the story.

I’m assuming Lorenzo has heard both sides by now.

All that needs to be asked is as to whether or not Dana will be punished for severing ties to a whole camp (and intimating threats to others).

If they were not in lockstep, that would be a little disheartening to Lorenzo.

But perhaps I’m not the one who is naive. To suggest that Ferttita had no advanced warning of Fitch’s impending release is a suggestion that defies logic. He had to have known. I don’t buy this notion that White is the sole power broker in the UFC, as my theory has been for quite some time that White is nothing more than attack dog. Dana does all the neccessary dirty work while the Fertittas continue to come off smelling like roses so they can walk the streets of Vegas with their heads held high. If true, it’s an effective strategy and a strategy that must be considered as a possibility when trying to crucify White for what transpired this week. Zuffa utilzied the good cop/bad cop dynamic with Fertitta and White while trying to negotiate the PRIDE buyout so it wouldn’t surprise me if this was yet again the case. To only hold White accountable would be irresponsible.

But I am not making excuses for White. His radio appearance on "The Carmichael Dave Show" earlier this week was not one of his proudest moments. White was angry and stressed out and in no condition to be doing any public speaking. At times, he came across as a man on the verge of losing it. He’s no doubt overworked right now but that’s nobody’s fault but his own.

To hear him complain about the sacrifices he makes on a daily basis with the expectation that his employees should repay him by going along to get along is insulting. Does he not understand that he isn’t the only person in his company making sacrifices? Zuffa is understaffed and everyone in that company that I’ve ever encountered is nothing short of a go-getter. And how can White be so flippant about the sacrifices that a fighter makes on a daily basis? The injuries (short-term and long-term); the toll on a fighter’s personal life brought about by long training camps; weight management and not being able to enjoy food; and the overall lack of security (no health benefits provided by employer, no 401K, no worker’s compensation, etc.) is a lifestyle all successful fighters must endure.

One sentence writeup of the situation. FIGHTERS UNION.

It’s fine that Dana’s a jerk and/or hardass at the negotiating table. It’s probably a trait of being good at negotiating. But he also seems to take disagreements with managers and agents personally and gets hot-headed about it. That is unequivocally a bad trait for negotiating (and any other industry for that matter).

On what issues does one seek out Iole’s opinion? Douchecockery?

Fitch comes off as a bit of a whiner, especially since the whole thing was resolved in like two days.

I’m still really happy that he’s back with the UFC, though.

But if your employer comes on all strong and disrespectful to you – bullying and threatening, it will get you defensive straight away.
My number one hate in business is when a boss makes demands of you instead of just asking nicely.

Fitch has no problems with the contract, his management told him to sign it, many other, bigger name fighters signed it.

Dana is happy to do anything that grows the brand. Doesn’t matter what his public image becomes along the way.