Mania,

Is there any sort of link I can watch it from? I can’t view it in this format. I updated Flash and Quicktime and tried on IE and Firefox, and have pop up blocker off. All I found is 6 minutes of it on youtube at:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=randy couture press conference&search=Search

Thanks,
VM

WOW. I can the UFC screw around with such a stand up guy? Dana is looking like such an ass.
I love that Randy brought the bout agreements with him. He was getting fricken rapped by Zuffa and UFC.

http://www.rawvegas.tv/watch.php?vID=f8cdb7efd450c833d54fb4f07b0c52

Why is dressed like Dana? LOL

can someone give a brief run down of the highlights, i have no audio

I think Randy’s screwed if he thinks in 9 months he’s going to go off and fight for some other organization. I listened to the UFC press conference and I honestly think Dana has valid points.

- If Randy isn’t happy – then finish out your contract that you AGREED to and walk away from UFC forever. If it was “just about the fighting” then shut up and fight.

- Can’t feel sorry for Randy bc he wasn’t given extra tickets for his family at PPV events. I’m sure every other fighter would want a bunch of tickets and they get pummelled with requests for friends & family tickets from all fighters.

- If I was a fighter that signed away my ancillary rights (my name and image for video games, etc) then I would expect better treatment than Randy because I’m making the UFC more money off my name and image. So Randy shouldn’t be pissed that I get treated better than him in all the “small things” that he spoke about. And guess what – those “signing bonuses” that every one got that he didn’t probably has something to do with that as well.

- A discretionary bonus is just that, a bonus at the UFC’s discretion. If he didn’t get one, then he can use that in the next contract renegotiation. “Dana, i didn’t get a fight bonus for the GG fight and I deserved one so I want double that now in my signing bonus bc you know my fights are always badass”

- And lastly…. THERE’S NO CRYING IN THE UFC!!!!

is he really retiring? or just an excuse.. so he can fight fedor on another organization.

It just gives me an error, is there a transcript anywhere?

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. :( whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.

YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

In the end when you hear someone say “its not all about the money,” or “its not JUST about money”……thats basically saying YES IT IS ALL ABOUT MONEY, Randy has respect, this is about money. I still love Randy though……

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. :( whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.

YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

Like he said it isn’t about the money, its about the fact that he isn’t given the respect that he deserves from the UFC. Sure he makes a lot of money, he deserves too. But Pride fighters being offered more than him is a slap in the face. I never heard him say he wasn’t making enough. Just that he wanted the same benefits as other fighters like Liddel. He certainly deserves it.

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. :( whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.

YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

How much money did he bring in for Zuffa? Two sold out and big selling PPV events made UFC how many million dollars? When you are the reason people are buying PPV events and tickets you deserve a level of respect. You can’t just toss anyone in the ring and get asses in the seats like a big name guy like Couture can.

No to be disrespectful to Randy but He has no valid points..we’ve had several fighters who have been of high calibre come and leave the organization, his case wouldn’t be any different. I’m rolling with the UFC on this one.

Good for Randy to have the balls to pay it how it is from his side. We all know that Dana is probably the worst president of any American company that is not in Jail (jk) but he sure does not know how to treat his elite employees. This is also what Tito had expressed in the past and I think Dana will see that many of his top guys that have put in the time, sweat, blood and sacrifices will leave to other organizations that will treat them with respect.

How many GM’s of NFH,MLD,NBA & NHL teams do you hear treat their star players like the UFC treat their star athletes in such manner?

NONE!!!

The only guy I can think of in a similar position is Vince McMahon…..

I am starting to think that he was Dana’s child hood hero as Dana must have been watching wrestlemania every Saturday morning and saying “mommy, I want to be like Vince, he is my hero, because he bullies and yells at all his guys.”

No to be disrespectful to Randy but He has no valid points..we’ve had several fighters who have been of high calibre come and leave the organization, his case wouldn’t be any different. I’m rolling with the UFC on this one.

What do you mean he has no points? And you don’t care who fights as long as it has the UFC sticker on it?

Good for Randy to have the balls to pay it how it is from his side. We all know that Dana is probably the worst president of any American company that is not in Jail (jk) but he sure does not know how to treat his elite employees. This is also what Tito had expressed in the past and I think Dana will see that many of his top guys that have put in the time, sweat, blood and sacrifices will leave to other organizations that will treat them with respect.

How many GM’s of NFH,MLD,NBA & NHL teams do you hear treat their star players like the UFC treat their star athletes in such manner?

NONE!!!

The only guy I can think of in a similar position is Vince McMahon…..

I am starting to think that he was Dana’s child hood hero as Dana must have been watching wrestlemania every Saturday morning and saying “mommy, I want to be like Vince, he is my hero, because he bullies and yells at all his guys.”

Yeah but Vinnys guys get paid way more than UFC guys do. He yells at them for the storylines, but that is all for show.

I like Randy and certainly respect him as an athlete and a representative of the sport he loves so much. Having said that, he’s coming across somewhat whiney and I’m not really sure that he’s got a legal foot to stand on.

Remembering that that absolute truth is almost never represented by either side, I’m sure that neither Randy nor Dana are innocent in all this. Here’s hoping they can resolve their differences.

Final thought: Does all this somehow validate or lend creedence to what Tito has been claiming all these years? Sure makes me wonder…

UFC did 222 MILLION dollars in PPV in 2006, I’m betting they did better in 2007 with the big Couture fights.

Here’s another way to look at it. In the NBA, the salary cap is defined as 55% of “basketball related income” for the league. For the NFL, it is 57% of league revenue, meaning that 57 cents of every revenue dollar goes to the players. The reality is that Zuffa LLC has been making a nice margin over the last two-three years, because there is NO WAY they are paying salary-revenue ratios in the range of the major sports.

That said, Zuffa lost a lot early on and I certainly don’t begrudge anyone for making a profit. Unfortunately for Dana, I’m sure he’s in a position where ownership is pushing to maintain the profit margin during growth and the players want more of a cut. Welcome to business.

So for Randy to get tired and leave is just a little back and forth in the overall process. Some other fighters will probably also leave for other orgs, but eventually the UFC will come around (supply-demand) or will fail and another org will fill it’s shoes. The sport will go on as long as we all support it.

Sources:
http://www.forbes.com/business/2006/12/22/mvp-nfl-bargain-biz-cx_tvr_1222nflmvp.html
http://www.washingtonhockey.com/200203/features/sc2.htm

THANKS MANIA!
 
I have been trying to see this video and i kept on getting low-quality ones.

Are you going to have the Dana White UFC conference on here aswell??
….thanks agian…

DANA NEEDS TO CHANGE NOT RANDY
THIS CLIP ONLY SHOWS SOME OF THE CONFERENCE THERE WERE TONS OF ?’s from reporters that are up on sherdog….

DANA NEEDS TO BE REPLACED

man….all i can say is damn!

The UFC gave Cro Cop a HUGE amount of money and look at his fights. Compare THAT to Randy’s fights.
No contest.
Dana does some things right, he also makes incredibly stupid financial decisions concerning the fighters. I also think Dana is extremely hypocritical, he doesn’t care about undercutting a fighters pay while he walks away with his pockets full. Spread the wealth to the guys that put their bodies on the line, and have a pay scale that makes sense.

Fighter X gets paid 50K for putting on a terrible performance while Fighter Y makes 10K for the fight of his life. It really is stupid.

is he really retiring? or just an excuse.. so he can fight fedor on another organization.

i only can hope so

dana cant even pay randy as much as everyone else he made his own money with his movies n clothes id be mad too hes the heavyweight champ he diserves to get paid like one

UFC did 222 MILLION dollars in PPV in 2006, I’m betting they did better in 2007 with the big Couture fights.

yes and hes getting a piece of that.

Im with Randy all the way. He made all his points in a classy manner and was classy enough not to bash Dana even tho he had many reasons to do so. Hope this gets resolved because If Dana lets Randy walk away from this, it will come back to haunt the UFC at some point.

UFCMANIa

When you get a chance can oyu post some of Dana’s comments from yesterday’s press conference? Thanks

couture was coming of retirement and his last fight was a lost to chuck. does he really think he deserved a bonus for that, ufc did alot for him by getting him a title shot. thats the mean reason why he accepted the contact. fedor has like 20 wins in a row against top competition. i do believe he deserves more money than randy and a better treatment. also, imo, randy hasn’t prove much to me jet. he beat tim with him having an injured back, he also beat gonzaga who in my opinion is not top competition only beacuse beat crocop. i think he needed to fight a guy like big nog or other big name before resignin from his title.

yes and hes getting a piece of that.

From what he said only a half million or so.

Edenmachine- Your statements are completely insensitive to Randy’s individual concerns. Statements like yours are selfish to only your satisfaction of seeing fighters fight only, and compensation that they deserve for their promotional ability is minor. There is obviously work to be done in taking care of fighters in compensation terms. And this is a step towards bringing that into the open. But you just want to see Randy fight, that cry baby. Get real.

It’s sad to see Randy go out the way he’s trying to. Dana is a piece of shit and gets his money no matter what the out come is. It’s the fans that pay for Dana’s mistake. He should have treated Randy better. I agree that all the fighters coming from Pride have to prove themselves first before they make more than the guys who built the UFC. Still hoping something can be worked out, and still praying that maybe we’ll see Randy and Fedor fight.

for everyone saying that Randy is whining you don’t get it!

IT ISN’T ABOUT MONEY!

If it was about money he would of take the 3 million dollar pay check from Bodog. Don’t be stupid. He fought for 250k plus ppv which is like 750k or whatever a fight. People like Chuck are getting paid 15 million per year!

Randy is a stand up dude. He is clearing it up so there are no rumors. He didn’t come out and make a big deal, he did it quietly for a month before the resignation. This press conference is about saving his name.

Yeah a lot of people who don’t make money are thinking, you are a millionaire, who cares!?

That isn’t what it is about. Professional athletes want a little respect from their organization. Free tickets and other small favors should be expected. THIS IS THE BIGGEST NAME IN THE UFC, NOT JUST ANYONE. and his wife can’t get tickets. That is a joke. Dana just looks like an idiot.

When your company is worth close to a billion and you can make hundreds of millions for ppv then you have to show respect. This sport is bigger than boxing is now and look at the last boxing pay outs.

De La Hoya 25 million and his opponent 10 million.

Look at any other pro sport, good players make 10-30 million per year.

Then couture makes 600k in a sport that IS GROSSING more than the boxing PPVs. It’s true, they sell more and earn more than boxing. That is a joke man. He has every right to be pissed, the fighters are underpaid. He likes to fight but still wants some respect.

?What?
Someone’s not being honest about the $$ here

$ $ $ $ $ $ $
$$$$$$$$$$$$$
$ $ $ $ $ $ $

Send randy to M-1, let Fedor have his fun w/him

couture was coming of retirement and his last fight was a lost to chuck. does he really think he deserved a bonus for that, ufc did alot for him by getting him a title shot. thats the mean reason why he accepted the contact. fedor has like 20 wins in a row against top competition. i do believe he deserves more money than randy and a better treatment. also, imo, randy hasn’t prove much to me jet. he beat tim with him having an injured back, he also beat gonzaga who in my opinion is not top competition only beacuse beat crocop. i think he needed to fight a guy like big nog or other big name before resignin from his title.

you don’t get it man. He was offered 3 million from Bodog.

He hasn’t proven anything yet? Lol, you need to go learn how to spell and speak english before you argue.

