Versus Denies Report It Engaged in Preliminary Talks With Bellator

by Michael Rome on Sep 25, 2009 7:00 PM EDT in News Comment 37 comments

Yesterday in an article about the WEC, I linked to a report by Jonathan Snowden at Heavy.com. In that report, Snowden claimed the following:

The Versus network, home to the WEC, was so worried that the promotion was leaving that they opened up tentative talks with Bellator, the Latino friendly group looking for a home after leaving ESPN Deportes earlier this year. As unhappy as WEC fighters are, it's nothing compared to Bellator's woebegone warriors. The promotion will be in a holding pattern through March at the earliest and in the meantime many fighters are desperate to make ends meet.

Both Versus and the WEC contacted us to deny the report. They claim the report is categorically false. I spoke with the public relations manager at VERSUS, who said that with regards to the story above, "there is absolutely zero truth to this."

When contacted for comment, Jonathan Snowden stood by his story. Snowden said, "I was told by a trusted source that there were preliminary talks between the two parties."

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Read More: versus, wec, bellator, urijah faber, miguel torres

Comments

i was hoping it was true so that the wec can move to spike and versus can have bellator

"The most used phrase in my administration if I were to be President would be "What the hell you mean we're out of missiles?"
The Glenn Beck Program, January 12 2009 lp.org

by baldspot23 on Sep 25, 2009 7:05 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

same…

though rather WEC just merged into UFC so UFC puts more events on Spike and versus can have whatever since its a shit channel anyways…

by Reaser16 on Sep 25, 2009 7:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

by bdw on Sep 25, 2009 7:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

sounds like loretta-type reporting

by cagefightonacid on Sep 25, 2009 7:07 PM EDT via mobile reply actions 1 recs

I wouldnt doubt it

Zuffa has not really been firm about the WEC’s future and with DirecTV dropping Versus that didnt help the WEC.

As for weather or not it’s true. It could be false everyone likes to break stories now so they do a lot of false reporting but remember the Pride deal, Pride denied that it was for sale weeks before it was sold and so it could be true.

by bigdmmafan on Sep 25, 2009 7:10 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

How can anyone even be in preliminary talks with Bellator?

i thought they just needed to dot the i’s and cross the t’s?

by Phildo on Sep 25, 2009 7:13 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Well, the story doesn’t say when those negotiations took place. They were talking to a bunch of people for months.

by MMASuPreMaCy on Sep 25, 2009 7:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

and he would publish months old information now because?

by Phildo on Sep 25, 2009 7:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don’t know. He also said the UFC shortly dropped Trigg because Dana “just found out” that Trigg was in the EA Game, though he had been rumored for over a year.

by MMASuPreMaCy on Sep 25, 2009 7:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Oh

and because the article had to do about the WEC, and not about Bellator.
=)

by MMASuPreMaCy on Sep 25, 2009 7:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Belletol? haha

by SouthAlaBamaRampage on Sep 25, 2009 7:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I don't know

I’m not a big Snowden fan but in this case I’m
inclined to believe him. I mean of course Versus is gonna say no, they don’t want DW breathing down their necks.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Sep 25, 2009 7:36 PM EDT via mobile reply actions 0 recs

What benefit is it to versus or even bellator to have any talks??? some people don’t know shit…

Snowden should ask his “source” about the wec/versus contract. EVEN AT THE END OF THE CONTRACT (which is some time to come) IF FOR SOME REASON BOTH PARTIES CANT COME TO TERMS THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT TIME PERIOD WHERE VERSUS CANNOT CARRY MMA PROGRAMMING.

Was Bellator not planning on being Televised until man landed on Mars???

By the way didnt bellator say their “announcement of being in 150m homes” was coming in days like a month ago?

Bellator is looking like the new “AFL”. Everything looks great until you realize you have no end game… then the money dries up. SECOND ROUND OF FUNDING IS A BITCH.

by mmalogic on Sep 25, 2009 8:08 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Does anyone know the verbiage of the Zuffa/Versus contract? Could Versus not being on DirecTV be some kind of contractual deal-breaker?

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 25, 2009 9:19 PM EDT via mobile reply actions 0 recs

no its not a deal breaker… and quite frankly Zuffa gets paid the same whether Versus ends up being aired only in cuba….

Zuffa can place cheaper talent in the wec. Whats the difference if the wec has Urijah Faber or a Chris Leben type regarding the ratings? You can make very compelling TV product with B-level talent.

The question is monetization… a “Leben” can be monetized only so much in the UFC… it would be comparable to the wec – whereas a “Faber” can me monetized many multiples higher in the UFC than in the wec.

by mmalogic on Sep 25, 2009 9:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I whole-heartedly agree. I think 135 & 145 should’ve been added to the UFC about 2 years ago.

As has been stated on here before, I would love to see the WEC act as sort of a minor league to the UFC. This would allow Zuffa to do a few things, allow the fighters to build a reputation and keep their overhead in the UFC lower by not having 25 fighters in each division and constantly having to scramble to get every fighter on 2-4 cards a year. Plus this would help keep their payscales in check.

