At long last, one of the most talked about controversies related to the UFC came to an end. For those unaware, the promotion was recently embroiled in an Antitrust lawsuit, which brought a lot of the company’s dealings into the public limelight. Whilst most of it was frowned upon, it appears that they will seemingly get away with just a slap on the wrist for this one.
For those unaware, parent company TKO Group Holdings, recently reached a settlement of a reported $335 million to resolve the two class-action lawsuits filed against them by former fighters. As part of the settlement, the antitrust lawsuits filed between December 2014 and March 2015 will not be going to trial, owing to the Judge presiding on the case signing off on the terms of the agreement.
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Previously, the lawsuits became a major talking point in the MMA landscape as they looked to bring about a massive change in fighter pay. As part of the documents revealed to the public, the fighter pay, and contracts of many fighters, including Ronda Rousey, Brock Lesnar, Nate Diaz, and many more were unveiled leading to a lot of criticism about the UFC’s dealings.
Whilst the initial response to the entire ordeal was overwhelmingly negative, Joe Rogan was one notable figure who still voiced his support. According to the commentator and podcaster, the promotion needed to utilize cutthroat strategies to get to where they are today. At the same time, also revealed a potential way to resolve many of the fighter’s problems as well.
Brendan Schaub reacts to the UFC settling the antitrust lawsuit
For the most part, the class action lawsuits were led by former fighters Cung Le, Nathan Quarry, Jon Fitch, Brandon Vera, Luis Javier Vazquez, and Kyle Kingsbury among others. In total, the 1200 fighters were seeking $1.6 billion in damages, claiming that the UFC was a monopsony that used anti-competitive practices to suppress fighter wages.
Following the news of the settlement, former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub also weighed in on the matter. In the past, he had been very vocal about other sports sharing 50% of their profits with the athletes, whereas in the case of the UFC, it was only 14%. In a recent video, Schaub stated:
UFC settled the antitrust lawsuit. HUGE win for the UFC. Bad for every other organization for so many reason. UFC remains the king. Until the fighters unionize like MLB, NBA, and NFL nothing will ever change. You can be mad at @danawhite all you want but it’s not his fault or… pic.twitter.com/rojv4sBdoM
— Brendan Schaub (@BrendanSchaub) March 20, 2024
“I was on record, these guys (the plaintiffs/fighters) are not gonna settle. These guys are looking for a change, they’re not gonna settle. Then we get news today, that they settled for $335 million. This is a massive, massive, victory for the UFC and it’s such a blow for the fighters”.
Further, Brendan clarified, “Awful for the fighters, nothing changes. There’s no Ali act, nothing’s gonna change. Here’s the issue, PFL, RIZIN, all these other leagues, Bellator? Screwed. The monopoly carries on. Let’s say it went to a trial and the fighters won, it would change the course, so the UFC wouldn’t have such a stronghold on the game”.
According to the now standup comedian and podcaster, the settlement will suppress the fighters and other promotions, increasing the UFC’s control and leverage over mainstream MMA. As such, seeing that the lawsuit has now effectively been resolved, Schaub believes that the time is now for the fighters to have a union.
How have other experts reacted to the recent news of the antitrust lawsuit settlement?
For those who have been following the matter closely, the lawsuit brought to light a lot of the shady dealings that went on behind the scenes in the UFC. One of the first leaked documents showed an email chain regarding the contract and pay of Nate Diaz. According to the exchanged messages, people in the UFC hierarchy, namely Joe Silva, Lorenzo Fertitta, and Dana White.
Thus, the UFC’s shrewd and at times brutal way of conducting business was on full display in the messages. Further, seeing how low fighters like Diaz were paid for essentially, after their second and even third contract negotiations. As such, over the past few months, many like Brendan Schaub, Joe Rogan, and other experts have had a lot to say about the lawsuit.
Thus, let’s see what some in the MMA space had to say about the recent settlement.
Not surprised UFC tried to settle. Trial would have been massive risk.
A bit surprised at the number.
This proposed settlement still needs court approval.
Not a rubber stamp. https://t.co/qfyVQ6fOGC
— Erik Magraken (@erikmagraken) March 20, 2024
This settlement is bad news for PFL and ONE. Without regulatory intervention in the MMA industry, there is no chance for them or anyone else of international scale to compete. It’s flatly not possible.
How long they last is hard to say, but long-term prognosis is grim.
— Luke Thomas🏋️♀️ (@lthomasnews) March 20, 2024
Fighters just settled with the UFC. Antitrust suit is dead. 335 million to the fighters, but make no mistake this was a massive victory for the UFC.
— Tommy Toe Hold (@TommyToeHold) March 20, 2024
The UFC lawsuit is over! Settlement is $335M for the TWO cases.
I thought it’d be bigger, seeing that it involved thousands of fighters and UFC risked billions in trial.
For context: That’s only 27M more than Ari Emanuel’s 2021 pay, or roughly just 25% of UFC’s yearly revenue. https://t.co/fTt7oOqgQZ
— Anton Tabuena (@antontabuena) March 20, 2024
All things considered, many believed that the lawsuit could have been something revolutionary for the fighters. After years and years of vying for fair and equal pay, they were seemingly in a position of trying to bring about a change. Thus, experts in the space all have the same opinion, the UFC gets away with minimal punishment.
Notably, the $335 million settlement for two cases will also be paid out over the course of several years. Considering that it is only a little more than what Endeavour CEO Ari Emmanuel makes in a year, the settlement will be hardly any issue for the WWE-UFC parent company.