How much money did he bring in for Zuffa? Two sold out and big selling PPV events made UFC how many million dollars? When you are the reason people are buying PPV events and tickets you deserve a level of respect. You can’t just toss anyone in the ring and get asses in the seats like a big name guy like Couture can.

Zuffa took ALL the risk in buying the failing UFC. They deserve ALL the reward they get. Randy decided that for him to step into the ring, he would take X amount of dollars for it and shook on it. Be a man of your word and honor your contract. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE Randy Couture and think he’s the greatest pound for pound fighter but be a man of your word and do what you agreed to do. You’re a millionaire – you’re not Kaleb Starnes making $4k a fight RANDY MADE $250 plus bonuses PLUS PPV cuts PLUS endourcements PLUS Extreme Couture clothing line (made famous through him being in UFC) PLUS Extreme Couture gyms (made famous through UFC) PLUS high-budget Hollywood films now (which he’s able to get because of UFC). He’s a MULTI-millionaire and he’s going to whine about not getting respect from Dana?? Who cares??? He should be saying – “Dana doesn’t respect me but I’m crying about it all the way to the bank to cash my MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS!!”

Honor your contract or retire quietly like he did the first time. Just stop whining while swimming in your enourmous pool that’s filled to the top with hundred dollar bills.

Or if you think something is wrong – start a Fighters Union. Go be a fight manager and stick it to the UFC that way. Or start your own fighting organization and pay the fighters a ton of money and give all the fighters’ family free tickets so you barely make money as a company.

I mean I think fighters should be paid more bc I think they deserve it – but I think the market place should dictate that. Nick Diaz left for more money and he’s off winning fights at EliteXC making more now. But he’s losing “fame” bc of it – but he thought it was worth it for himself and you have to respect that. If you want the fame that the UFC brings then guess what? YOU DON"T GET PAID AS MUCH – because UFC is higher profile and that allows you to make more on endorcements and selling your name bc people see you on spike, PPV, etc. No one watches EliteXC and no one watches M-1.

So shut up and fight or shut and retire. Just don’t eff with the love of my life – which is watching great MMA bouts. (sorry, my two children come second lol) But I just can’t handle millionaires that whine about things not being fair for them. Are there any millionaires on this thread?? Probably not so would anyone here NOT trade places with “terribly disrespected by the UFC” Randy Couture in a heartbeat??? Probably not.

A lot of guys all seem to be referring to the 40K FOTN bonus or Submission of the night, or KO of the night bonus. This is not the case.
When a fighter wins, normally their purse doubles. For example 25K to show, and 25K for the win, for a total of 50K. It is in every fight salary recap for every fighter.
What Randy is complaining about, is that he got his 250K for his fight, but did not get his 250K for his win.
Guys, go back and check all of the UFC salary recaps and you’ll see what I mean. So in essence, he has a legit complaint about a discretionary bonus. Everyone else got theirs so why did he not get his?
Still not happy with either UFC or Randy on this matter. Resolve it, finish your two fights, and end a career as the legend you are, and as the company you are

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. :( whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.

YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

You’re obviously a jealous person who doesn’t make money.

If he wanted the money he would of signed the 3 million dollar contract. It’s called loyalty genius.

It’s nice when you sacrifice you body, heart and soul for a sport to get small favors like tickets or other things. You obviously have never given a lot of energy and effort to anything or you might understand that.

Some people are idiots and can’t see the perspective of a person and respect it. This is one of the classiest UFC fighters of all time.

Imagine that you are sitting in a room with Randy Couture trying to get tickets to the next PPV and your girlfriend somehow gets Dana’s # and asks for some PPV tickets. Dana says, “who the hell are you? No you can’t get tickets.” Then Randy Couture’s wife calls to ask for some tickets and Dana says, “no way. I can’t do it”

Wouldn’t that be an awkward moment! THINK ABOUT IT, THIS GUYS BLEEDS IN THE RING AND DOES ANYTHING THEY ASK HIM TO…

UFC will clear 300 million in 2007 for PPV

This doesn’t include ticket sales or anything else the company is paid for in marketing and other money making endeavors.

Interesting.

Couture: 1 million and one of the biggest PPV draws…

??

Good for Randy, if you have the power and the fan base behind you, use it to your best advantage. Of course he wants more money, why wouldn’t he? Randy is a business man and a hell of a good one at that. He is thinking upon this as would any succesfull business person. He is 47? why should he be making zuffa rich, when he could reap more rewards.

The UFC gave Cro Cop a HUGE amount of money and look at his fights. Compare THAT to Randy’s fights.
No contest.
Dana does some things right, he also makes incredibly stupid financial decisions concerning the fighters. I also think Dana is extremely hypocritical, he doesn’t care about undercutting a fighters pay while he walks away with his pockets full. Spread the wealth to the guys that put their bodies on the line, and have a pay scale that makes sense.

Fighter X gets paid 50K for putting on a terrible performance while Fighter Y makes 10K for the fight of his life. It really is stupid.

Zuffa took a risk on CroCop and guess what – it didn’t pay off and maybe it lost them a ton of money because of it. How are they to know when they sign the contract? Cro Cop did great on that deal bc his fights sucked. Now would it be fair to “resign” from CroCop’s contract now?? Could they now say “hey CroCop, you sucked on your two fights so your last two fights – we dont’ want you anymore so we’re not going to pay you for the rest of the contract”?? IT DOESN"T WORK THAT WAY!! lol

Same goes with Randy – they signed a 4 fight deal. Randy did 10 times better than expected – Zuffa made out great on their risk with his contract and probably made up for all the Heath Herrings and CropCops that failed to live up. That’s called “doing good business” on Zuffa’s side. When Couture’s fights are up and they sign a new contract don’t you think he could sign for millions after that – after winning 4 amazing fights?? that’s how it works people. Take a course in business or economics or something and welcome to the real world. lol You guys crack me up.

Here’s another way to look at it. In the NBA, the salary cap is defined as 55% of “basketball related income” for the league. For the NFL, it is 57% of league revenue, meaning that 57 cents of every revenue dollar goes to the players. The reality is that Zuffa LLC has been making a nice margin over the last two-three years, because there is NO WAY they are paying salary-revenue ratios in the range of the major sports.

That said, Zuffa lost a lot early on and I certainly don’t begrudge anyone for making a profit. Unfortunately for Dana, I’m sure he’s in a position where ownership is pushing to maintain the profit margin during growth and the players want more of a cut. Welcome to business.

So for Randy to get tired and leave is just a little back and forth in the overall process. Some other fighters will probably also leave for other orgs, but eventually the UFC will come around (supply-demand) or will fail and another org will fill it’s shoes. The sport will go on as long as we all support it.

Sources:
http://www.forbes.com/business/2006/12/22/mvp-nfl-bargain-biz-cx_tvr_1222nflmvp.html
http://www.washingtonhockey.com/200203/features/sc2.htm

Bob — Good post. This is sound information that many fans of various sports overlook because they’re so eager to spout off opinions without even an attempt to seek an objective point of view.

A lot of guys all seem to be referring to the 40K FOTN bonus or Submission of the night, or KO of the night bonus. This is not the case.
When a fighter wins, normally their purse doubles. For example 25K to show, and 25K for the win, for a total of 50K. It is in every fight salary recap for every fighter.
What Randy is complaining about, is that he got his 250K for his fight, but did not get his 250K for his win.
Guys, go back and check all of the UFC salary recaps and you’ll see what I mean. So in essence, he has a legit complaint about a discretionary bonus. Everyone else got theirs so why did he not get his?
Still not happy with either UFC or Randy on this matter. Resolve it, finish your two fights, and end a career as the legend you are, and as the company you are

The bonuses that Randy is talking about is not on the “fighter payouts” that UFCMania.com posts. These are “off the books” bonuses. Chuck Liddell gets paid the exact same amount ($500k I believe) for his fights win or lose. I think he (and maybe Randy – I’d have to go back and check) is the only one that has that kind of deal. Most fighters have the “double your base if you win” type of deal. After fight bonuses are not on that payout disclosure that gets posted here after each fight.

you don’t get it man. He was offered 3 million from Bodog.

He hasn’t proven anything yet? Lol, you need to go learn how to spell and speak english before you argue.

The Fertitta’s are Billionaires. Their financial holdings are gaining more than enough interest to boost the pay scale for the entire UFC/WEC roster without cutting into their assets. There is NO EXCUSE for not paying these fighters appropriately.

Some of you posting here & on other MMA Forums have completely missed the point here. I’m sure many of you have never worked for the same employer for an extended amount of time (5 yrs) so it’s harder for you to understand.

The point is that there isnt a knowledgeable long-term employee on the face of this earth that would not get upset at their company offering a new hire with equal qualifications double or triple what their currently being paid to do the exact same job. I dont care if you work for a Car Wash or you’re an Investment Banker because no one in their right mind would stand for that. yes, we’d all react in different ways but the bottom line is that we all would share the same hurtful feeling of dissappointment in some form or another.

It isnt about the money but if you’ve earned it then you deserve it.

“I didn’t think this would be a big deal?”

IS HE RETARDED? He is the f’n heavyweight champion and he didn’t think calling a press conference after he quits would be a big deal. I LOST SO MUCH RESPECT FOR RANDY.

He doesn’t think being the first coach on TUF was a great deal of respect given to him? He doesn’t think being GIVEN an immediate title shot after retiring after getting knocked out twice in a row was a sign of respect????

WOW. RANDY HAS LOST ME AS A FAN.

They both (Dana and Couture) had valid arguements… I wasn’t all that impressed with Randy though… money is obviously a huge issue… bigger than i expected. Everybody involved is making big bucks, I would really like to see a Winners purse and a Losers purse…(example) 50,000 loser 100,000 winner.. do they do that already? seems like it would motivate the shit out of the fighters.. like in boxing when you know the guy is there just for the payday.

UFC will clear 300 million in 2007 for PPV

This doesn’t include ticket sales or anything else the company is paid for in marketing and other money making endeavors.

Interesting.

Couture: 1 million and one of the biggest PPV draws…

??

Dude, you can’t be serious?? Do you think $300million (if indeed that’s even what the actual figure is – since they are a private company i don’t think they have to disclose that information but for argument’s sake) – do you really think that goes right into their pockets? That’s not Net – that’s Gross. Do you realize how many people they have to pay to run that show? Do you realize how expensive those arenas are to rent out? Trust me – if Zuffa made 300 million for every PPV they had, every big company in the world would be jumping into the MMA business. lol “General Electric Fighting Championship”

It’s about respect and randy’s not happy with the way he’s being treated, whatever its his right, dana’s doesn’t own his soul, I think the power has gone to dana’s head, good for randy.

I mean I think fighters should be paid more bc I think they deserve it – but I think the market place should dictate that. Nick Diaz left for more money and he’s off winning fights at EliteXC making more now. But he’s losing “fame” bc of it – but he thought it was worth it for himself and you have to respect that. If you want the fame that the UFC brings then guess what? YOU DON"T GET PAID AS MUCH – because UFC is higher profile and that allows you to make more on endorcements and selling your name bc people see you on spike, PPV, etc. No one watches EliteXC and no one watches M-1.

If the best fighters start going to other organizations people will start watching, and fans of the sport not just casual people who like reality shows and really don’t follow the sport of MMA.

The idea that getting to the top of the chain means making less money is backwards. Thats like having Triple A baseball players making more than Major Leaguers. Only in the UFC I guess.

