Dana White Responds to Bas Boon and Golden Glory - 'We Can Absolutely Make a Deal'
by Fraser Coffeen on Aug 13, 2011 3:51 PM EDT
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The story continues. When we last left off the ongoing saga of the UFC and Strikeforce firings of fighters from the Golden Glory gym, Golden Glory's Bas Boon made his first public statement on the issue. Boon made it clear that he was ready to renegotiate and accept the payment terms of the UFC and Strikeforce, and that they still wanted to get Alistair Overeem into the UFC.
Now, Dana White has responded, and he's very clear - Golden Glory did refuse to work with them on the payment issue, but if they are now willing to compromise, Dana is ready to work out a deal to get Golden Glory fighters back into the UFC and Strikeforce. Here's his direct response to Boon, courtesy of an interview with Ariel Helwani conducted in the lead up to UFC on Versus 5. Transcription comes via MMA Mania:
I'm not trying to fight with Bas Boon. I don't dislike Bas Boon or any of the Golden Glory guys. There's never been some kind of situation where there was some kind of fight between us and Golden Glory. I have no resentment whatsoever towards Golden Glory. I've seen Bas Boon a million times. He's a nice guy. We just had different business opinions on how things should be done. He knows and I know and everybody over there (Golden Glory) knows...even the fighters. I don't give a s--- what they tweet, what they take pictures of or what they say. They f------ know exactly how it worked and we would not do it that way. Now if Bas Boon is saying that this is the way that we can do it, then we can absolutely positively make a deal and we can get this thing rolling again.
And, just in case there was any confusion, he makes his point once more:
If they've changed their mind, we can absolutely make a deal and get their guys in the UFC.
It's been interesting to follow this story, which has now become, essentially, a very public contract negotiation, with both sides handling their negotiations through media outlets. With this last response, Dana puts the ball back in Golden Glory's court, basically calling them on the contract issue. It seems that if Dana will indeed have them back, it would be a wise move for Golden Glory to change their normal practices, as the upside of having fighters in the world's biggest MMA organization far outweighs the negatives of changing the gym's policy.
One thing you have to say for Golden Glory in all of this - regardless of the final outcome, they have definitely managed to increase the visibility of the gym in the US MMA market. And if United Glory is indeed expanding into the US market soon, that visibility could be a valuable asset.
Check the full entry for the complete interview with Dana.
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Good news,
would really love to see Overeem crushed by Cain.
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by Chad Raynard on Aug 13, 2011 4:10 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Cain wont have fought in a year if they do fight
Overeem would put a Jon Jones style beating on him. His only chance is to run a la Werdum.
He's already set to fight Junior.
Fresh after that fight, he’d be ready for Overeem. I think he’d win both fights as well.
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http://penguinsfromthenorth.tumblr.com
http://www.scenepointblank.com
by Chad Raynard on Aug 13, 2011 4:28 PM EDT up reply actions
Cain would dominate Overeem
and this is coming from an Overeem fan. Cain be to much for him, Overeem was noticeably winded after the 3 round fight with Werdum. Cain would put a pace that Overeem couldnt follow. That being said, I’d love to see the fight.
It is highly possible Overeem had a cracked rib and a broken toe coming into the Werdum fight
I guess this could have hampered his cardio preparation, sparring and performance in the fight.
That being said, I’d pick Cain in a fight in which both guys are at 100%.
sounds like you haven't seen:
by Gisele Federico Navarro Mendez on Aug 13, 2011 5:39 PM EDT up reply actions
Does anyone know if completing those lifts means his shoulder has to be in good shape?
"He's like Elvis in Korea! They love him there." - Mike Goldberg on Denis Kang
I don't think it says anything.
There is no rotating motion, just lifting. He uses the shoulder muscles a bit for getting the kettlebell off the ground even more, but that’s about it. Most of the force comes with the hips and the butt.
"No man dies for what he knows to be true. Men die for what they want to be true, for what some terror in their hearts tells them is not true."
Given the weight and the type of movement, I would have to assume he has been fully cleared, but it shows nothing useful about his range of motion in the shoulder which is an area of concern.
"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -John Wayne
Death before dishonor, drinks before lunch.
Never send sheep to kill a wolf.
by The American Ronin on Aug 13, 2011 7:05 PM EDT up reply actions
There was no contract problems
It was just a ploy to get Valentijn out of his SF and into the UFC. Valentijn vs Couture headlining UFC 145!!!!!
haha Dana is a douche but a pretty smart man
Now he pretty much gets Overeem without having to wait for the tourney.
Is this a smart move?
