During the UFC 74 post-fight press conference this past weekend, UFC President Dana White more or less revealed that plans to keep PRIDE FC running are all but dashed, according to FightNetwork.com.
Zuffa — the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship — purchased the Japanese mixed martial arts promotion (and its biggest rival) earlier this year.
Here’s a snip from White:
“I’ve pulled everything out of the trick box that I can and I can’t get a TV deal over there with PRIDE. I don’t think they want us there. I don’t think they me want me there…. PRIDE is a very powerful brand and we want to keep it alive, but I’ll tell you what, the brand is very tainted, not only over there, but over here. The problem is PRIDE was never a big company in the United States and I’m not going to drop another $44 million to try and straighten it out.”
White, of course, is referring to the reported $44 million in losses Zuffa took to get the UFC off the ground during the first few years since the company purchased the floundering organization in 2001.
There’s also another article on this situation that appeared on FOXSports.com.
Check out this snip from White:
“(The Japanese) don’t want another (mixed martial arts) organization over there. That company was in trouble. We went in and bought it out with every intention of keeping PRIDE alive. (Japan) is a very tricky place to do business.”
The primary reason for the inability to keep PRIDE alive appears to be a television deal — Fuji TV pulled the plug on PRIDE shows last year because of allegations that the organization had ties to the Japanese mob, Yakuza.
And now White is claiming that despite all of his “tricks” he’s not having any success getting the organization back on track. Furthermore, he doesn’t want to squander money trying to bring the show stateside.
As a result, more and more fighters from the PRIDE roster such as Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva, Fabricio Werdum, Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, Hayato “Mach” Sakurai and others are signing UFC contracts.
36 Comments »
A worthy sacrifice if they sign Fedor, Aleksander, Mark Hunt, Overeem, etc..
Man, thats a shame. I still dont understand how something as seemingly popular as Pride can just vanish like that. I’ll give Zuffa the benefit of the doubt and assume they did everything they could.
It would have been sweet to see a bunch of cross promotional fights. The sport could have grown that much faster.
Pride is what I was watching years ago on VHS bootlegs..when the UFC was in the garbege years..1997 wow…ten years later..and no more pride..It’s F’d up for the Japanese fans of MMA.
F it. Bring the cage worldwide. Make it a universal standard.
That sucks. I loved Pride, it wasn’t better than UFC but it was different. The atmosphere though was much better than what you get at UFC matches. The Japanese fans knew their fighting.
um, if Fuji TV dropped PRIDE because of alleged mob ties, they might be somewhat skeptical of an American from Las Vegas coming in who has two partners that are brothers and are in the casino business…
Dana’s not going to dump money to rebuild Pride when he’s trying to build the WEC over here. I saw this coming. The only way Pride would have survived is if another entity bought it and spent the money. The moment he signed Henderson, the buried Pride’s coffin.
[quote comment=”136170″] I’ll give Zuffa the benefit of the doubt and assume they did everything they could.[/quote]
I somehow doubt that. They dont want to anger their hardcore fans who also followed Pride but it’s doubtful they had/have any serious interest in becoming Japanese fight promoters.
What’s wrong with having one main organization? It makes sense to do it this way so there wont be any conufusion on who are the best fighters in the world. Who really cares if it’s in Japan or USA??….
Man no one will miss pride more then me. No matter what happens pride id dead already cuz if Pride was ressurected, Dana already said that he would change the rules, to have the same rules as the UFC. that means no more head stomps, soccer kicks, knees to the head(on the ground). Those r the things I will miss the most. As well as the awesome production: Parade celebration(bginning), awesome fighter entrances, and supperior technology.
I will also miss the classy Japanease AUDIENCE. As fans we have a lot to learn from the Japanease. The way we act makes us look foolish and barbaric. The constant booooing (unwarrented booing).
A big loss will be the countless world class Japanease fighters that wont wanna leave Japan. We will prolly never c Gomi, Shinya Akoi in an octagon and thats our loss.
The biggest Loss in my oppinion is No more tournaments, and no more No weight matches.
I will really miss PRIDE!
R.I.P. Pride… For real this time
Too bad, will any promotion ever capture the mystique that Pride had??????
Kneetotheface: Overeem is already signed with K-1(which he is better suited for anyway)
To compensate for the loss of pride we need to get the following fighters signed:
Fedor
Josh Barnett
Hunt
Alexander Emilienenko
Yoshida
“Mach” Sakurai
Arona
Rogerio Noguerra
Sokoudjou
Dennis Kang
Bring Robbie lawler and nick diaz back
Gilbert Melendez
Bring Pailho Filho over from WEC
Joakim Hansenss
I would love if the UFC signed Takanori Gomi, Kawajiri, Ishida, and shinya Akoi. However i suspect that those fighters wont leave Japan and we might never c them in the UFC
If all the above mentioned fighters were to be signed by the UFC, we would all be able to Witness the Greatest and most competitive MMA organizations of all time.