It’s about respect and randy’s not happy with the way he’s being treated, whatever its his right, dana’s doesn’t own his soul, I think the power has gone to dana’s head, good for randy.

Well this is the guy who had an hour show on his training for a fight against Tito that didn’t happen. I get the impression that he thinks he is the reason people watch, not the fighters.

There are a couple of ways to look at this. Are we going to do everything we can for the good of the business? Or are we going to do everything we can for the good of the fighters? In either scenario someone is going to get shafted. On one hand, you have got a business to run. On the other hand, you have no business without the fighters. Remember, it doesn’t matter the amount of money you have if you do not have the business savvy or the fighters. It’s the same fight we all fight everyday with our own jobs. Am I worth more than what I make..heck ya. But the money I make is pretty darn good. And with a wife and three kids to support you learn to be grateful for what you have. Both sides have good arguments but one question must be asked: Who needs who more? I love Randy to death but I have a feeling the UFC will be around a lot longer than Randy will.

Fedor signs elsewhere, Hendo laughs at the UFC’s offer, and Randy retires again. Is Dana killing the UFC?

I hate to see Randy go. I’ve always enjoyed watching him and hearing his contributions. He’s done a lot for the sport. He will be missed.

If the best fighters start going to other organizations people will start watching, and fans of the sport not just casual people who like reality shows and really don’t follow the sport of MMA.

The idea that getting to the top of the chain means making less money is backwards. Thats like having Triple A baseball players making more than Major Leaguers. Only in the UFC I guess.

Randy signed the damn contract. If he wasn’t happy with it he could have continued negotiating until he got something he was happy with or just stayed retired. From 2004 until he un-retired he was 3-3, yet Dana gave him an immediate title shot because he asked for one. Personally, I’m sick and tired of listening to professional athletes whine and cry about feeling disrespected or not being shown any love. Your choices are: A) Renogotiate your existing contract until you do feel “respected” and “loved” B) Work your ass off on your current contract and earn more money on your next one C) Retire and go work a 9-5 job like the people who pay to watch you.

Good for Randy to have the balls to pay it how it is from his side. We all know that Dana is probably the worst president of any American company that is not in Jail (jk) but he sure does not know how to treat his elite employees. This is also what Tito had expressed in the past and I think Dana will see that many of his top guys that have put in the time, sweat, blood and sacrifices will leave to other organizations that will treat them with respect.

How many GM’s of NFH,MLD,NBA & NHL teams do you hear treat their star players like the UFC treat their star athletes in such manner?

NONE!!!

The only guy I can think of in a similar position is Vince McMahon…..

I am starting to think that he was Dana’s child hood hero as Dana must have been watching wrestlemania every Saturday morning and saying “mommy, I want to be like Vince, he is my hero, because he bullies and yells at all his guys.”

He signed a contract, which means he agreed to adhere to those terms and conditions for the said amount of time…He is being a bitter suck. If he didn’t like the terms, he shouldn’t of put the pen to paper. Randy is being a baby.

Randy fucked up by not having a good agent or negotiator. He knew there was no set pay structure. The best thing he can do now is use his (valuable) exposure to sell his other shit: clothing, training, movies, etc… and fight.
I don’t think the UFC has the monster cash that boxing has yet so they are paying new guys mainly to promote the sport. Professional negotiators may kill the sport. I think that’s why Dana complained about Don King wanting to come in a rep some of these guys a couple years ago, he said (paraphrasing)“people from the boxing organizations want to come in when they smell money, but we don’t need their kind around the UFC.” But who knows the UFC could just be getting super rich. If they don’t st8en out the cash then they will ruin the sport soon.

He signed a contract, which means he agreed to adhere to those terms and conditions for the said amount of time…He is being a bitter suck. If he didn’t like the terms, he shouldn’t of put the pen to paper. Randy is being a baby.

K- he signed the contract….how many pro-athletes get to re negotiate their contracts when they perform well? For more money and longer terms?
Teams are happy to sign their star players to longer contracts for more money in some instances to secure their success. Am I wrong?

How many GM’s go public and say that they “OWN” their players and say the shit that Dana says about their professional athletes?

If you have a job and your have a “verbal” agreement that you are going to work for this company that is going to pay you x # of $$$ and your boss starts to disrespect you, would you not leave or would you put your head down and take it, and take it and take it?

I think you would leave too.

I think if the fighters in the UFC went and got a fighter’s union they would have some more respect from their employer.

NHL, NFL,MLB, NBA all have unions……..and all the players gets treated with respect from their employers….

i hear people saying alot of things as whether dana is right or is randy, but this necessary….i saw a few people writing shut and fight, but negotiations and monetary value is a very important factor…..now i’m not speaking to the average idiot that works in a cubicle and is probably a closet case, i’m speaking to other people who fight and who want to some day be professional….randy has handled himself with class throughout and he deserved to speak on the situation. listen up fighters and pay attention…..one day you may have to deal with these problems and solutions because you can’t fight forever and one day you will need to think of your family and your future and your children’s future as well and not only that, but you have to consider the legacy you will leave behind and i think randy has done a fine job and remains a class act!!!

He signed a contract, which means he agreed to adhere to those terms and conditions for the said amount of time…He is being a bitter suck. If he didn’t like the terms, he shouldn’t of put the pen to paper. Randy is being a baby.

We’re forgetting the fact that he has the legal right to refute the contract. I’m sure there’s a clause in it that also states that he can choose to stop fighting as well so whats the big F’n deal people?

So many people here hating on Randy standing up for what he thinks is best for him when we all do the exact same thing for ourselves every day. Only difference is its on a far smaller scale over far smaller issues on a far smaller stage.

Fedor signs elsewhere, Hendo laughs at the UFC’s offer, and Randy retires again. Is Dana killing the UFC?

I hate to see Randy go. I’ve always enjoyed watching him and hearing his contributions. He’s done a lot for the sport. He will be missed.

True That!

He has the right to not fight again, but he does not have the right to not fulfill his UFC contract and go fight in other organizations. His only choices here are to try and renotiate with Dana or go back to South Africa and finish his straight-to-video movie project.

Let’s be realistic, RC only has a couple more good fights in him anyway, and Fedor would manhandle him, anyone who thinks Fedor wouldn’t is either a fool, or in denial. The only way RC could win is if he pulled something like he did on Gonzaga and land an accidental illegal blow that destroys his nose so he is swallowing massive amounts of blood and not able to breath through his nose. Which is unlikely. It’s best for RC to leave the sport with his legacy fulfilled.

Dana White is a publicity genius, but a horrible person. Anyone who thinks Dana hasn’t done as much for the sport as any fighter, is crazy. If it wasn’t for Dana, we would all still be watching Pride on PPV, with no UFC or no TUF and none of these smaller organizations would even be heard of.

Let’s be realistic, RC only has a couple more good fights in him anyway, and Fedor would manhandle him, anyone who thinks Fedor wouldn’t is either a fool, or in denial. The only way RC could win is if he pulled something like he did on Gonzaga and land an accidental illegal blow that destroys his nose so he is swallowing massive amounts of blood and not able to breath through his nose. Which is unlikely. It’s best for RC to leave the sport with his legacy fulfilled.

Dana White is a publicity genius, but a horrible person. Anyone who thinks Dana hasn’t done as much for the sport as any fighter, is crazy. If it wasn’t for Dana, we would all still be watching Pride on PPV, with no UFC or no TUF and none of these smaller organizations would even be heard of.

Totally agree – Dana is crass, not good at PR, and he might be a real d!ckhead to some of the fighters but he’s good at making the UFC GREAT!!! Because it is! All those other PPV’s are awful – some don’t even have lights – just like a spotlight pointing at the fighters as the move around the right so the camera could see them (I about lost is when I saw that one).

You go Randy. I totally agree with you thats bull. That worse guys are making more than you.

RANDY IS THE BIGGEST STAR IN MMA TODAY BY FAR. FOR CHUCK AND CROCOP, TITO AS WELL AND I THINK EVEN NOG TO BE MAKING SO MUCH MORE THEN RANDY IS LUDACRIS!

CHUCK ISNT HALF AS POPULAR AS RANDY, ESPECIALLY IN THE LAST 6 MONTHS. TITO HASNT DONE SHIT EXCEPT HE HAS A BIG BLEECH BLOND HEAD. AND CRO COP AND NOG A JUST A COUPLE MORE OVER HYPED PRIDE FIGHTERS THAT WONT AMOUNT TO SHIT IN THE UFC.

I AM 100% BEHIND RANDY ON THIS WEATHER ITS ABOUT THE MONEY OR NOT. BTW EVEN IF IT WAS ALL MONEY, WHAT THE HELL IS THE PROBLEM WITH THAT?? HE DESERVES IT!

I’ve said it for years that Dana was the problem with UFC. Guys like Rampage have even said in past interviews that the reason why they didn’t sign with UFC before was because of Dana’s rep and that once they were willing to show him the money he was willing to put the fact that he didn’t like Dana aside and come make the money in the UFC. Lets not forget that guys like Wanderlie USED to be in UFC and were there when Zuffa FIRST bought it and were turned off to how they dealt with fighters and thus would leave and go to Pride.

Frank Shamrock was the FIRST to come out and say that the brothers who own UFC are good guys but that the guy they have running the show is a prick and that they were screwing some fighters on the money end in compared to what the company was grossing every PPV. EVERYONE jumped on Frank and Dana White effectively wiped Franks name clean out of the history books of UFC. The fact that Frank himself is not the most likeable guy made it easy for some MMA fans to not take him serious and diss him but now we see from THE MOST RESPECTABLE FIGHTER IN UFC that everything Frank has been saying and recently Tito’s been saying is true.

Randy is a class act all the way. He was never one of my favorite fighters early on but after seeing him more and more broadcasting the fights watching his interviews and of course watching his fights and how he carry’s himself, he is the greatest MMA champion in history in my books.

“I didn’t think this would be a big deal?”

IS HE RETARDED? He is the f’n heavyweight champion and he didn’t think calling a press conference after he quits would be a big deal. I LOST SO MUCH RESPECT FOR RANDY.

He doesn’t think being the first coach on TUF was a great deal of respect given to him? He doesn’t think being GIVEN an immediate title shot after retiring after getting knocked out twice in a row was a sign of respect????

WOW. RANDY HAS LOST ME AS A FAN.

Did he ever really have you?

Dana White said hes never said “no” to Randy, but RC says he asked for a signing bonus on his contract and he was told NO. So who are you ganna believe The slick foul mouth talking DW or Couture.

Worst camera man EVER! Why can he not hold the camera steady?

Randy would beat Fedor…

UFC does not pay their fighters.

Randy doesnt owe Zuffa a thing.

TUF was more important to the sport than Randy, but still you have to respect the icons of the sport.

UFC will move on just fine without Randy.

i think contracts should all be thrown out…

example…

championship fight winner gets 1 mil loser gets 500
contender level fight winner gets 400 loser gets 200
A level fight winner gets 150 loser gets 100
B level fight winner gets 90 loser gets 60
C level fight winner gets 50 loser gets 30

Give signing bonuses to the big guys you really need in the org…

how does this not work?

Let’s be realistic, RC only has a couple more good fights in him anyway, and Fedor would manhandle him, anyone who thinks Fedor wouldn’t is either a fool, or in denial. The only way RC could win is if he pulled something like he did on Gonzaga and land an accidental illegal blow that destroys his nose so he is swallowing massive amounts of blood and not able to breath through his nose. Which is unlikely. It’s best for RC to leave the sport with his legacy fulfilled.

