Sakakibara talks all sorts of bullshit but when Dana White says something it's actually in the works. And when it falls through he actually admits it. Look at the Montreal UFC show for example. Then take a look at how Pride continues to falsly advertise the fighters who will show on each card, and how Sakakibara lied through his teeth about Mirko being on the US card for weeks.
Lets look at past experience :
The Dana White that wasn't going after Fedor said "Fedor who? I'm not very familiar with him honestly"
The Dana White that is serious about signing Fedor says "We're going after the top fighters in the world, and that includes Fedor"
Dana doesn't admit to the existance of fighters that he isn't planning on making money on. This is a well known fact. Anyways, if any of you want to make a bet that Fedor doesn't step into the octagon in 2007, i'd be happy to take your money ;) UFC's making huge money, and the top fighters will all end up there just like they ended up in Pride before. All this 'loyalty' talk is just ignorant.
And Julie : Fedor is not under contract with Pride for two years. That misconception came from the Japanese version of Fedor's site where he says "I will be fighting in pride next year, and the year after that". Other sites reported that means he signed a two year deal.
HOWEVER, Fedor, his managers, and other sources have said over and over before and after the interview that he is currently only taking 1-fight contracts. The above statement simply means that he plans to continue accepting 1-fight contracts from Pride, the same way Mirko was.
My outlook for pride is not good, but even ufc nuthuggers need to realize with this mma boom, you will not see such talent under one roof as you did in pride.
As long as ufc does good other orgs will spend money. Pride maybe the death of talent, especially heavyweight talent under one roof.
Dana White is gonna do his best to crush the competition. We've already seen him buy the WFA to keep several fighters out of other orgs and buying the WEC lets him keep lower rung fighters locked up as well. Competition can be a good thing - MMA fans are going to reap the rewards this year as other companies try to edge in on the UFC. But you better hope they eventually fail, because if you end up with several organizations and a splintered talent pool, the MMA will die the same slow death boxing is going through.
"Then take a look at how Pride continues to falsly advertise the fighters who will show on each card, and how Sakakibara lied through his teeth about Mirko being on the US card for weeks"
thats why i dont trust japanese/chinese people at the CHinese Buffets around here...i know those fuckers shit in my sesame chicken
Yea, but I believe they were fairly confident Matt would beat Royce handily. I think Royce was brought in both for ratings and a demonstration on how far ahead the current UFC champions were over the older ones.
Bringing in Fedor and having him demolish the current champion and then leave would be bad business. His first fight wouldn't bring in huge ratings because 99% of the American audience wouldn't know who he is. And then after everyone became interested, he would be gone.
I was also under the impression that Fedor had recently signed a 2 year deal as well (not like the internet is usually wrong, lol). I would not be suprised at all if attempting to get Fedor was in the Crocop negotiations. I believe the cage is much more complimentary to Fedors style than the ring and with the UFC wanting to go worldwide, why not have recognizable fighters from where ever they go? Fedor/ Crocop II in Russia?