Overeem is was the favorite to win the tournament. An Overeem tournament win provides enough leverage to push Cain vs. Overeem into the million buy territory. Instead, we have a heavyweight tournament champion and a phantom Strikeforce heavyweight champion. Wouldn’t it be better for everyone to re-install Overeem in the tourney?
"i hate signatures...that, and hypocrisy"
Could possibly happen if one of the semi winners is injured badly enough to significantly delay things I suppose, but I think it is more likely we see him in the UFC now…
"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -John Wayne
Death before dishonor, drinks before lunch.
Never send sheep to kill a wolf.
by The American Ronin on Aug 13, 2011 7:06 PM EDT up reply actions
Or to fight the GP winner first
"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -John Wayne
Death before dishonor, drinks before lunch.
Never send sheep to kill a wolf.
by The American Ronin on Aug 13, 2011 7:06 PM EDT up reply actions
not surprised...
I’m not a huge conspiracy nut, but if AO ends up in the UFC soon, this comes off really contrived.
Righhhhtt
So the GG fighters that got cut and won’t be signed with the UFC were cut in this master plan just to get AO in the UFC. Brillliannttttt. DW is smarter than I give him credit for.
can’t help but think this has as much to do with circumventing showtime to free up AO as it does getting golden glory in line with UFC demands
by troyd on Aug 13, 2011 4:29 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
so they fired...
every fighter except for Kharitonov to move Overeem to the UFC? Nah- there’s some real friction between the 2 entities, but it hasn’t gotten to M-1, point of no return stage yet. Please get Overeem into the UFC, I’m dying to see just how good he is.
"This is blood for blood and by the gallon. These are the old days, the bad days, the all-or-nothing days. They’re back! There’s no choice left. And I’m ready for war."
"I’m ready. It doesn’t matter with who or where. On foot or on horseback. With maces or poleaxes. To fight. To first blood or to death. It doesn’t matter, I’m ready to fight. I went hunting. For bears. With a knife. " - Aleksander Emelianenko
by John Danaher's Hair on Aug 13, 2011 4:55 PM EDT up reply actions
Exactly
Part of it is because Boon and GG realized they were nearing a point of no return and did the smart thing and backed down a bit. He’s doing the right thing for his fighters.
"What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease."
yup
"This is blood for blood and by the gallon. These are the old days, the bad days, the all-or-nothing days. They’re back! There’s no choice left. And I’m ready for war."
"I’m ready. It doesn’t matter with who or where. On foot or on horseback. With maces or poleaxes. To fight. To first blood or to death. It doesn’t matter, I’m ready to fight. I went hunting. For bears. With a knife. " - Aleksander Emelianenko
by John Danaher's Hair on Aug 13, 2011 7:28 PM EDT up reply actions
Dana owned Golden Glory.
Golden Glory basically bowed down to Dana’s demands because they have nowhere else to go. haha.
think about it.
GG has been able to bully every promotion they’ve worked with- K-1, Strikeforce, Dream…they tried to play hardball with Zuffa, and found out that it wouldn’t work. No harm, no foul, but they have pissed away any leverage that they did have.
"This is blood for blood and by the gallon. These are the old days, the bad days, the all-or-nothing days. They’re back! There’s no choice left. And I’m ready for war."
"I’m ready. It doesn’t matter with who or where. On foot or on horseback. With maces or poleaxes. To fight. To first blood or to death. It doesn’t matter, I’m ready to fight. I went hunting. For bears. With a knife. " - Aleksander Emelianenko
by John Danaher's Hair on Aug 13, 2011 4:56 PM EDT up reply actions
They didn't have any leverage.
That’s the key difference here. They thought they had some, exercised it, and were swatted away like a fly. Now comes an equitable deal.
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are in a confederacy against him. - Jonathan Swift
Editor, HeadKickLegend.com
Still Subo at Fightlinker.com
by Derek Suboticki on Aug 13, 2011 5:02 PM EDT up reply actions
An equitable deal based on only one side having any leverage at all?
Your ideas about business confuse me.
"Someone is WRONG on the internet. What do you want me to do? LEAVE? Then they'll keep being wrong!"
-Randall Munroe
this
Equitable would’ve been if GG didn’t go balls to the wall with their leverage of having a marketable commodity for a thin division. Now, it’s gonna be on Zuffa’s terms or not at all.
"This is blood for blood and by the gallon. These are the old days, the bad days, the all-or-nothing days. They’re back! There’s no choice left. And I’m ready for war."
"I’m ready. It doesn’t matter with who or where. On foot or on horseback. With maces or poleaxes. To fight. To first blood or to death. It doesn’t matter, I’m ready to fight. I went hunting. For bears. With a knife. " - Aleksander Emelianenko
by John Danaher's Hair on Aug 13, 2011 5:31 PM EDT up reply actions
GG was only going to get what Zuffa felt like giving them
That’s as true now as it was then.