Dana White is a publicity genius, but a horrible person. Anyone who thinks Dana hasn’t done as much for the sport as any fighter, is crazy. If it wasn’t for Dana, we would all still be watching Pride on PPV, with no UFC or no TUF and none of these smaller organizations would even be heard of.

but on the other hand, Dana is paid according to his performance. What Executive position isnt lined with quarterly & annual bonuses & incentives? As long as Dana performs, Dana has a job. If Dana becomes ineffective & is pushed out I’m sure he will walk away with a hefty severence. What MMA fighter can say the same? Meanwhile any other athelete in a comparable position as Randy has many, many more options & possibilities.

Sounds sort of fair. The fact that he wasn’t happy with his contract doesn’t justify signing it and then walking away from it later. Of course these things happen all the time and it probably isn’t that big a deal. Hopefully he gets his shot at Fedor. You’ve got to think that there are a lot of people eager to see that fight happen.

Dana, knowing that he’s been full of shit all along called the press conference hoping that people wouldn’t see Randy call him out. Dana isn’t looking too good these days.

Totally agree – Dana is crass, not good at PR, and he might be a real d!ckhead to some of the fighters but he’s good at making the UFC GREAT!!! Because it is! All those other PPV’s are awful – some don’t even have lights – just like a spotlight pointing at the fighters as the move around the right so the camera could see them (I about lost is when I saw that one).

You continuously refer to what RC is doing as “whining”. I fail to see how you can so easily pin that label on him for not meeting your personal expectations on but one occurance in his entire 11 year career with the UFC. You’re throwing out the baby with the bathwater each time you discredit him. The message you’re sending is that no man can have regrets, make mistakes or speak up for himself less he be labeled a “whiner”.

A person’s financial status does not disqualify them from exercisng the basic human right of speaking their mind. Rather than only looking for reasons to discredit his decision you should try to imagine yourself in his shoes, under his circumstance & try to understand his side of things as well. You may have already done so but it’s hard to tell by your posts.

Zuffa took ALL the risk in buying the failing UFC. They deserve ALL the reward they get. Randy decided that for him to step into the ring, he would take X amount of dollars for it and shook on it. Be a man of your word and honor your contract. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE Randy Couture and think he’s the greatest pound for pound fighter but be a man of your word and do what you agreed to do. You’re a millionaire – you’re not Kaleb Starnes making $4k a fight RANDY MADE $250 plus bonuses PLUS PPV cuts PLUS endourcements PLUS Extreme Couture clothing line (made famous through him being in UFC) PLUS Extreme Couture gyms (made famous through UFC) PLUS high-budget Hollywood films now (which he’s able to get because of UFC). He’s a MULTI-millionaire and he’s going to whine about not getting respect from Dana?? Who cares??? He should be saying – “Dana doesn’t respect me but I’m crying about it all the way to the bank to cash my MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS!!”

Honor your contract or retire quietly like he did the first time. Just stop whining while swimming in your enourmous pool that’s filled to the top with hundred dollar bills.

Or if you think something is wrong – start a Fighters Union. Go be a fight manager and stick it to the UFC that way. Or start your own fighting organization and pay the fighters a ton of money and give all the fighters’ family free tickets so you barely make money as a company.

I mean I think fighters should be paid more bc I think they deserve it – but I think the market place should dictate that. Nick Diaz left for more money and he’s off winning fights at EliteXC making more now. But he’s losing “fame” bc of it – but he thought it was worth it for himself and you have to respect that. If you want the fame that the UFC brings then guess what? YOU DON"T GET PAID AS MUCH – because UFC is higher profile and that allows you to make more on endorcements and selling your name bc people see you on spike, PPV, etc. No one watches EliteXC and no one watches M-1.

So shut up and fight or shut and retire. Just don’t eff with the love of my life – which is watching great MMA bouts. (sorry, my two children come second lol) But I just can’t handle millionaires that whine about things not being fair for them. Are there any millionaires on this thread?? Probably not so would anyone here NOT trade places with “terribly disrespected by the UFC” Randy Couture in a heartbeat??? Probably not.

I just want to add on to this guy’s comment that Randy signed the contract and should agree to it. Remember, when Randy signed that contract, he had just lost 2 of his 3 previous fights!!! Factor in Randy’s overall professional record. Sure, he’s fought mostly top tier talent, but to the average fan, they don’t know that. They only see that he’s a a .700 lifetime record.

Plus, coming out of retirement, the odds were against Randy Coulture! Most people, myself included, thought Tim Sylvia was going to win that fight. You’re the UFC, and you play the odds on that one. Randy loses that fight, now how to do you repackage him to sell to the world? He’s the guy who couldn’t beat Chuck in their last two fights, and now he’s the guy who couldn’t beat Sylvia. If he had lost to Tim, he would still be making a fine dollar at $250k to show/$250k win bonus.

He signed the contract, he needs to honor that.

i think contracts should all be thrown out…

example…

championship fight winner gets 1 mil loser gets 500
contender level fight winner gets 400 loser gets 200
A level fight winner gets 150 loser gets 100
B level fight winner gets 90 loser gets 60
C level fight winner gets 50 loser gets 30

Give signing bonuses to the big guys you really need in the org…

how does this not work?

Unfortunately, it doesnt work because despite what Dana may say out of his mouth, the UFC chooses to build it’s brand on the backs of it’s fighters. It obviously hasnt dawned on them that taking care of their fighters can also translate to taking care of their business. When you do right by people they cannot be bought out by other orgs.

Actually, if you do the research, the most successful businesses in America have one common thread……..happy employee’s.

“I didn’t think this would be a big deal?”

IS HE RETARDED? He is the f’n heavyweight champion and he didn’t think calling a press conference after he quits would be a big deal. I LOST SO MUCH RESPECT FOR RANDY.

He doesn’t think being the first coach on TUF was a great deal of respect given to him? He doesn’t think being GIVEN an immediate title shot after retiring after getting knocked out twice in a row was a sign of respect????

WOW. RANDY HAS LOST ME AS A FAN.

Dana….. that you?

fedor has like 20 wins in a row against top competition. i do believe he deserves more money than randy and a better treatment. also, imo, randy hasn’t prove much to me jet. he beat tim with him having an injured back, he also beat gonzaga who in my opinion is not top competition only beacuse beat crocop. i think he needed to fight a guy like big nog or other big name before resignin from his title.

Less than half of Fedor’s fights have been against top-level competition. Many of the guys had losing records. The best guys that he beat were Minotauro and Cro Cop, by far. Basically every fight that Randy has had was against world-class competition. Liddell, Ortiz, Belfort, Sylvia, Gonzaga, Rizzo, Randleman… Randy never got a break.

Randy has been with the UFC longer than Dana White has. He deserves WAY more money from Dana than FEDOR does. And Randy hasn’y proven anything to you? He has beaten the odds more than any other fighter in the world. FYI, Sylvia always says he’s injured if he loses.

And you are saying that Gonzaga is not top-level? He DESTROYED Cro Cop. Cro Cop was Minotauro’s biggest win too, you know, except Gonzaga totally mauled him.

Why didn’t Randy, Tito, and Shamrock pull the company out of limbo pre Dana White? The fighters are being paid more now and bonuses are on the rise. White took the risk of purchase and turned the company around big time giving a ton of exposure to a lot of fighters. WHite’s decisions have been good by me so far.

Less than half of Fedor’s fights have been against top-level competition. Many of the guys had losing records. The best guys that he beat were Minotauro and Cro Cop, by far. Basically every fight that Randy has had was against world-class competition. Liddell, Ortiz, Belfort, Sylvia, Gonzaga, Rizzo, Randleman… Randy never got a break.

Randy has fought for the title in all but 2-3 of his UFC fights. Its ALL championship competition for him so far. Fedor has had a lot more chumps to wail on.

Actually, if you do the research, the most successful businesses in America have one common thread……..happy employee’s.

That and a leader who doesn’t take any sh*t and does things their way according to their vision.

i think contracts should all be thrown out…

example…

championship fight winner gets 1 mil loser gets 500
contender level fight winner gets 400 loser gets 200
A level fight winner gets 150 loser gets 100
B level fight winner gets 90 loser gets 60
C level fight winner gets 50 loser gets 30

Give signing bonuses to the big guys you really need in the org…

how does this not work?

I agree with this, that way a young guy can lose his first fight and win his second fight and make 80g in a year. A champ with two fights would make Two million before any bonus. Every one says tito is a complainer but randy just said what tito has been saying for a while but with more class. Dana and zuffa better hope the fighters dont have any form of work stoppage cause you can see how well that worked for the nhl. (lose alot of fans). To bad i would have liked to see randy fight a couple more times

I think that Randy spoke really well. It seems this has been going on for a long………time. Maybe he will get his due respect….I hope for a renegotiated contract and a couple of more fights. Or…………maybe….one fight and then go fight Fedor….I would like to see him make some REALLY big bucks with UFC with a fight or two…be an ambassador for UFC…sit ringside….then at the same time go fight Fedor and come back as an announcer etc., etc…..Another words I would like IT ALL for Randy and the FANS.

Randy seemed to make it clear that above all else, Pride fighters were being treated better than the UFC’s original stable of fighters.

Here is why I agree with Randy that that was totally disrespectful to him and the other loyal UFC veterans.

First, before the UFC bought Pride, everyone was arguing over which league had the superior fighters. Dana White fed us a bunch of lip service that his fighters were the best in the world and a lot of us backed him up. But then, when he starts acquiring them, he pays their veterans large amounts of money, in greater frequency than his own. That shows that even he thought they were a better stable, and more worthy of more large investments.

Second, Randy is a much bigger draw in America than Fedor. To offer Fedor that much money, when Randy makes a fraction is ludicrous. Randy puts butts in seats and you can all tell him to stop whining, because he is paid well, but its about getting his fair share. Look at it this way. Do you guys honestly think that Randy’s earnings are an equal percentage of how much he makes the UFC compared to what Fedor was going to get, CroCop and Big Nog did get and Gomi could get if he starts negotiating?

The conflicts will continue until there is a union to give more fighters a solid footing in negotiations.

You continuously refer to what RC is doing as “whining”. I fail to see how you can so easily pin that label on him for not meeting your personal expectations on but one occurance in his entire 11 year career with the UFC. You’re throwing out the baby with the bathwater each time you discredit him. The message you’re sending is that no man can have regrets, make mistakes or speak up for himself less he be labeled a “whiner”.

A person’s financial status does not disqualify them from exercisng the basic human right of speaking their mind. Rather than only looking for reasons to discredit his decision you should try to imagine yourself in his shoes, under his circumstance & try to understand his side of things as well. You may have already done so but it’s hard to tell by your posts.

But at the same time – I think Randy IS underpaid. But how you go about getting more money is going in and renegotiating privately with Zuffa and Dana. Lay out your worth to them on paper and demand that they up the pay AND be prepared to walk away if they don’t go for it. But he STILL has two more fights under contract regardless. If you’re man – you fight those two fights and THEN leave the UFC.

Randy can also take them to court to get out of his contract legally if he wants. If there’s something legally that he can show their breach or “un-fairness” and he gets out of it – AWESOME!! He gets to do whatever he wants after that. Just don’t come whining to me about expecting me to boycot the UFC and call Zuffa “unfair” and “mean” or whatever. They made a deal and so far – they have fully honored their end of it.

