Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer concurred, citing the reported losses of publicly held fight companies the International Fight League and EliteXC as reasons for the boxing promoter being reluctant to try their hand in MMA. But Schaefer did hold out the possibility that Golden Boy might consider such a move in the future if the waters looked more inviting.
"The time is not now. MMA is going through some very rough patches and transition issues...recently two companies that are public had FCC filings that raised doubt about their ability to continue. We want to see what's going to happen with the sport. Maybe we will enter the MMA business to diversify in the future," said Schaefer.
Smart move, in my opinion. They know the boxing business well and don't understand MMA all that well. Additionally, the MMA business is in flux with competitors entering (Affliction) and competitors leaving (IFL...probably). I've often said that Dana White is successful because he knows a lot about MMA and what makes the sport tick but he also has a little business acumen. The folks at ProElite, by contrast, have a lot of business acumen but don't have 1/10th the insight Dana White does. It's probably best to stay out until the seas are a little calmer and one can find their role.
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