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are in a confederacy against him. - Jonathan Swift
Editor, HeadKickLegend.com
Still Subo at Fightlinker.com
by Derek Suboticki on Aug 13, 2011 6:02 PM EDT up reply actions
there are negotiating tactics other than...
the “walk away” after the first roadblock. Negotiating tactics go a long way in determining the kind of deal you’re going to get- I’m not saying that Zuffa would have made a deal that they weren’t comfortable with had things been handled differently, but if things had been handled differently, perhaps the mass release would not have happened and they could have worked a better deal for Overeem. Now, Zuffa has them over a barrel with absolutely no room to wiggle.
"This is blood for blood and by the gallon. These are the old days, the bad days, the all-or-nothing days. They’re back! There’s no choice left. And I’m ready for war."
"I’m ready. It doesn’t matter with who or where. On foot or on horseback. With maces or poleaxes. To fight. To first blood or to death. It doesn’t matter, I’m ready to fight. I went hunting. For bears. With a knife. " - Aleksander Emelianenko
by John Danaher's Hair on Aug 13, 2011 7:26 PM EDT up reply actions
GG wanted an inequitable (ie, uncommon or slanted relative to other camps) deal
They wanted special treatment and attempted to blackmail Zuffa into giving it to them, with predictably hilarious results.
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are in a confederacy against him. - Jonathan Swift
Editor, HeadKickLegend.com
Still Subo at Fightlinker.com
by Derek Suboticki on Aug 13, 2011 6:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Blackmail Zuffa?!
What are you even talking about? I don’t think we will ever know what has been going on. I’m pretty sure the GG guys will have to say that it was miscommunication. We don’t know if White told the truth. GG just can’t say anything against White’s comments since they want they’re fighters to have a job.
It’s just a lot of “he said, she said” with us speculating.
"No man dies for what he knows to be true. Men die for what they want to be true, for what some terror in their hearts tells them is not true."
With the purchase of Strikeforce,
Zuffa took almost all of the leverage from all fighters. GG wanted to play hardball, much as a free agent in MLB, the NFL or the NBA might, but with few alternatives to the Zuffa monopsony, they overplayed their hand…
"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -John Wayne
Death before dishonor, drinks before lunch.
Never send sheep to kill a wolf.
by The American Ronin on Aug 13, 2011 7:10 PM EDT up reply actions
"How you expect to run with the wolves come night when you spend all day sparring with the puppies" - Omar Little
by The Omaplatapus on Aug 13, 2011 4:53 PM EDT reply actions
My interest here is with Coenen...
If they resign her to a contract it might be an indicator of a willingness to continue womens MMA in some form (either a revamped WEC style Strikforce or eventual inclusion in to the UFC). If they don’t resign Coenen to some sort of contract then you have to think it’s a death knell of sorts for womens MMA on the big stage. While the finish last night was bizarre I think it’s clear that Cyborg now has a legit challenger in Rousey and the 135 division is getting interesting with the Coenen/Tate/Kaufmann trio.
Not so sure that is the benchmark standing by itself
Coenen hasn’t endeared herself to the Zuffa post firing and from what I’ve read had some behavior issues prior to the fight (e.g. being late for the press conference). I agree that I would like to see her have another shot but I’m not sure if she doesn’t get resigned right away that indicates much. Now if Cyborg isn’t resigned, no Gina fight scheduled, no Coenen resigning, I think that might be a pretty good predictor of the future.
amazing
he cut overeem from a non-exclusive, one-fight-remaining contract and is now saying you have to come fight for the ufc and can’t fight for K1 or even any of the golden glory cards (as is standard with all UFC contracts). i wonder how they are going to spin overeem losing his heavyweight belt.
i also believe einomo and valentijn are simply not interesting to dana (see the epic failure in bringing in gurgel due to his friendship with rich franklin).
coenen is definitely the most interesting person to watch here as dana said repeatedly that women will not fight in the UFC. i wouldn’t be surprised if they sign her back and then cut women’s altogether upon absorbing strikeforce…
man wtf!
everything dana white says is a complete lie
yea saw this coming
Overeem vs Mir is a great start
"I have smoked weed with alot of UFC champions" - Joe Rogan
"Você ta fudido. Se vai levar muita porrada, ta ligado?" - Anderson Silva
Seconded
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Most of the time I am a rather quiet fellow, who likes to read about Philosophy, Mathematics and History, but like most people I also have a deep appreciation of sex and violence... - John Danaher
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