Also, I’m pretty sure he didn’t get the GG “after-fight” bonus bc of all the PPV cut that he gets that no other fighters get. That’s a LOT of money according to FightLinker.com – like an estimated 1.3 million I believe. Chuck wasn’t getting that was he?

Do I LOVE Randy Couture? YES

Do I respect Randy Couture? YES

Do I think he’s being a whiner on this subject to his fans? YES

Do I think he should have kept this all private and jsut worked it out (or not) with the UFC? YES

Do I want to see him fight again? YES

Do I think this will tarnish his name forever? NO

DO I think I’m beating a dead horse by now? YES

DO I think I’ve made my point? YES

Will I ever come back to this thread? NO (Well, yes but I’ll pretend that I didn’t by not replying so I look like I’m really cool by having moved on)

i think contracts should all be thrown out…

example…

championship fight winner gets 1 mil loser gets 500
contender level fight winner gets 400 loser gets 200
A level fight winner gets 150 loser gets 100
B level fight winner gets 90 loser gets 60
C level fight winner gets 50 loser gets 30

Give signing bonuses to the big guys you really need in the org…

how does this not work?

That’s a good idea. It could use some tweaking, but still pretty good. I know guys get a bonus for winning a fight, but they should also get a bonus for finishing the fight. Say:

20k to show
20k to win
20k to finish

They already do this on TUF so why not do it for all the guys. Maybe that would boring fighters like Sherk & Sylvia to try to finish the fight.

I used to respect Randy Couture.

Apparently the 750k he gets for 30 minutes of work for the UFC is just downright disrespect by Dana White. Fun times. I hope I never see Couture in the UFC again unless he gets absolutely destroyed. That would make me happy.

TBH it is always about the money. Yes there are other smaller issues that Randy speaks of, but the big issue is about the money and the way Pride fighters have been paid and offered.

After listening to Randy, I for one agree with him, when i see the pay that fighters get, taking into account the time the effort the sweat, the time away from their families and of course the chance of getting seriously injured, not only is it an insult but its sickening. I think Zuffa need a new voice, I don’t have much time for Dana, the way he carries on he believes it was him soely that brought the UFC from depts of despair and to the success that it is today. Yes he was the one that saw the business opening when it went up for sale, but it was the brothers that gave the financial support, but more so that anything else it was the demise of boxing, sports people like myself who was getting fed up of the boxing fights wanted something different something with more excitement and thats what mma gives to me. I for one much prefered Pride events than the UFC events, not that they had better fighters, but i believe the rules, the ring and basically the admiration for the japanese people who repsect each and every fighter so much, much more than i can say for much of the attendees at UFC events, for example the booing of Anderson Silva at Ohio, its so disgusting.

Anyhow the UFC needs someone like Randy to manage it. I think Dana should be pushed to the side and get Randy in, some fresh blood and someone that you know the fighters will be well looked after.

UFC not only lost its greatest fighter but its only ambassador of the sport. They will never be able to replace him. Lucky for the UFC that many fans in america have never seen a Pride fight or maybe even heard of it otherwise they would lose alot of PPV sales. That i believe was the sole reason for the buy out of Pride, they never had any intention of carrying on that name or any of the promises that they made. They just wanted the monopoly, and with the pullout of Fugi (Pride’s main sponsor) it was the perfect time for the buyout.

Anyhow Randy for UFC President :)

Best of luck Randy whatever the future holds for you, thank you for all those amazing fights that you were in, you are a true Captain of mma.

Bon Voyage

Why didn’t Randy, Tito, and Shamrock pull the company out of limbo pre Dana White? The fighters are being paid more now and bonuses are on the rise. White took the risk of purchase and turned the company around big time giving a ton of exposure to a lot of fighters. WHite’s decisions have been good by me so far.

Exactly. If it were not for Dana White and the Fertita Brothers, the UFC would have never been approved sanctioning. Dana White hired people with ties from sports such as boxing to convince state athletic commisions to start sanctioning events. Don’t get me wrong I’m not saying Randy didn’t do a lot for the sport, but Dana White has done a tremendous job making the UFC what it is today. Where would fighters like:
Forrest Griffin
Kenny Florian
Diego Sanchez
Joe Stevenson
Kendall Grove
Josh Koshcheck be? Probably still doing small in-house shows for minor organizations. A few fighters may have made it to the UFC but not most of them. Dana White has given a lot of these fighters the chance to make a good living doing what they love to do.

leroy u say randy gets payed 4 30 minutes of work u go out there with out training and see how u do. 30 mintues of work your crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That and a leader who doesn’t take any sh*t and does things their way according to their vision.

…………while taking great care of his employee’s.

EdenMachince: “but if you go running to the public and try to get them to get on your side because you only made $3million this year instead of $5million then that’s WHINING.”

Mahde sums it best in his post when he stated: “Randy puts butts in seats and you can all tell him to stop whining, because he is paid well, but its about getting his fair share”.

Imagine the Yankees after a championship season signing some Japanese star player & offering them 3x more than what they’re paying A-Rod. Break that scenario down from every angle that comes to mind & then tell me that Randy’s wrong.

Let’s all try to keep it in perspective & remember that we’re specifically talking SPORTS contracts here.

I think Randy’s screwed if he thinks in 9 months he’s going to go off and fight for some other organization. I listened to the UFC press conference and I honestly think Dana has valid points.

- If Randy isn’t happy – then finish out your contract that you AGREED to and walk away from UFC forever. If it was “just about the fighting” then shut up and fight.

- Can’t feel sorry for Randy bc he wasn’t given extra tickets for his family at PPV events. I’m sure every other fighter would want a bunch of tickets and they get pummelled with requests for friends & family tickets from all fighters.

- If I was a fighter that signed away my ancillary rights (my name and image for video games, etc) then I would expect better treatment than Randy because I’m making the UFC more money off my name and image. So Randy shouldn’t be pissed that I get treated better than him in all the “small things” that he spoke about. And guess what – those “signing bonuses” that every one got that he didn’t probably has something to do with that as well.

- A discretionary bonus is just that, a bonus at the UFC’s discretion. If he didn’t get one, then he can use that in the next contract renegotiation. “Dana, i didn’t get a fight bonus for the GG fight and I deserved one so I want double that now in my signing bonus bc you know my fights are always badass”

- And lastly…. THERE’S NO CRYING IN THE UFC!!!!

Dana White should be paying Randy more money than any other fighter in the UFC…. Its about respect. He turned down Bodog to fight Fedor, and accepted a fight in the UFC against that big sloth Tim Sylvia…. he has trained many of the fighters in the UFC and without him, the UFC wouldn’t be where they are at today… and that deserves a damn signing bonus

I used to respect Randy Couture.

Apparently the 750k he gets for 30 minutes of work for the UFC is just downright disrespect by Dana White. Fun times. I hope I never see Couture in the UFC again unless he gets absolutely destroyed. That would make me happy.

30 minutes??
these guys never train for 8 weeks for one fight, dont eat shit food, dont lift, dont drink, dont promote the ufc, dont go to events and sign autos… yep all that money for 3o minutes

Edenmachine- Your statements are completely insensitive to Randy’s individual concerns. Statements like yours are selfish to only your satisfaction of seeing fighters fight only, and compensation that they deserve for their promotional ability is minor. There is obviously work to be done in taking care of fighters in compensation terms. And this is a step towards bringing that into the open. But you just want to see Randy fight, that cry baby. Get real.

yah,same here,i also understand randy’s point of view, it seems Edenmachine didnt really understand what couture explanation

Contractual obligation is not slavery nor is it the right to treat an employee as a slave, as in “I control Randy”. Dana is a boxing promoter do you think he gives two shites about what he promotes come on! If Dana was any good at & could make the same money promoting boxing this same issue of respect AND pay would be coming from Mayweather or some other boxer. We all know Dana is a coyote, his frickin fangs show when he smiles, any promoter is.

100th comment!?!

“WHITE LIES”?

“GRRRR, i’d sure like to see what that freakin’ contract says about “4 fights in 18Months.” Can Couture walk away in 18months?

Did WHITE get caught with his hand in the cookie jar, telling little "white’ Lies.

1.Dana said he hadn’t talked to Randy, Randy said he talked
to Dana 2 1-2 weeks before he left to film and laid everything out he said at the conference. Dana and the brothers did not respond. That’s basically no.

2. "Randy is 2nd Highest paid fighter? Maybe? PPV he got 500k.

NOTE: FALSE
-Yahoo Sports, Couture negotiated and signed before his comeback fight against Tim Sylvia in March is for four fights and between $13 million and $15 million, which puts him behind only Chuck Liddell, at four fights and $17 million, in the UFC salary pecking order. Those numbers are believed to include percentages of pay-per-view money.

Randy needs to own a company before he can get paid purely based on his draw.

leroy u say randy gets payed 4 30 minutes of work u go out there with out training and see how u do. 30 mintues of work your crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So he fought twice this past year. That’s 1.5 million dollars. Would you step into a ring with Syliva and Gonzaga for 1.5 million dollars? I would. I can get my ass beat down twice a year if I get paid 1.5 million. No matter how much training and time goes into the preparation for the fight, Couture signed the contract. If he didn’t want to do it, he should have stayed retired or negotiated a better deal. It’s no ones fault but his own.

It’s not a team contract like in other sports… pre-season football hasn’t started and teammates will suffer. Randy is his own team and the season starts with his next scheduled fight. Owning the hvwy belt gives him added leverage to negotiate, unlike Tito of the past, when he tried to negotiate and left the UFC as a financially poor UFC champion and couldn’t pay his bills. Randy is financially doing well and not in a desperate situation.

I’d sure like to see what that freakin’ contract says about “4 fights in 18Months.” Can Couture walk away in 18 months?

Either Randy gets more money or he doesn’t it’s the nature of the fight business luv or hate it, “fighters only have a small window of opportunity”, Dana White said it and knows that as well as anyone.

Playing hardball and taking a stand is the only way to go with guys like Dana and the UFC. Stick it to ’em and be prepared to walk away if you have to.

Dana and the UFC should make a deal with M-1, pay Randy equal to what Fedor will get paid and we have our Superbowl of MMA Heavyweight bout… Of course the UFC will not do that because if Randy loses they perpetuate Fedor’s legacy and M-1’s reputation as a MMA organization.

you don’t get it man. He was offered 3 million from Bodog.

He hasn’t proven anything yet? Lol, you need to go learn how to spell and speak english before you argue.

C’mon I think he’s pretty articulate for a grade schooler.

Fedor needs Randy. This will be huge.
 
Check this out now.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21487493/

I hope this opens the eyes of a lot of fighters to try another organization, I would like to see Bodog get some big names. The way I see it the UFC bought Pride, raped it for contracts and left it to die. Two years ago the UFC was revived and congrats to Dana and Zuffa, but guess what their heads grew two sizes to big and now they are f’in it up. Where ever Randy goes I will will follow…

I think Randy’s screwed if he thinks in 9 months he’s going to go off and fight for some other organization. I listened to the UFC press conference and I honestly think Dana has valid points.

We don’t really know what clauses are in the contract. “4 Fights 18 months”… we don’t know if there’s an expiration date on it, sometimes contracts aren’t always clear, one clause cancels out another clause… lawyer jiberish, design to allow dispute so they make more $$$$.

- If Randy isn’t happy – then finish out your contract that you AGREED to and walk away from UFC forever. If it was “just about the fighting” then shut up and fight.

