"I agree 100%! Competition is always good for the consumer and we all as fans lost on that deal."
I agree 110%
wow...reminds me of wwe/wcw...rip pride,im happy i got to see pride in vegas last feb.
"How do you explain Silva and Rampage holding Belts?"
Anderson Silva fought 5 times in Pride out of 23 career fights. If you consider him a Pride fighter you must be really desperate for examples. But this whole UFC fighters vs Pride fighters is retarded anyways since there is no such thing as Pride anymore. They are all UFC guys or Showtime, K-1 or Strikeforce guys now. Cheering for an organization instead of fighters is retarded.
"How is competition good for consumer in this case? Don't you want all the top fighters to be able to fight each other on a regular basis?"
Think long term. If there is only one dominant organization, that organization doesn't have to pay fighters as much to retain them because there is no competing organization trying to swoop in and sign them for more money. Over time the payrolls, particularly for newer guys, get lower. Lower payrolls lead to less guys being willing/able to make a living in MMA. The talent pool dwindles as guys like Sherk drop out of MMA and find work elsewhere. So fans get cheated out of seeing the best fight because there isn't fair compensation for the dedication it takes to be the best.
p.s. I'm not saying the Pride shutdown is going to make this happen, as there is still competition from other orgs obviously.
Yakuza made it impossible for them to even try to save it.
It's about time they cut their losses.
"WTF is Dana Zuffa thinking? Burning thier bridges in the most lucrative mma market?"
The Japanese market collapsed.
the american market was always more lucrative anyway. they just had to find a way to reach it. now they have and they don't need the japanese market anymore
"So why didn't this happen in NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, etc, etc?"
Because there is competition between the teams to sign the best players to their rosters. There is no comparable effect in MMA.
"If you look at reality instead of projections, the UFC fighter's payrolls have been steadily climbing. Both on the low end and the high end."
My post addressed the notion that no competition at all would be good for MMA. I wasn't suggesting the effects I mention are actually happening or are going to happen because Pride is done.
R.I.P Pride, you are, and will be sadly missed.
THIS IS COMPLETE FUCKING BULLSHIT!!!!!!
How is it bullshit?
The Japanese market is dead.
evil Gaijin strikes again.
Lorenzo and Dana are smart gangsters though.
Buy the rights to Pride, the pride name and its back catalogue and make sure that NOBODY has a chance to ressurect it in the future.
Pride died on 3/27. anybody who bought the PRIDE WORLDWIDE BS is a moron.
From: Brigham
"Like Dana has said, Pride was a fucking disaster. Why try to salvage something that can't be salvaged?"
Dana White talks a lot of PR rubbish.
While it's possible that Zuffa did intend to keep the boat floating, it's also conceivable that they purchased Pride to eliminate their largest competitor.
"
Allegations of organized crime ties seem more credible given what a mess Pride was. I mean, as others have said, where the HELL did all that money go?!"
uhhh. All fightsport in japan is tied to organized crime. Many legit businesses are too. It's nothing special. Pride just got exposed publically. As for where the money went it went to fighter paychecks and event production costs.
The reason why Pride couldn't sustain itself is because it was relying on advertising revenue when it got big. Once they lost the TV deal they couldn't sustain the fighter pay anymore.
Right, they failed miserably at running their business.
" Allegations of organized crime ties seem more credible given what a mess Pride was. I mean, as others have said, where the HELL did all that money go?!"
uhhh. All fightsport in japan is tied to organized crime. Many legit businesses are too. It's nothing special. Pride just got exposed publically. As for where the money went it went to fighter paychecks and event production costs.
The reason why Pride couldn't sustain itself is because it was relying on advertising revenue when it got big. Once they lost the TV deal they couldn't sustain the fighter pay anymore."
so are you on suicide watch yet?
The Baldfather has spoken! And LOL @ all the crybabies venting their displaced anger at the wrong party:) Companies take one another out every day; it's a part of business. Zuffa is no different.
Cindy
Cindy-
Which season of TUF was your favorite?
Fucked the Japanese employees over?
They were part of a disgraced and bankrupt company that was bought out for mere nickles just to have the video rights.
I'm sure they had their desks packed long ago.