Congressman to UFC, Bellator: "Move to a real league system"

[Get_that_yayo]

I love that back and forth. Marc Ratner is totally full of shit. The UFC made the exact same arguement that the congressman made IN COURT when BJ Penn sued to get his welterweight title back in 2004. They admitted that the belt is a "trophy", "purely ceremonial" and is not a title. Dana White's own words and the words of UFC lawyers, not mine.

 

[The ScorpioN]

I'm not going to look up Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 for you.
1) It was designed for regulating private business.
2) It is Congress' job whether you like it or not.

No it’s not. Regulating commerce =\= regulating match making. It’s not Congress’s job to micromanage a company.

This is waste of time. UFC can match make as they see fit.

 

[legatoblues]

UFC is about entertainment

What's sad is that when the obviously entertainment focused Pride was #1 and UFC were fighting for market share, the UFC angle was all about sporting legitimacy. Lol how that changes.

 

[greatsantini]

No it’s not. Regulating commerce =\= regulating match making. It’s not Congress’s job to micromanage a company.

This is waste of time. UFC can match make as they see fit.

The reason MMA is being looked at is because the business conducted is across state lines. The reason the rankings and titles are being looked at is because they are potentially being used as restraint of trade.

 

[jsbx45]

Interstate commerce is one of their major responsibilities. This is high school level curriculum people.

Yeah, but does it apply here? The UFC is hardly a monopoly. There are other ranking organizations too. Do they get to tell the UFC how to do business? I fully agree with anyone who says that the UFC should be making fights based rankings and that entertainment value over merit robs fans of the best fights. That being said the UFC is a privately owned company and should be able to do what they want regardless of what you, I, or Congress thinks.

When the UFC own 90 percent or more of the Combat Sports business in the US and starts overcharging people for it, then maybe Congress might want to take a look at it. In the meantime, no one really needs MMA as a product, and the UFC has a long way to go before they can be compared to Standard Oil or the old AT&T.

 

[nhbfan8080]

A legitimate ranking system would add ummm, legitimacy to the "Sport", but the UFC is also a business and have the right to run it the way they see fit. Congress can come up with their own ranking system if they care so much or KTFO of business affairs. WHY are our elected officials spending time on this issue?

You should ask why Dana and friends and taking most of the money instead of the fighters when they don't do any of the real work. The MMA situation is very similar to the days of robber barons. UFC originally didn't want a ranking system or institute drug testing until they needed more fake legitimacy to avoid hearing from the govt.

Remember the time when UFC would proclaim that they were a real sport and Pride was a sideshow, now they have the cheek to say that UFC is 'entertainment' like WWE.

 

[Pernell]

Congressman KO'd the UFC and their goofy ranking system. Meritocracy based or you aren't a true sport

That's not what he's saying at all, boxing isn't meritocracy based and that is what the Ali act was made for.

 

[wonderbread]

But it’s not a real sport. It’s entertianment for the most part.

 

[Mittens]

Heh. Shows how bush league UFC is on this front. When the congress tried to bother WWE, they sent Vince to make a complete circus of it, instead of being made look like idiots.

http://insidestl.com/vince-mcmahon-...gressional-oversight-in-10-simple-steps/15781

 

[NHB7]

World title = not a world title if it's something bestowed upon the best fighter. Yea....that made sense

It made sense. He’s saying it’s not really a world title if it’s just given to the best fighter THAT NIGHT despite the fact that #1, #2, and #3 are just skipped over without being offered the fight. And that happens a lot in UFC because another fighter is more entertaining as opposed to more qualified.

 

[whougonnacall]

Objectively A-level:

​

Objectively D-level:

​

Nope
Dunking is a skill not an athletic ability

 

[Scyther]

Time stamp dog.

 

[jsbx45]

You should ask why Dana and friends and taking most of the money instead of the fighters when they don't do any of the real work. The MMA situation is very similar to the days of robber barons. UFC originally didn't want a ranking system or institute drug testing until they needed more fake legitimacy to avoid hearing from the govt.

Remember the time when UFC would proclaim that they were a real sport and Pride was a sideshow, now they have the cheek to say that UFC is 'entertainment' like WWE.