Maybe he doesn’t have to finish out the contract? He doesn’t have to fight for 10 more months and can make a huge $$$ payday to fight Fedor in M-1. If so, then that’s his within Randy’s contract rights.

On the other hand, Dana and the UFC are ruthless negotiaters, just like a Car Sales Lot. I believe the 4 fight deal means nothing, it’s just the lowest amount of cash Couture can make in 4 fights with the UFC. The UFC could pay Randy’s salary and PPV% many times over for what they made in his fight with Silvia. Some are saying Wandy’ honor your contract!… Randy finally has the guts to say ‘no’ it’s a crappy deal, renegotiate or I walk. This is business from both ends, Randy’s playing hardball, and he brought his harpoon to deal with the sharks. Randy is ‘FIGHTING’ just not in the cage. If he didn’t fight about his contract,,, then I would call him an idiot, he can fight but he sure is stupid.

- Can’t feel sorry for Randy bc he wasn’t given extra tickets for his family at PPV events. I’m sure every other fighter would want a bunch of tickets and they get pummelled with requests for friends & family tickets from all fighters.

On the other hand Dana is 1 CHEAP BASTARD LOL… we all know that right?

- If I was a fighter that signed away my ancillary rights (my name and image for video games, etc) then I would expect better treatment than Randy because I’m making the UFC more money off my name and image. So Randy shouldn’t be pissed that I get treated better than him in all the “small things” that he spoke about. And guess what – those “signing bonuses” that every one got that he didn’t probably has something to do with that as well.

Now that’s a good point about ‘ancillary rights. However, offering Fedor more in bonus than Randy’s ever made in UFC? That was the sticking point, that’s what made Randy resign.

- A discretionary bonus is just that, a bonus at the UFC’s discretion. If he didn’t get one, then he can use that in the next contract renegotiation. “Dana, i didn’t get a fight bonus for the GG fight and I deserved one so I want double that now in my signing bonus bc you know my fights are always badass”

Screw’ that.. negotiate it as soon as possible, while you got the belt, while you know Fedor was offered tons$$$ more than you… why wait, make your stand, Randy owes the UFC nothing and the UFC has showed Randy they owe him nothing more… but If they want the big bucks for the next big PPV ratings… they’d better pony up now!

- And lastly…. THERE’S NO CRYING IN THE UFC!!!!

Unfortunately there’s always the human element involved otherwise it wouldnt be life.

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.
YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

By reading this post, you obviously don’t seem to have much respect so you wouldn’t expect much in return,nor would you understand what respect means to a respectfull guy like Randy. A guy like Randy is all about respect and guys like that demand respect in return. Your right, Randy is a millionaire so he doesn’t need the money, but the money is a sign of respect.

Let’s be realistic, RC only has a couple more good fights in him anyway, and Fedor would manhandle him, anyone who thinks Fedor wouldn’t is either a fool, or in denial. The only way RC could win is if he pulled something like he did on Gonzaga and land an accidental illegal blow that destroys his nose so he is swallowing massive amounts of blood and not able to breath through his nose. Which is unlikely. It’s best for RC to leave the sport with his legacy fulfilled.
Dana White is a publicity genius, but a horrible person. Anyone who thinks Dana hasn’t done as much for the sport as any fighter, is crazy. If it wasn’t for Dana, we would all still be watching Pride on PPV, with no UFC or no TUF and none of these smaller organizations would even be heard of.

Only a fool or someone in denial would say, “Randy isn’t in Fedor’s league”, after watching him beat a guy who DESTROYED CC ,who was a handfull for Fedor. Randy’s legacy will be fullfilled when he beats Fedor.

I just want ppl to remember. None of this would be happening if the UFC addressed randy’s concerns in a timely manner after they were brought to their attention. How many ppl would be happy with thier current employer, no matter what the profession, if you said to your boss “listen we have to talk about some things…” and then you never heard from him/her in 6 weeks!!!!!!

Also, thanks Alex for that link. Seems like the UFC pushed too hard and lost fedor.

“I didn’t think this would be a big deal?”

IS HE RETARDED? He is the f’n heavyweight champion and he didn’t think calling a press conference after he quits would be a big deal. I LOST SO MUCH RESPECT FOR RANDY.

He doesn’t think being the first coach on TUF was a great deal of respect given to him? He doesn’t think being GIVEN an immediate title shot after retiring after getting knocked out twice in a row was a sign of respect????

WOW. RANDY HAS LOST ME AS A FAN.

Yep, switch to Fedor :))

Randy would beat Fedor…

.

Yeah, that’s why Randy rejected an offer to fight Fedor in bodog fights :))))

- I think Dana’s mistake is a lack of consistency. It never makes for great labor relations when compensation doesn’t roughly corelate with contributiob.

 - I wonder how much Chuck Liddel like having his $17mil/year salary outed? [presumes accuracy]

 - Props to Randy for putting Yahoo Sports in their place

 - As much as my personal curiosity wishes to know the inside details, I truly hope the commentary stops here, lest there be no hope of reconciliation

 - Between the movies, the $1.25M UFC wages, the Extreme clothing, the appearances honorariums, the announcer wages, video game take, fighter camp rake?, etc. etc. he’s pulling in some major league dollars.

 - If Bodog offered $3Mil and Randy didn’t take it – maybe it’s not about the money

The Fertitta’s are Billionaires. Their financial holdings are gaining more than enough interest to boost the pay scale for the entire UFC/WEC roster without cutting into their assets. There is NO EXCUSE for not paying these fighters appropriately.

The net-worth of one party in a contract is not relevent to the economic justification of a business decision. It’s true it has an effect on affordability – but it doesn’t change the cost/benefit calculation

Competition is what levels the playing field, and what will ultimately will enable greatly improved salaries for all

The fighters need a union and I think Randy would be an ideal lead spokesman of that union. Now that the UFC has a new long term deal with Spike this would be a perfect time for a strike.
The UFC has too much control over the fighters and are too greedy for their own good. Hit em where it hurts Randy! Right in the wallet.

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. :( whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.

YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

I agree with you all the way. How can you feel sorry for someone who makes millions and is making millions every year? Why did sign you something you were not happy with? Why didnt you accept the 3 million dollar fight with another organization and decide to fight Tim with the UFC?This is a lot of nonsense.I LOVE Randy ,but I do not agree with him.I love the UFC too I am a big UFC fan and so everyone in my house.I buy each and every UFC event and I dont make millions, actually I am far away from that. I went to Las Vegas and spent everything I had and I am still paying for that. Are you sorry for me? I want Randy to come back to fight Fedor and smash this guy who did not want to fight with UFC ’cause he knows what happened to Mirko. He came to the UFC
and where is he now? Probably playing soccer in his country or thinking about fighting someone with no name ,so he can pull out a victory.Fedor is not the only fighter in the world and by the way, your comment was very funny.

It’s just a slap in the face, Randy is a “freak of nature” any guy that at 45 years old can shitcan guys half his age and be the UFC posterboy deserves a little more respect than he’s getting and any of you who say he’s whining are full of shit! put yourself in his position and i bet there wouldn’t be one of you not doing the same thing he is. Randy is a First Class guy all the way, never once has he dissed Dana or the UFC, ya gotta love this guy as a role model and human being as for the guys who think he’s whining, tell it to his face!!!

It’s just a slap in the face, Randy is a “freak of nature” any guy that at 45 years old can shitcan guys half his age and be the UFC posterboy deserves a little more respect than he’s getting and any of you who say he’s whining are full of shit! put yourself in his position and i bet there wouldn’t be one of you not doing the same thing he is. Randy is a First Class guy all the way, never once has he dissed Dana or the UFC, ya gotta love this guy as a role model and human being as for the guys who think he’s whining, tell it to his face!!!

could’nt of said it better.thanks.

HES NOT RETIRING.ufc should give him whatever he want.randy made this sport along with an few others.and now he’s being cast aside because his a nice guy and dana and all his paper pushing pussies think they can step on whoever they want.keep in mind randy is a fighter first and foremost and those instincts are eventually gonna kick in.anyone else would have already been pitching a pissy fit.i’d be upset too.anyone with their head on straight would be.i’d be insulted to,with the ufc offering fedor more than he’s already making.i want randy vs fedor as much as everyone else.but for godsakes.dont do the man dirty.FUCK!!!!!

I really don’t see how anyone can support this liar. More than once he claims “It’s not about the money.. or It’s not about the zeros..” then goes on to contradict himself by asking the reporters if they would be mad if, after years of valued service, their company offered some new guy more money than anyone else. He’s masking his reason for leaving which is money by saying it’s because of respect, then he goes on to say no other match makes sense than a match with Fedor. Funny he should mention a lack of respect when he disrespects the whole HW division by saying this. That’s real classy of you Randy.

You have to take each perspective in order to try to understand this.

I myself, probably like many of you, have been in this situation (albeit on a much smaller scale) a few times: should have asked for more money but didn’t (only to find out later I definitely could have). Came in got paid X only to find out the hacks doing half what I was doing were making X Y.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Randy “B-U-T” when you sign your name on a contract you have to take responsibility for that. It doesn’t matter that you did so much better than expected, what the PPV buys were, what the bonuses were. You knew going in what you are getting into (anything extra is EXTRA) . That’s how business goes.

NOW, on the other hand… UFC probably could have averted this whole thing with Randy with a few smart moves: Show him the respect, give him the high-roller treatment, give him the big bonuses, do the UNEXPECTED for the guy (who also did the unexpected). It wouldn’t have costed them (really) that much more… maybe another 250K-500K and Randy would have been happy and felt respected and it would have put this issue to BED. Then, he could have wrapped up another couple of fights and renegotiated as needed or retired.

No matter which camp you favor here, there are issues on both sides. I think that Randy and Dana could sit down and sort it out (maybe) though really, the time to do that would have been after the Sylvia fight.

Screw the UFC, Dana White, and Fertita brothers bunch of greedy corporate pricks. Please get someone who knows how to treat fighters. Guys on this site who back the UFC on this are mindless drones whose thoughts are made up by the media!

The net-worth of one party in a contract is not relevent to the economic justification of a business decision. It’s true it has an effect on affordability – but it doesn’t change the cost/benefit calculation

Competition is what levels the playing field, and what will ultimately will enable greatly improved salaries for all

The “net-worth of one party in a contract” can most certainly be relevent to the “economic justification of a business decision” if the business entity deems it so. It boils down to a choice as to whether or not they are willing to do it.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that certain decisions should be made based on merit as opposed to the sole reliancy of financial justification.
    To avoid fleshing out the multi-layered issues to further justify my take on things, I’ll try and sum things up by stating that it seems like the UFC is stepping over a dollar to pick up a penny. It’s far more expensive to rebuild a new star to replace Randy’s draw.

I really don’t see how anyone can support this liar. More than once he claims “It’s not about the money.. or It’s not about the zeros..” then goes on to contradict himself by asking the reporters if they would be mad if, after years of valued service, their company offered some new guy more money than anyone else. He’s masking his reason for leaving which is money by saying it’s because of respect, then he goes on to say no other match makes sense than a match with Fedor. Funny he should mention a lack of respect when he disrespects the whole HW division by saying this. That’s real classy of you Randy.

If it was about money he would’ve taken Bodogs 3 mill… right?

If the UFC never offered Fedor the millions it wouldn’t have bubbled up to the surface as an issue… Seems like it’s about Fair compenstation for what he’s worth in the UFC? Is that a reasonable viewpoint?

