"I do think there needs to be some sort of competition, or there needs to be some sort of... you know, coming together of the fighters and making a stand, because as of right now, they've got a stranglehold on the fight game, Zuffa, and we need to get some dough... I know there's a lot of people that would like to see [a fighters union] happen, and there's a lot of people with more money that would not like to see that happen, so you know... you gotta do the math on that one."
-- Urijah Faber talks to Adam Carolla about this weekend's rematch with Mike Thomas Brown, cutting weight, MMA vs. boxing, and more.
photo via Sherdog
over 2 years ago
Chris Nelson
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Yet another fighter who talks a good game about unionizing, but wants no part whatsoever of being the guy who makes it happen.
MMA fighters are too busy ‘getting theirs’ to bother with fighting for better working conditions for future generations of fighters. Look at any major sports players union and you will see all of them were founded by athletes & agents who made great sacrifices in order to make the union a reality. Nobody in MMA has shown that kind of backbone, and that is why a fighter’s union remains nothing more than an interesting idea.
Unions don’t just appear out of thin air. You’ve got to scratch & claw to make them a reality.
these sports are too international
you can broadcast a ppv from anywhere. Same with boxing. If they cant fight here because of labor laws, they will do it in europe or africa.
Also, the fight game is not a team sport. People root for individuals and promotions make the fights happen. Its not a league (that failed). If the fighters dont like the money they are making in the UFC or WEC, they can hold out and sign with a lesser promotion for more money (Fedor). In the NBA/MLB/NFL, there really isnt any other option. They would have to unionize across all promotions.
Yeah, a fighter’s union would be very difficult to set up nationally, let alone internationally. A union would greatly help those fighters in the lower tier, such as ensuring insurance, stable contracts that say you can’t be booted just after one fight, or guaranteeing a certain number of fights a year, etc. Basically take some power away from the promoters. But I just don’t see this happening.
I love me some Sexyama!
Just look at international football (soccer) for the layers of complication.
Plus, there are probably a boat load of side effects such as lost salary to the union, etc…that alot of these guys aren’t thinking of.
And I hope and Pray the union never happens
If fighters don’t like the pay, find another job. Unions are a socialist relic that only make things worse, including sports.
Bad move
We have seen time and time again what happens to fighters that complain about their salaries. If he loses this next fight get ready to see Faber fight once a year until his contract runs out. Also, forget another title shot
i'm pretty sure he's made these statements before
i see your point, but i think he’s too much of a “poster boy” for the wec to be given the huerta treatment.
however, if he thinks he can go over to japan and make so much more money, and he’s not locked into a long term contract with the wec… why not do it?
besides, isn’t he one of the highest paid wec fighters to begin with?
For a number 1 or 2 guy in the world his salary doesn’t seem right. Jens Pulver makes more than him.
Huerta, Couture, Tito, and AA were all poster boys for the UFC that complained about their contracts. I always expect the same thing that happened to them to happen to anyone else who speaks out about their salaries
Wow.
Gotta wonder how that’s gonna go over at Zuffa HQ.
Although detractors decry (MMA) as a brutal, bloody form of human cockfighting, aficionados know it is a brutal, bloody, totally fucking awesome form of human cockfighting. -The Onion
by The Kittitas Kid on Jun 4, 2009 11:52 AM EDT reply actions
You Guys Are Hillarious
Faber has already stated that Japan pays MUCH better for the lighter weight fighters.
It’s no secret that the WEC doesn’t pay them much, so I don’t think its a big deal.
Like I said, I like Faber because he speaks his mind, but Zuffa won’t punish their poster boy.
I still haven’t heard him say anything negative about Zuffa. He was very careful to speak in generalities rather than making specific accusations. That is what separates him from guys like Huerta. He didn’t bite the hand that feeds him.
Dana doesn’t mind guys talking about this kind of stuff as long as they keep the UFC/WEC out of the conversation.
i agree with Faber… there has to be solid competition to get the best athletes in MMA.
"I’m not going to stop yelling because that would mean, I lost the fight!"-Kenny Powers
shooter/cutter for AllElbows.com
There is competition…
if you dont want to fight for a living, there are a million other things for you to do.
Billy doesnt want to become a race horse jockey so he becomes an accountant.
what?
i want the best athetes training in MMA, and not football, baseball, or basketball. and to make that happen, the money has to be there… and you need healthy competition between orgs to ensure that.
i dont understand your race horse analogy.
"I’m not going to stop yelling because that would mean, I lost the fight!"-Kenny Powers
shooter/cutter for AllElbows.com
by ekc on Jun 4, 2009 7:24 PM EDT up reply actions
I love Urijah,
but it is easy to talk especially when you are already making tons of dough.
Arguing on the internet is like being in the special olympics, even when you win you are still retarded.
not really. if i was a top 3 145 in the world and the face of an org…. then no, he isnt making tons of dough.
"I’m not going to stop yelling because that would mean, I lost the fight!"-Kenny Powers
shooter/cutter for AllElbows.com
by ekc on Jun 4, 2009 3:28 PM EDT up reply actions
The problem here is that Urijah Faber has absolutely no leverage. None of the WEC guys do. They are not on PPV. They draw moderate but not huge gates. I don’t think anybody thinks the WEC is racking in the money.
Now, the UFC fighters probably have some more leverage in getting higher pay. However, I don’t think this is something that needs to be done overnight. Payscales have gone up dramatically over the last 3 or 4 years. The main event UFC fighters are now making $1 Million +. It would actually hurt the sport more right now if all of a sudden these fighters get 50% of the profits. It would actually stunt it’s growth because Zuffa would be less willing to expand into new markets like Europe.
I like the idea of a fighter’s union. I don’t like the idea of a fighter’s union sucking Zuffa dry and making the fighters so rich that either:
1) They lose interest in fighting once they get one big payday.
2) Zuffa stops trying to expand the sport because they don’t have the funding.
3) We no longer get stacked cards because too much of the money is going to the main event fighters.
if urijah faber wants money then move up to the lightweight decision in the ufc and stop beating on smaller people in the ufc.
i see no reason why faber,brown, and aldo shouldn’t move up to the lightweight division and challenge themselves
Because Faber is a tiny featherweight. He walks around at 150 pounds. The fact that he is able to compete with 145 pounders who walk around at 160-165 is impressive enough. How the hell do you expect him to compete with guys who walk around at 180-185 and cut to 155?
Truth be told, Urijah is a bantamweight who competes at featherweight because he can. I’d rather see him move DOWN and face Torres.
Part of the reason that Faber lost to Brown is because Brown is bigger and stronger. Faber doesn’t belong in the LW division anymore than BJ belongs at WW. Also, Brown has ONE title defence; it’s not like he’s cleaned out the division. Calling for the champ to move up in weight to “challenge himself” when he’s only making his second defence (and got tooled when he last fought at LW) is really silly.
"I'm AJB and I endorse this nut-puncher."
by AJB on Jun 4, 2009 7:06 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Why does Zuffa push UFC harder?
If people love the UFC name so much, why doesn’t Zuffa just change the name of WEC to UFC? I think it’s a shame that they’re not pushing a #1 vs #2 fight with a great storyline harder.
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