Oh I remember, and they are nowhere near "As Real as it Gets" anymore. That being said, Congress should be more worried about the MILLIONS of people who get paid a fraction of what the UFC fighters make. Not that UFC fighters shouldn't make more, but NO ONE holds a gun to their head and forces them to fight for a living, and NO ONE needs MMA as a product like say, heating oil, or a car, or medical care. If Congress needs to get involved in business, lets take some hard looks at businesses that really affect the American people, and can do so negatively. The UFC is hardly that. Robber Barons? Please...

 

[F0od]

No it’s not. Regulating commerce =\= regulating match making. It’s not Congress’s job to micromanage a company.

This is waste of time. UFC can match make as they see fit.

Commerce is "the activity of buying and selling, especially on a large scale", UFC sells fights. Congress can and will regulate this if they want to. The UFC will do whatever Congress sees fit, whether that is to make their own matches or be regulated.

 

[F0od]

Yeah, but does it apply here? The UFC is hardly a monopoly. There are other ranking organizations too. Do they get to tell the UFC how to do business? I fully agree with anyone who says that the UFC should be making fights based rankings and that entertainment value over merit robs fans of the best fights. That being said the UFC is a privately owned company and should be able to do what they want regardless of what you, I, or Congress thinks.

When the UFC own 90 percent or more of the Combat Sports business in the US and starts overcharging people for it, then maybe Congress might want to take a look at it. In the meantime, no one really needs MMA as a product, and the UFC has a long way to go before they can be compared to Standard Oil or the old AT&T.

It applies here because this is interstate commerce just like boxing was when it started getting regulated by Congress. I'm not even going to read all your opinions because I don't care. If Congress wants the UFC to suck lemons, they will suck lemons.

 

[Taric]

This is combat sports, real league systems don't exist in combat sports, what the hell are these clowns talking about. UFC aren't doing anything wrong, its the exact same in professional boxing, kickboxing, muay thai etc etc. You can't do league systems, this is not a team LMAO.

Every grappling sport in existence has a straight forward and regimented ranking structure at the highest level of their sport.
Wrestling, judo, bjj, freestyle submission grappling, etc.
All of which are individual sports.

 

[Taric]

Those mindless NFL oversized oafs would be huffing and puffing within 3 minutes of a real football match,would faint within five.A football match has a lot more constant activity with no long breaks like the dumb NFL guys are used to.
Not to forget they lack intelligence and mentality for real football.It isn't run and ram into others like the NLF brutes do,you require proper tactical approach in real football.

So you're aware, there are multiple legitimate geniuses that play in the NFL. Ryan Fitzpatrick, for example, has an IQ of 138.
There is not a single soccer player, in the history of soccer, that has a genius level IQ.

 

[ArmenianAssasin]

don't these assholes have better things to do

like you know , figuring out how to pay back the trillions of dollars we owe.. or how not to leave SSI withhout funds in 3 years and leave our elderly with nothing to live off

 

[nhbfan8080]

Oh I remember, and they are nowhere near "As Real as it Gets" anymore. That being said, Congress should be more worried about the MILLIONS of people who get paid a fraction of what the UFC fighters make. Not that UFC fighters shouldn't make more, but NO ONE holds a gun to their head and forces them to fight for a living, and NO ONE needs MMA as a product like say, heating oil, or a car, or medical care. If Congress needs to get involved in business, lets take some hard looks at businesses that really affect the American people, and can do so negatively. The UFC is hardly that. Robber Barons? Please...

Since the majority of UFC fighters have take home pay around the poverty line after deducting for training expenses just like the 'MILLIONS' you referred to, its a situation which should be looked into.
Thats the beauty of a monopoly or quasi-monopoly or oligopoly or however you want to call it, you don't have to force people to sign the contract. They already know that the deck is stacked against them and they have no choice. Just like unions who have to make concessions or the whole operation would be shifted to some low wage country like China.

 

[danny23]

So you're aware, there are multiple legitimate geniuses that play in the NFL. Ryan Fitzpatrick, for example, has an IQ of 138.
There is not a single soccer player, in the history of soccer, that has a genius level IQ.

Frank Lampard says hello.


http://www.goal.com/en-sg/slideshow/2662/7/title/10-brainy-footballers?ICID=OP