The formula is … CASH FLOW… does Randy bring in the PPV ratings that other top fighters bring in?… Does Randy keeping his ancillary rights justify his not earning bonuses? I’m not really sure on that because I don’t know what ancillary rights are worth in Couture’s and the UFC’s case, but I would bet that Randy is worth almost or as much as Fedor is in PPV drawing power.

Would Couture give up his ancillary rights if the UFC paid him as much as Liddell? or what Fedor was offered?

Why Couture is saying that the only match that makes sense is to fight Fedor is:

It’s the superbowl hvwy fight of MMA, Randy is old, he’s got at least 1 big fight left in him for sure, this is the matchup Pride and UFC always wanted other than the Liddell/Wanderli fight… u wait too long and then championship claim goes out the window because fighters lose. I don’t think Randy wants to fight in the UFC unless they make the fight with Fedor and pay Randy what he’s worth. Otherwise, Randy will let the contract expire (if that’s possible) then go fight Fedor at M-1 Randy knows they’ll pay him what he’s worth. If Fedor can’t come to him, Randy will do all the can to go to Fedor, Randy desperately wants to fight him. Unfortunately Randy has to do some fighting outside the Cage with the UFC before this can happen.

I don’t think the UFC will let this fight happen with an outsider of the UFC like Fedor. Because if the UFC’s Hvwy loses, they lose the title best HVWY fighter in the world and M-1 gains recognition as a MMA organization with the best fighter in the world in Fedor.

Boycott the UFC?

Randy Couture is the greatest UFC champion in history. More important is the fact that he is the most beloved UFC champion ever. His David versus Goliath defeat of Tim Silvia was one of the most exhilarating experiences of my otherwise boring life. Randy wants to fight because it is his passion. All he asks is to be paid what others of similar stature are being paid in the UFC. For him to accomplish all that he has in MMA, it is insulting to watch as the UFC pays lesser fighters many more times what he is being paid. Now, he wants what everyone else wants-—to fight Fedor for the undisputed world heavyweight championship. He also wants to be paid what he deserves. The UFC should either:

1. Pay Randy as much as the highest paid fighters in the UFC, or

2. Allow Randy to fight Fedor in cooperation with M1 for his big pay day while Randy is under contract with the UFC, or

3. Let Randy out of his contract so he can fight Fedor in M1.

Randy could call for a boycott of the UFC and bring them to their knees. But, he is a consummate professional and would never initiate that. All he wants is to satisfy his desires without hurting the UFC. However, if the UFC does not come to terms with Randy, I would support a boycott on his behalf. I anxiously await every PPV, just like everyone else, but I would give one up to support Randy. Imagine a pay-per-view with no one in the seats and no one paying to watch the broadcast…. Maybe then, the UFC would listen.

Sounds like he’s lookin’ for zeros to me. I like the guy but… geezz

I think Randy has to accept that the UFC has done as much for him as he has done for the UFC. Randy is Randy because of the fights, battles he had in the UFC. Dana and Zuffa are that much more popular because they had Randy fight some amazing mma fights. The question is would Randy be as popular as he is, would he be doing his 7th movie, would he have a Hollywood agent and a sports agent, would he have his own clothing line, and the most succesfull american run training gym in the USA? I believe the UFC would still be the number 1 showcase if Randy had never stepped in to the ring. Does it give them to right to short change and low ball fighters, absoltely not. Will a long term career in the UFC pay off alot better then Elite XC or one of the other orginaztions. most likely. Even if you got 3 million to fight in one of those other organizations, nobody is getting the big sponosors from those other organizations. Does Randy have the right to speak out against UFC short comings? Absolutely he should be able to. Only thing is he shold still be a man of his word and complete his contract….Thas just my 2 cents…

I’m afraid to say that we will never see Randy vs Fedor. Unless Randy’s lawyers find a loop-hole in his contract. See, the only way this fight can happen is if it’s in M-1. Many folks have posted that the UFC will not allow this fight because on one level or another it is damaging to the UFC’s image if Randy were to lose.

I dont agree with the UFC’s thinking here because they have much to gain if Randy wins. However, as long as they are unwilling to allow top-draws to fight in other orgs or even in their Octagon against fighters who are not under UFC contract, then the UFC will forever be in its own way, when trying to validate the superiority of any of their fighters over those who compete under an opposing promotion.

My dear American frieds!

I just herd on our TV that Bodog fights is going to have USA vs Russia event, which will take place on December 1, 2007 in Moscow, Russia. They say it’ll be top 9 US fighters vs 9 top Russian fighters. Also, they say that they gonna have a real good suprise for the fans. Maybe they mean Fedor vs Randy fight???… I very hope so :)

PS Sorry for my bad English

Boycott the UFC?

Randy Couture is the greatest UFC champion in history. More important is the fact that he is the most beloved UFC champion ever. His David versus Goliath defeat of Tim Silvia was one of the most exhilarating experiences of my otherwise boring life. Randy wants to fight because it is his passion. All he asks is to be paid what others of similar stature are being paid in the UFC. For him to accomplish all that he has in MMA, it is insulting to watch as the UFC pays lesser fighters many more times what he is being paid. Now, he wants what everyone else wants-—to fight Fedor for the undisputed world heavyweight championship. He also wants to be paid what he deserves. The UFC should either:

1. Pay Randy as much as the highest paid fighters in the UFC, or

2. Allow Randy to fight Fedor in cooperation with M1 for his big pay day while Randy is under contract with the UFC, or

3. Let Randy out of his contract so he can fight Fedor in M1.

Randy could call for a boycott of the UFC and bring them to their knees. But, he is a consummate professional and would never initiate that. All he wants is to satisfy his desires without hurting the UFC. However, if the UFC does not come to terms with Randy, I would support a boycott on his behalf. I anxiously await every PPV, just like everyone else, but I would give one up to support Randy. Imagine a pay-per-view with no one in the seats and no one paying to watch the broadcast…. Maybe then, the UFC would listen.

well said! it will never happen, but good idea!

Randy has been a great fighter and champ through the years, but I think he lost vision of reality trying to say my only challenge is this guy or that guy. He does not make his fights and if you sign a contract you agree to those terms. He is not a matchmaker. Should of left it up to the company to make his fights and then when his contract finished pick his new demands and company. This was all just to create controversy, and get more attention. I hope though he does decide to finish his contract and work it out so we can enjoy 2 last great matches.

I disagree with everything you just said Mark. Firstly, it makes complete sense when he states that certain fights make sense and others don’t. Why? Because 1, he’s OLD. He’s nearing the end of his career so of course he is looking to end it in good form. 2, he’s one of the most established fighters in MMA history so it doesn’t make any sense for him to fight up and comers and the like. 3, his achievements and status in MMA earns him the right to do some matchmaking for his own fights.
Also, Couture has shown time and time again that one of his utmost priorities is to promote the sport and represent it with integrity and professionalism. He is the last person to do something just for the sake of publicity. However this issue was something that definitely needed more attention from the public. The UFC is definitely not doing right by their fighters given the contributions the fighters have been providing to the growing success of the company.

Good press conference. Nothing he said showed any degradation of his integrity in my mind.

I just find it REALLY hard to feel sorry for millionaires. Poor baby has to buy his own event tickets. :( whhhaaa sniffle Poor baby only made $600,000 dollars this year for fighting two fights boo hooo – but oh yeah, which made thousands of people flood into his gyms and buy his Extreme Couture clothing products and watch, I’m sure, an AWFUL Scorpion King part II movie which of course throws him up and over making a cool $2 million for the year but hey, the poor guy didn’t get any tickets for his wife’s third cousins.

YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE!!!!!!! SHUT UP AND FIGHT!!!!!

YEP !!!!!!

I disagree with everything you just said Mark. Firstly, it makes complete sense when he states that certain fights make sense and others don’t. Why? Because 1, he’s OLD. He’s nearing the end of his career so of course he is looking to end it in good form. 2, he’s one of the most established fighters in MMA history so it doesn’t make any sense for him to fight up and comers and the like. 3, his achievements and status in MMA earns him the right to do some matchmaking for his own fights.
Also, Couture has shown time and time again that one of his utmost priorities is to promote the sport and represent it with integrity and professionalism. He is the last person to do something just for the sake of publicity. However this issue was something that definitely needed more attention from the public. The UFC is definitely not doing right by their fighters given the contributions the fighters have been providing to the growing success of the company.

Good press conference. Nothing he said showed any degradation of his integrity in my mind.

Hid age and accomplishments mean very little when it comes to contracts. So what he is essentially saying is there is not another fighter in the UFC worthy of his time? I do not give a shit what accomplishments he has, that portrays a bit of a God Complex in my eyes. So fighting a healthy Tim Sylvia is not good enough for him. Giving the former champ another go at the belt is below his at this point of his career? Since when doesn’t the ex-champ get a rematch. He may very will win a rematch against Tim,but I bet it would be a totaly different fight now that Tim is 100%. Love him or hate him Tim Sylvia deserves that. Also what about Big Nog. Big Nog is not worthy of his time in the cage. Big Nog has been in as many if not more crazy battle then Randy, and has as many big wins, especially over guys that have beat Randy(Josh Barnett and Ricco Rodriguez), but that fight makes no sense. He signed a contract and whether he liked the terms or not he took pen to paper and inked the deal. No different then any of us, in real life, we have to be held accountable for our actions. Randy needs to man up hell go in the ring and fight. If he did not ask for control over who he fights then he must deal with whoever Dana gives him. Yeah Randy has done a lot for MMA, but I think the overall landscape off MMA is where it is because of the UFC as a whole, not because of Randy. Yes he has promoted the sport to all hell. Yes he has been a great ambassador, but like I posed the question earlier, I believe the UFC would be where it is today or relativley close to where it is today with or without Randy having ever stepped into the ring. Do you honestly believe Randy would be where he is today without the UFC? Do you think Randy would have the most popular gym, be in the 7 movies he speaks of, have a “HOLLYWOOD”(for Dana to bitchslap") and a sports agent, would his net worth be where it is today without the UFC? I would venture to say no. I would venture to say without the UFC 90% of the now MMA fans would have hardly known about Randy, and porbably would have just found out about him after Pride got taken over. Hell a god portion of the UFC fans had no idea who Shogun, Cro Cop, or Rampage where till UFC bought out PRide.

All in all Randy agreed to terms wherther he liked them or not. If he wants to call attention to what Dana does or doesn’t do fine. But to show total lack of respect for the other heavy weights, essentialy saying there is no competion in the UFC for him(I highly doubt he walks through Sylvia again and I would say he would have an extremely difficult time, and possibly a lose to big Nog). Yeah maybe the UFC fighters are underpaid as a whole, but how many athletes from other sports are way over paid and it ruins it. Athletes loose sight of the big picture and end up turning all hollywood. Money and the search for the big payday is what runined boxing, remember that when MMA turns into one big cluster Phuck of belts, from 12 difnferent organizations, everyone crying how they are the best but will not fight 25 minutes in the ring without a 90billion dollar payday…Randy finish your last 2 fights then walkaway a proud man…

Only a fool or someone in denial would say, “Randy isn’t in Fedor’s league”, after watching him beat a guy who DESTROYED CC ,who was a handfull for Fedor. Randy’s legacy will be fullfilled when he beats Fedor.

Randy beat GG because he headbutted the guy in the face on accident with a sloppy takedown. Had GG not been swallowing a gallon of blood and had been able to breath through his nose, I have no doubt in my mind that GG would have destroyed Randy. With that being said, stuff happens, and thats the fight game. Randy won, grats to him. He is a class act and deserves all the popularity and money that he is getting.

