Speaking with ESPNs Bill Simmons last week, UFCs Dana White dismissed the validity of media rankings by charging that some sites (or journalists) received lots of money from the smaller promotions. White was ambiguous over what exactly would be the result of that transaction, but dismissed the idea that This content is protected or This content is protected should be on anyones pound-for-pound list. Despite the critical reaction to Whites comments, its unlikely he was suggesting promotions hand sites bags of cash in order to garner favorable coverage: he probably imagines a situation involving promotions paying for ad space and sites somehow feeling obligated to acknowledge their athletes in return. Either way, its something approaching slander. (Not to mention hypocrisy. More on that shortly.) Its less prevalent now, but there was a time when I was on a rotating shift of suspicion over having a paid-for bias for (or against) promotions. If an editorial had anti-UFC sentiment -- whatever that means -- I was charged with being paid by Strikeforce. The next week, the opposite. In literal terms, the idea that a business would establish a paper trail of paying for favorable coverage is ludicrous -- moreover, it applies far too much importance to the agenda of the media. Youre going to get good ink and bad ink, and singling out individuals makes precious little difference in the bigger picture. In naming Shields and Emelianenko, White is likely making reference to either This content is protected or Yahoos rankings, both of which slot those men in their top 10. What burns his argument is that the voting pool for Yahoo's site includes Ariel Helwani, a very capable and respected interviewer who nonetheless receives compensation from Versus.com, a WEC business partner; another voter, Elias Cepeda, has seen his byline appear on UFC.com. I do not suggest either man has been unduly influenced by their relationship with Zuffa -- not suffering from paranoid delusions, I would wager theyve done nothing improper. But there is considerable irony in White fretting over payoffs when at least two voting members of the rankings he detests have closer ties with his businesses than others. (How offensive is the list? It contains only eight Zuffa athletes. For shame.) Theres also the matter of radio host Scott Farrell -- best known as the most unfortunate ring announcer ever at Yamma Pit Fighting -- having his This content is protected at one time. I would imagine no one involved expected Farrell to offer any real criticism of the shows he attended. The only evidence of promotional impropriety when it comes to journalists exists with the UFC. As for Whites perpetual issue with ranking Emelianenko: if he does not belong on any list of the best, why did White offer him an unprecedented multimillion dollar UFC deal when he was a free agent? Is it customary to take an overhyped fighter and promise him lifetime financial security? What about Shields, who White doesnt believe deserves a pound-for-pound ranking but is aggressively suggesting he not re-sign with Strikeforce? Shields just beat This content is protected and hasnt lost in nearly six years. If hes not a quality athlete, why bother signing him? Theres no rational answer, save to say its all more dangerous hyperbole from White, who commands a legion of followers via his social networking efforts: if he claims media members are behaving improperly, a good portion will take it at face value. Having that platform has been a boon for his UFC, but comments like these are a strong indication he doesnt feel any sense of responsibility. Its nonsense. Strikeforce, by the way, has an excellent show coming on June 16. Order Showtime today and use the coupon code JAKEROSS to get 15 percent off your first months bill. :-( What a tool Dana is. What a tool.atsch
The problem Dana foesn't understand is that the more he gets attention to MMA and the more he recruits 'new" fans the more the find out about the workings of the MMA world and the more Dana looks like a total no-class crybaby. I have been asked by several people who are new to following MMA why is Dana White ALWAYS bitching about someone or something? Has he no class? I just shake my head and laugh.
Specific issue of Fedor aside, what exactly did he say that is the least bit incorrect? Media and fan rankings mean absolutely **** all, just look at some of the more respected sites. Not only are personal agendas rampant, but there is no consistency, suggesting that there is no real quality in the rankings. For example, if you don't think Sherdog has an axe the size of a former Yugoslav republic to grind with Zuffa, you haven't been paying attention. Next, look at the absolute farce that is WAMMA, the people involved and their direct involvement with promoters. So other than not liking White, and his stupidity over Fedor, how on earth can anybody thinking calling rankings what they are, irrelevant, a problem in any way? There are plenty of reasons to dislike Dana, but when people throw stupid **** like this out there, the constant background noise of bitching is far far worse. Then this gem atsch Much like buying a plane ticket is "something approaching" perpetrating 9/11.
Sick post beebs. While I may disagree with Dana here and there (admittedly not knowing the full circumstances when I agree/disagree with him) he's taken this sport from nothing, worse then nothing, actually, and brought it to heights we couldn't even have begun to imagine not even a decade ago. Pretty good if you ask me.
Exactly if you where to tell me in 2000 that we would be watching live shows on Spike TV (then TNN) in 5 years and having a reality show id be like **** no the sport is barley legal. Let alone to say that the UFC is running 1-2 PPVs a month all over America then in the UK, Abu Dhabi, Canada etc and you would have many other companys doing shows on cable or in Strikeforce's case National TV or MMA would have a weekly show on ESPN and action figures and the list goes on id say your smoking alot of crack. If you where like me watching the first live show on Spike with Franklin-Shamrock and Griffin-Bonnar it just felt so magical and this was the greatest thing ever and to see where its came just since then is just incredible let alone where they came from 2000 or especially the 90s. Dana deserves a large portion of the credit this guy is mainly the reason guys like Couture, GSP and others are becoming household names.
Any top10 P4P that doesn't have Shields and Fedor would lead me to believe that they are being paid to suit Dana's needs.
I think Dana is a tool for not thinking Fedor's name should be meantioned in the P4P rankings. Why does he want to sign a nobody, an overarted loser, someone who has'nt faught anyone since the 90's:rofl These are all White's statements. I do not purchase UFC PPV anymore. I have'nt in 2 years. I will watch it but I can't imagine lining that assholes pockets.
Jesus can u all shut up with this "look at what he did with mma" bull****.. year after year same old ****...YA WE GET IT ALREADY!!!
Should'nt you be out buying the new dvd set of TUF? You could now be home beating off to Kimbo's false chance of being an mma fighter.
Why would one organisation be responsible for a SPORT? Seriously are you really that dumb? Do you actually believe Dana White is the reason for MMA's success when MMA was already big in Brazil and Japan long before the UFC was even a thought? If your talking about a succesful business then of course kudos to Zuffa and the Ferttita brothers. They bought the org for $2m and its now worth $1bn. But dont for a minute pretend that the success of MMA is purely because Dana brought MMA to a TV set closer to you. O yea and
