Bloody Elbow: An SB Nation Community

Navigation: Jump to content areas:


Sports blogs for fans, by fans.
Around SBN: SB Nation NBA Power Rankings for Week 2

Zuffa, Fertittas Sue Dream Stage Entertainment

Sherdog's back story here. The man who can sniff a Japanese scandal a mile away, Zach Arnold, breaks down what this case is really about. Notable quote:

The biggest conundrum that Zuffa faced with their deal with DSE (and may face now in civil court) is the yakuza angle. Everyone in the MMA business knew about the Shukan Gendai yakuza angle and understood that the scandal put DSE in the precarious position that it was in before the asset sale was made. I always questioned why Zuffa pulled the trigger on the deal, considering that it put the gaming license of the Fertittas in a tenuous position with the Nevada Gaming Commission (they don't like any deals with organized crime).

In order for Zuffa to claim that they DSE defrauded them on the asset sale, it would basically be admitting that Zuffa's due diligence didn't foresee some of the apparent problems in the evaluation of the PRIDE's assets. For example, it was long-rumored that DSE didn't own 100% of the rights to their video footage (Fuji TV produced a lot of the big shows), which may be a possible reason as to why we haven't seen UFC extensively use PRIDE's video library.

Zuffa's reported lawsuit against DSE opens up a major can of worms for a lot of parties and some of the surprises may not be good for UFC in court. Besides the Nevada Gaming Commission having some interest in the lawsuit, you can bet that Ed Fishman will be interested in the proceedings. Additionally, I would expect that some fighters who did not get paid by DSE before PRIDE shut down might consider filing an attachment (lien) on whatever earnings Zuffa gets in the civil suit (think: Miro Mijatovic's lien attachment on the Seiya Kawamata lawsuit against Nippon TV.)

This isn't really my area of expertise, but it's fascinating nonetheless. While the specifics on this matter are few and far between, it would not surprise me in the least to learn Zuffa did not exercise proper due diligence in their purchase of PRIDE. Too many errors were committed in the wake of the purchase for the purchase itself to have been conducted properly. Stay tuned.

0 recs  |  Comment 1 comment

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Display:

Re: Zuffa, Fertittas Sue Dream Stage Entertainment
"it would not surprise me in the least to learn Zuffa did not exercise proper due diligence in their purchase of PRIDE"

They probably did, but in North American terms.
Business in Japan is done a LOT differently.

by pr0cs on Feb 6, 2008 9:53 AM EST reply actions   0 recs

Comments For This Post Are Closed


User Tools

"All men are frauds. The only difference between them is that some admit it. I myself deny it." -- H.L. Mencken
Start posting on Bloody Elbow »

Join SB Nation and dive into communities focused on all your favorite teams.

FanPosts

Community blog posts and discussion.

Recommended FanPosts

Weo_animation2_small
Frank Mir Doesn't Care About the Title, He Just Wants to End Brock Lesnar's Career
Nav-logo-hover_small
Cung Le: Smith is a Better Fight For Me
Picture_010_small
Fedor beatable, could not win UFC title!
Me_small
Strikeforce and Fedor come off looking good on CBS
Small
CBS/Strikeforce Broadcast Quality Unacceptable

Recent FanPosts

Small
Fedor vs the Bloody Elbow
Weo_animation2_small
Will We See Josh Barnett vs Fedor Emelianenko if Strikeforce Can't Get Alistair Overeem?
Logo_small
More from Miller-Davis aftermath
Just_tiger_small
Mark Miller vs. Deray Davis update: Miller’s management team speaks on canceled Strikeforce fight
Cassius_clay_small
MMA Tycoon
Small
"For this 28 yr old,former project kid from the Cabrini Green..."
Picture_010_small
Breaking News: Antwain Britt to fight Scott Lighty at Strikeforce Evolution
Small
DMX pulls out of boxing match

+ New FanPost All FanPosts >

MMA Rankings

USA Today / SB Nation Consensus MMA Rankings