Also, Randy is definitely in his league, the same way that Franklin is in Silva’s league. Randy will never beat Fedor. Not even a punchers chance, a much smaller chance than that, but hey, stranger things have happened. As for CC, he wasn’t a handfull for Fedor, he ran away the whole fight, delaying the inevitable punishment.

I’m with Randy on this one. How can the 44 year old, 3 time current heavyweight champion and the 3 time light-heavyweight champion not be the most valuable asset to an MMA company?!?! Not to mention how he is the perfect ambassador for the sport. If I was Randy and I was getting paid less than Cro-cop, I’d walk out too…

I feel that randy is and always will be a stand up guy. but dont get me wrong ,he stated over and over that it wasnt about the money. but then quotes he still has fighters in the ufc well i would say the same thing if i knew my action could screw up another fighters livelihood. he(randy) states that he was gonna fight in bodog for 3 million but fought sylvia for the belt. his choice yes but then he comes back to say that he wants to fight fedor but that it isnt gonna happen for 9 months, by then his contract with ufc will be up. so it obviously must be about the money. i thought there wasnt supposed to be crying in the ufc. i feel he is just trying to cover his ass to keep his fighters in the octagon until his contract is up. sorry randy ill always have respect for you but it really is about the money isnt it???

Hid age and accomplishments mean very little when it comes to contracts. So what he is essentially saying is there is not another fighter in the UFC worthy of his time? I do not give a shit what accomplishments he has, that portrays a bit of a God Complex in my eyes. So fighting a healthy Tim Sylvia is not good enough for him. Giving the former champ another go at the belt is below his at this point of his career? Since when doesn’t the ex-champ get a rematch. He may very will win a rematch against Tim,but I bet it would be a totaly different fight now that Tim is 100%. Love him or hate him Tim Sylvia deserves that. Also what about Big Nog. Big Nog is not worthy of his time in the cage. Big Nog has been in as many if not more crazy battle then Randy, and has as many big wins, especially over guys that have beat Randy(Josh Barnett and Ricco Rodriguez), but that fight makes no sense. He signed a contract and whether he liked the terms or not he took pen to paper and inked the deal. No different then any of us, in real life, we have to be held accountable for our actions. Randy needs to man up hell go in the ring and fight. If he did not ask for control over who he fights then he must deal with whoever Dana gives him. Yeah Randy has done a lot for MMA, but I think the overall landscape off MMA is where it is because of the UFC as a whole, not because of Randy. Yes he has promoted the sport to all hell. Yes he has been a great ambassador, but like I posed the question earlier, I believe the UFC would be where it is today or relativley close to where it is today with or without Randy having ever stepped into the ring. Do you honestly believe Randy would be where he is today without the UFC? Do you think Randy would have the most popular gym, be in the 7 movies he speaks of, have a “HOLLYWOOD”(for Dana to bitchslap") and a sports agent, would his net worth be where it is today without the UFC? I would venture to say no. I would venture to say without the UFC 90% of the now MMA fans would have hardly known about Randy, and porbably would have just found out about him after Pride got taken over. Hell a god portion of the UFC fans had no idea who Shogun, Cro Cop, or Rampage where till UFC bought out PRide.

All in all Randy agreed to terms wherther he liked them or not. If he wants to call attention to what Dana does or doesn’t do fine. But to show total lack of respect for the other heavy weights, essentialy saying there is no competion in the UFC for him(I highly doubt he walks through Sylvia again and I would say he would have an extremely difficult time, and possibly a lose to big Nog). Yeah maybe the UFC fighters are underpaid as a whole, but how many athletes from other sports are way over paid and it ruins it. Athletes loose sight of the big picture and end up turning all hollywood. Money and the search for the big payday is what runined boxing, remember that when MMA turns into one big cluster Phuck of belts, from 12 difnferent organizations, everyone crying how they are the best but will not fight 25 minutes in the ring without a 90billion dollar payday…Randy finish your last 2 fights then walkaway a proud man…

That is sooo true I never say never would have heard of randy Couture if it wasnt of the UFC …..RANdy is talking like hes the one behind MMA … if it wasnt of UFC I would never have heard of pride and is fighters neither … I still wouldnt be a fan of MMA …… the UFC let RANDY come out of retirement and fight for the heavyweight belt after two losses in the elight heavyweight…. thats support ….. and probably that Randy came out of retirement after he saw the bigger popularity of the sport .. to make is name

Is new wife must a be a fucking whore alll about the money I saw a lot of my friends … thow friendship away cuz of bitches

Ok Randy makes some points and “feels” he’s been wrong. No matter what he’ll always feel wronged and that will never change.
Dana and the brothers have paid Pride fighters a lot but none more then Randy! Randy did get a signing bonus and did get a the win bonus after GG. Did Randy get paid enough in general? Maybe, maybe not thats up to Randy to decide and he thought no.
Could Dana the bros pay the fights more, Hell YES but are the fighters happy with what they have? HELL YES.
If anyone should be b1tchey it should be Keith Jardine. He got paid less then $20,000 grand for beating Chuck.
Randy should’ve taken the 3million for Fedor and UFC should’ve let him do it and come back. There are a lot of should’ve wouldas in this that didn’t happen.
UFC isn’t in the wrong on how the handled Randy but are in the wrong on how the handle all the fighters. They are getting better as the sport grows.
BTW whoever said GG only last because Randy headbutting him is smoking something. Randy had control all through the fight way before the headbutt happened. put down the pipe and come to reality.

How much money did he bring in for Zuffa? Two sold out and big selling PPV events made UFC how many million dollars? When you are the reason people are buying PPV events and tickets you deserve a level of respect. You can’t just toss anyone in the ring and get asses in the seats like a big name guy like Couture can.

Guess what, McDonald’s makes millions off of their product too and the employees do all the work at around minimum wage. Welcome to America baby….it’s called free enterprise. If he didn’t have the UFC to promote him as the “living legend” and have him in the UFC hall of fame, allow him to host the shows, let him guest appear on other shows and everything else he gets because he is known through the UFC then he would just be another fighter looking to break through. The UFC made him popular…not the other way around. Take your millions and move on.

what a liar, geez he sounds sooo petty to me and is no were near as honorable and classy as I previously thought. He made a cool 2.9 million for 2 fights in 2007 and is the second highest paid fighter in the ufc, come on randy since 2002 he’s never won more than 2 fights in a row,lost to chuck twice and expects the red carpet and ass kiss’s from dana??? get real, sounds like he’s gone a bit nuts in his old age, too many hits to the head. Dana should offer him the nog fight, if he refuses let him retire they’ll do just fine with out him.

Sounds like its about the Zero’s, after watching UfC and Dana White Press Conferance, I’m disappointed in Randy. Another high paid pro athlete unhappy. Thats why I stopped watching football and baseball.

Randy is a great man and will always be thought of in that way; he does a lot for our soldiers and I am sure we all can respect that. That being said, Randy did not tell the full story of what he has made this year as documented by Zuffa, making $500,000 signing bonus ($250 up front and $250 if he fought, which he did) and considering the other duties and ppv money he made, this meant he was paid just under 2.9 mil for this year so far…

I also think it is odd that Couture knows exactly how much each fighter was paid or offered, as this is not public knowledge. I would hate to think he is angry over whispered innuendo.

The truth is that there was a very big chance that Randy could have lost every heavyweight match he had starting with Sylvia. If this had happened would he have been angry with his 2.9 million dollars? Dana White was hiring a recently retired fighter who had lost two of his last fights with Chuck Liddell before retiring. Now he is upset because he beat the odds at age 40 and wants to know why he isn’t making more? He was happy when he resigned with Zuffa but now is angry?? If he had a problem with his contract he could have fought one more fight and then told Dana he would not fight for anything less than 3 million a fight and probably could have gotten it.

I think Randy has already gotten offers in this range, he just didn’t want to wait for 9 months and taken that last fight.

I can’t help but think that someone has been whispering in Randy’s ear and telling him he is being screwed, when he was given a chance of a lifetime considering he was coming out of retirement on a losing record.

it is a sad ay in mma when a legend like couture leaves the sport under these terms… he is not mike tyson… he didn’t bite somebodies ear off or cry like a baby like vince carter in toronto…. he was getting screwed and he took it for a long time for the love of the sport and he finaly had enough …who could blame him ? i couldn’t !!!! if the reality is that fighters are getting shafted by the ufc which it sounds like they are then let’s hope they leave the ufc and go to other promotions that are out there… remember we all love our sports and athletes whether it is mma or nfl etc.. and will watch them on any chanel or ppv so screw the ufc if our/your fighter is fighting somewhere else… take the coorprate power away…we control thier success and demise… they know it so let’s show it !!!!!!

i’m rolling with randy because i can understand where he is coming from. BUT… and there is a BUT. millionaires really shouldn’t complain. at least not publicly. the money he gets paid can feed Africa for a day. all i’m saying is on a grand scale he can complain but complain while you are holding up your end of the bargain. whatever he agreed to in the contract was what he agreed to. that signature on that contract is your word. some say thats all we really have that is sacred. don’t let your wife talk you into something crazy because we all know thats what really happened. randy doesn’t even seem like the type to quit, yes QUIT, over money unless there is a outside influence whispering in his ear. he should have finished out his contract on TOP giving him more leverage to lobby for more money. sports is like that. the ufc is one big team. to sign free agents (pride fighters) to the team (ufc), you usually have to offer them a substantial amount of money to leave the team they are already on. usually more than the top guys that are already there. sad but true.

actually, randy and fedor are going to bare knuckle in kimbos backyard this saturday after beer and pizza.
admission: pay what you can..
  but there is a suggested cover of 5 bucks
GSP will come around with the tip jar – no pressure though

yes dana is entitled to just offer the nog fight or let him retire.
legally that seems to be correct.
but MORALLY
he should make an exception for the randy fedor fight.
it’s not like all the low tier fighters are suddenly going to expect contract flexibility like couture – although they should have union and get dental plans for their families – shit some supermarkets offer better benifits – but that’s for another day….

So big hairy deal,
 a few belt holders might wanna take a risky challenge by fighting the sokoudjous , or fedors (other great fighters who are not in UFC)

• rampage or shogun or forest vs. Sokoudjou – how awesome would those be
• Barnett or or Hunt vs. either Napao or Kongo or Couture or Sylvia

so yea,
dear dana,
just so you know you you have enough $$$$$$
Stop playing the big PADRE and maintaining that you are legally in the right (you are – we dont care)

Go with the spirit !!!!!

it’s guys like couture who bring fans – not you – that’s not an insult just the reality.

stop acting like the big padre and say – ‘i don’t have to do this, i’m not gonna be obliged to do this again, but lets have fedor vs. randy’

actually, you could give half the money to charity and randy, fedor and dana and the ufc and M1 wouldn’t feel a thing.

i wonder as much as i respect fedor and randy if all of them including M1/UFC are just doing all this for hype knowing that when the news breaks that the fight is on it’ll be even bigger.

if fedor actually lostit woulnt be great for M1 , but it would still be good cause their first big event would turn on a lot of new fans. for UFC it would be awesome even if Fedor clobbers Randy cause the 2 are honourable fighters/persons and it’d be great for the sport. uFC’s is

anyway, i’m not gonna waste more time waiting to see what happens.
i’d rather get off this computer and go get some F’n exercise in the park with the kidz

all about the money, for sure.