UFC President Dana White announced today that Zuffa, LLC. bought out its rival MMA promotion, Strikeforce. (File photo)
Today, UFC President Dana White announced via MMAFighting.com reporter Ariel Helwani that the world’s premier mixed martial arts company has purchased their sole North American competitor of note, the San Jose, California-based promotion Strikeforce. While the MMA world is abuzz with questions and concerns regarding the future of the smaller organization’s fighters as well as their deals with Showtime, K-1, and DREAM, Dana White has stated that the organization will remain autonomous in much the same way that the WEC operated for four years prior to being absorbed by the UFC.
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker will remain in charge of Strikeforce and things will be “business as usual” said the UFC headman, including deals with fighters who are mutually outspoken in their dislike for Dana White, such as “Semtex” Paul Daley (23-10-2) and “The Baby Faced Assassin” Josh Barnett (21-5), and the inclusion of Women’s MMA (WMMA). The UFC President reasserted these points by stating, “That’s a separate business that has their own income. They have their own budgets and everything else that they do. They have their own television deals. If they’re that interested in acquiring [a fighter], it’s no different than it was before.”
MMA Gospel will provide more details on the matter as they become available.
The following video is Dana White’s interview with Ariel Helwani from earlier today detailing the acquisition and the operation of the two companies going forward.
(Video courtesy of MMA Fighting)