Of course it would still be missing a couple Great MMA fighters such as Frank Shamrock and Matt Lindland who all have childish diputes wit the egomanic Dana white that will keep them from ever fighting in the ufc
If anyone has any knowledge as to when new Pride events will be released on DVD please let me know:
Shockwave 2006
Bushido Survival
The second comming
The real deal
2006 absolute Grand prix
Someone please help me, I am dying to find out when and if these events will ever be released to DVD.
Someone Please Help!
saw this coming a mile away.
and i agree with everyone who’s saying our fans could learn from the japanese. as the UFC gets bigger and bigger, there’s more and more unwarranted booing.
[quote comment=”136279″]Of course it would still be missing a couple Great MMA fighters such as Frank Shamrock and Matt Lindland who all have childish diputes wit the egomanic Dana white that will keep them from ever fighting in the ufc[/quote]
to turn down the big money because of a grudge with Dana seems kind of weird. Dana said in an interview that he has no beef with Lindland at least. Hopefully he will come to the UFC soon.
Our fans know stand up only. That’s why all wrestlers get booed and grapplers too. Our fans don’t understand the ground game. All the transitions and scrambling done by two guys who know what there doing, is sweeter than any boxing science. American fans want toe to toe brawls like the Don Frye/Yoshihiro Takayama fight. No technique, no disipline, just all out fists flying fights. While that style will produce some nice knockouts, it’s not mixed martial arts. I agree with Joe Rogan when he says no fight should be stood up. If you can’t get off your back, that’s tough, you should have trained better.
[quote comment=”136264″]Man no one will miss pride more then me. No matter what happens pride id dead already cuz if Pride was ressurected, Dana already said that he would change the rules, to have the same rules as the UFC. that means no more head stomps, soccer kicks, knees to the head(on the ground). Those r the things I will miss the most. As well as the awesome production: Parade celebration(bginning), awesome fighter entrances, and supperior technology.
I will also miss the classy Japanease AUDIENCE. As fans we have a lot to learn from the Japanease. The way we act makes us look foolish and barbaric. The constant booooing (unwarrented booing).
A big loss will be the countless world class Japanease fighters that wont wanna leave Japan. We will prolly never c Gomi, Shinya Akoi in an octagon and thats our loss.
The biggest Loss in my oppinion is No more tournaments, and no more No weight matches.
I will really miss PRIDE![/quote]
I couldn’t agree more. I only recently (within the past 6 months) started watching the Pride DVD’s and their fighters. I really think the whole production and a big number of their fighters are superior to the UFC. I’ve been a long time fan of the UFC and Chuck and Randy. But I am constantly in awe watching the opening ceremonies, the production, “the pageantry that is Pride FC”, and fighters such as Fedor, Cro Cop, The Axe Murderer, Shogun, etc.. In most areas I think Pride was superior, and not to mention way more exciting to watch. I also loved how Pride made the fights seem honorable in the way the winner was treated after the fight. The whole production seemed to keep the honor and tradition of martial arts as part of the show. UFC just has loud ass Joe Rogan yelling after the fight asking questions which are often followed by the fighters mixing in obscenities in their answer. Just watch the end of Cro Cop’s UFC debut when Joe Rogan interviews him. He has this look like who the hell is this guy and why is he talking to me?
Too bad the only thing Pride wasn’t superior in was the way they ran their business. I guess the good thing is we get to see these incredible fighters come over to the UFC and fight. It’s hilarious to watch these reality shows and watch guys like Silva, Shogun, Hendo, Fedor, Nog, CC etc. I don’t think the casual fan has a clue what level these guys are at.
Again if anyone has any knowledge as to when new pride events will be released on DVD, please share that info with me.
Steve my point exactly!
do u have ne idea when they will release new pride dvds such as:
Shockwave 2006
Bushido Survival
The second comming
The real deal
2006 absolute Grand prix
[quote comment=”136336″]Steve my point exactly!
do u have ne idea when they will release new pride dvds such as:
Shockwave 2006
Bushido Survival
The second comming
The real deal
2006 absolute Grand prix[/quote]
No clue, but if you find out please post it!