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 25, 2009 10:13 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Right, the only problem is how do we decide who goes where? Say after two losses in a row a guy gets moved down to the WEC, so Forrest Griffin and Randy Couture should get moved down? There would have to be some kind of way to do it other than just having Dana pick and choose, especially if salary cuts are involved for going to the WEC. It’s a solid idea but there would be a lot of things to be sorted out.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Sep 25, 2009 10:36 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

I say once Randy or Forrest get to “Ken Shamrock” level then they move down.

by mmalogic on Sep 25, 2009 10:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Realistically though those guys will just retire from the UFC once they are done.

by mmalogic on Sep 25, 2009 10:46 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

shouldn’t be that hard…

make the WEC for up and comers….then UFC is major league, if you get cut from UFC then either you are cut or in some cases if you are younger they give you an option to sign with the WEC or get moved down to WEC….obviously Forrest, Randy, etc aren’t going to get moved down to WEC, once you’re established in UFC you are there until you can’t compete at that level anymore and you retire…

by Reaser16 on Sep 25, 2009 10:47 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That’s ideal… but the only way to keep versus happy is to share some of that “UFC star equity” so the guys like “leben” combined with the up and comers should do the trick.

by mmalogic on Sep 25, 2009 10:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, much like in baseball (not comparing the two sports) if you underperform or aren’t ready for the big time, you get sent down or reassigned. But the main goal of the minor leagues is to build up potential talent and for the athletes to test themselves after rehabing an injury…

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 25, 2009 11:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Do you have a vendetta against Leben or are you just using him as an example?

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 26, 2009 10:25 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

The problem with the WEC is one of perception. Many fans see it as a second-rate UFC, even when that is demonstrably not true. I don’t think that making it a clear minor league helps that problem. To put it another way, minor league baseball is a solid local draw in many places but it isn’t a solid television entity.

Having some of the WEC fighters appear on UFC PPV…now that would do wonders for the promotion’s image.

by JonathanSnowden on Sep 26, 2009 11:14 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well yeah, but then if you put a Faber on a UFC card or a Torres-Bowles rematch then that hurts the WEC. They have enough problems selling shows and getting ratings on cards that don’t have their few big names, if they are going to put those guys on UFC cards they may as well just merge.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Sep 26, 2009 6:29 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, it is a fine line. I would alternate the main stars like Faber and Torres between VERSUS and PPV. One fight on a VERSUS show and then one fight on PPV.

by JonathanSnowden on Sep 26, 2009 8:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

But once Faber and Torres taste UFC PPV money, they aren’t going to want to fight on a Versus card.

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 26, 2009 10:21 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Well they still won’t be getting a PPV cut, probably just a healthy raise in their base pay. And if they get a new contract out of it they probably wouldn’t care if they are making the same for both fights. But then you run into another problem with confusing the casual fan base- “If this guy doesn’t fight for the UFC why are they showing him?”.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Sep 27, 2009 12:30 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

stupid idea. Minor leagues? You think this is going to improve the UFC. Until Dana White recognizes that the UFC is a promotion, not a league, UFC fight quality will continue to plummet. Bellator and Dream are rivaling them in the small divisions, Strikeforce is owning them at heavyweight. If Dana really wants to put on the best fights, he needs to work with the other promotions. Last thing we need is GSP fighting Matt Hughes again or Silva fighting Henderson. Lets get some real matchups.

by aggieheaven on Sep 26, 2009 10:52 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Until Dana White recognizes that the UFC is a promotion, not a league, UFC fight quality will continue to plummet. Bellator and Dream are rivaling them in the small divisions, Strikeforce is owning them at heavyweight. If Dana really wants to put on the best fights, he needs to work with the other promotions.

This statement is hilarious on many levels.

A man should never waste an opportunity to keep his mouth shut.

by iiowyn on Sep 26, 2009 11:15 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Strikeforce is owning them at heavyweight.

Funniest thing ever posted on the internet, EVER!!!

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 26, 2009 3:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wow, that is some of the most short-sighted useless drivel I have seen on BE in quite some time.

Walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by ufc4 on Sep 26, 2009 6:30 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Who outside of the UFC is a threat to Anderson at MW?

I want at least 2.

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 26, 2009 10:05 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Dude, seriously, everytime I read this post I laugh hysterically for 6 minutes then realize I have something else to say.

Outside of Fedor, there are 5 heavyweights in the UFC that would run through SF’s HW division without batting an eye, and 2 that would give Fedor fits.

BTW, to many, many, many people the UFC is a league and not a promotion. The UFC is considered, by many, to be the only real MMA org out there. Half the people who have ever purchased a UFC event probably couldn’t tell you what SF is, let alone who any of their fighters are. Look at how well the UFC/Pride copromotion worked and explain to me why it is such a good idea…

Don't argue for the sake of arguing....

by Screwface on Sep 26, 2009 10:18 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Just More False Rumors

Snowden just wanted to get his name in lights. He has no credibility, he is just blogger trying to get people to read his drivel. Why would Bellator even care to hook up with Versus? It would make no sense.

There is a reason WEC wants out of their agreement, Versus is a fledgling network on the brink of being shut down due to crappy programming. If they aren’t playing the same WEC replays they have Jean Claude Van Damme’s Bloodsport running. It is the worst cable tv network in the country.

by aggieheaven on Sep 26, 2009 10:47 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs