Dana In Hiding?

by Michael Rome on May 23, 2008 10:31 PM EDT in MMA News

Dana White was not at the weigh-ins today, prompting a lot of people to speculate he did it to avoid Tito. However, Dave Meltzer reports he's been missing in action at multiple events:

Notes: Ortiz got the biggest reaction, more cheers than boos. He was wearing a "Dana is my bitch" T-shirt that got a big reaction. No Dana White at yesterday's press conference, today's Ultimate Fighter media day or at the weigh-ins. Obviously something major is wrong.

It's possible he just decided to take the whole weekend off to avoid the Tito situation. Who knows? Maybe avoiding the event will take the attention off Tito and focus it onto Penn and Sherk.

The reaction to Ortiz and his shirt said it all. He was the biggest star in the room by miles. It is complete madness to let the second biggest superstar on the roster leave, and hopefully the Fertittas overrule Dana and re-sign Tito. Even with a loss, he is still worth so much. Imagine, for example, a full TUF season with Brock Lesnar and Tito Ortiz leading to a fight at the end. That would probably be the highest buyrate of the year, regardless of whether Tito wins this fight. Wake up Zuffa!

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“hopefully the Fertittas overrule Dana and re-sign Tito.”

You should pay closer attention to this situation. Per many media sources and Tito himself, Lorenzo was the one he was negotiating with about a new contract, not Dana. It was Lorenzo and Frank who determined that they did not want to pay Tito the amount of money that he was demanding.

by ilostmydog on May 23, 2008 10:50 PM EDT reply actions

That being said, Rome is correct that the Fertittas need to reconsider the companies stance. This is the second time they’ve relegated Tito to a “superfight” on the undercard and its come off like he is the main event anyway. With him in as a free agent, the entire landscape changes and you have some really interesting matches to consider… Frank Shamrock vs. Tito, Kimbo vs. Tito, Rogerio vs. Tito for the hardcore parasites, Randy vs. Tito down the road… hell, even Fedor vs. Tito. And they’re all within the realm of possibility because Ortiz is smart enough to realize that he has the clout and resources to totally flip the model; he could hire companies like Strikeforce to produce an undercard for a Tito Ortiz main event instead of the other way around.

The mind boggles!

by smoogy on May 24, 2008 12:10 AM EDT reply actions

The Fertittas did the initial negotiations before they broke down, but it is the situation that Dana White that made reconciliation impossible. I hope Lorenzo and Frank are waiting to see whether Tito wins, and then make a decision about what to do.

by Michael Rome on May 24, 2008 12:37 AM EDT reply actions

You high?

Tito v Lesnar? Come on, Lesnar would toss him around like a chew toy and pound him into retirement.

by jebushchrist on May 24, 2008 3:14 PM EDT reply actions

I’d love to see Tito vs. Fedor at a catchweight. It would be really fun to see two legends go at it.

I agree with the spirit of what Rome is saying here. Tito has an uncanny ability to draw attention of any event he takes part in. I’m kind of sad to see him leave the UFC, but there are certainly some very cool matches outside the Octagon for Tito, and the chance to go back to headlining main events for the last few years of his career.

by Popetastic on May 24, 2008 3:39 PM EDT reply actions