[quote comment=”136305″]Our fans know stand up only. That’s why all wrestlers get booed and grapplers too. Our fans don’t understand the ground game. All the transitions and scrambling done by two guys who know what there doing, is sweeter than any boxing science. American fans want toe to toe brawls like the Don Frye/Yoshihiro Takayama fight. No technique, no disipline, just all out fists flying fights. While that style will produce some nice knockouts, it’s not mixed martial arts. I agree with Joe Rogan when he says no fight should be stood up. If you can’t get off your back, that’s tough, you should have trained better.[/quote]
The only time a fight should be stood up is if they are both doing nothing.
[quote comment=”136377″][quote comment=”136336″]Steve my point exactly!
do u have ne idea when they will release new pride dvds such as:
Shockwave 2006
Bushido Survival
The second comming
The real deal
2006 absolute Grand prix[/quote]
No clue, but if you find out please post it![/quote]
Its crazy that all the events that I have mentioned have been released on DVD in England and In Japan. Too bad that Japan and Englands DVD’s r different region coded then the region codes our dvd’s use. If they dont start releasing them in America, I will be forced to buy a region Free DVD player which cost significant amount more then the regular dvds we use. Then I would have to go on certain websites and order those DVDs from England or Japan paying like $60 a dvd.
It should not be this hard to purchase a dvd of events that happened just a year or 2 ago.
What sense does this make, u can get any pride dvd u want from 2004 and 2005, but good luck trying to get a 2006 or 2007 pride event on DVD in America. That is ridiculous and I dont understand what the hold up is. Release the damn DVDs it will just equate to more money in Dana’s pocket and I know he likes that, which is y I dont understand y they have yet to be released!
Yakuza are scary, You don’t wanna mess with those guys.
[quote post=”3156″]Man no one will miss pride more then me. No matter what happens pride id dead already cuz if Pride was ressurected, Dana already said that he would change the rules, to have the same rules as the UFC. that means no more head stomps, soccer kicks, knees to the head(on the ground). Those r the things I will miss the most. As well as the awesome production: Parade celebration(bginning), awesome fighter entrances, and supperior technology.
I will also miss the classy Japanease AUDIENCE. As fans we have a lot to learn from the Japanease. The way we act makes us look foolish and barbaric. The constant booooing (unwarrented booing).
A big loss will be the countless world class Japanease fighters that wont wanna leave Japan. We will prolly never c Gomi, Shinya Akoi in an octagon and thats our loss.
The biggest Loss in my oppinion is No more tournaments, and no more No weight matches.
I will really miss PRIDE! [/quote]
I feel you 100% man.
And RIP the PRIDE ring announcer. That bitch has some vocal chords!!!
DAAAAAAAAAAAANNN HENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNDAHHHASOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[quote comment=”136450″][quote post=”3156″]Man no one will miss pride more then me. No matter what happens pride id dead already cuz if Pride was ressurected, Dana already said that he would change the rules, to have the same rules as the UFC. that means no more head stomps, soccer kicks, knees to the head(on the ground). Those r the things I will miss the most. As well as the awesome production: Parade celebration(bginning), awesome fighter entrances, and supperior technology.
I will also miss the classy Japanease AUDIENCE. As fans we have a lot to learn from the Japanease. The way we act makes us look foolish and barbaric. The constant booooing (unwarrented booing).
A big loss will be the countless world class Japanease fighters that wont wanna leave Japan. We will prolly never c Gomi, Shinya Akoi in an octagon and thats our loss.
The biggest Loss in my oppinion is No more tournaments, and no more No weight matches.
I will really miss PRIDE! [/quote]
I feel you 100% man.
And RIP the PRIDE ring announcer. That bitch has some vocal chords!!!
DAAAAAAAAAAAANNN HENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNDAHHHASOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!![/quote]
Who the crazy Japanease dude, wit the sun glasses, mohawk and shinny suites… He was the man! He should replace Bruce Buffer
Violent Mike: U talking about the Krazy Japanease Announcer, wit the kool shades, mohawk, and shinny suites. That dude was the man, he should replace Bruce Buffer
Nah, he’s talking about the crazy screaming lady. Good riddance in my book, god that was the worst part of Pride, that screaming was so annoying.
[quote comment=”136274″]Kneetotheface: Overeem is already signed with K-1(which he is better suited for anyway)
To compensate for the loss of pride we need to get the following fighters signed:
Fedor
Josh Barnett
Hunt
Alexander Emilienenko
Yoshida
“Mach” Sakurai
Arona
Rogerio Noguerra
Sokoudjou
Dennis Kang
Bring Robbie lawler and nick diaz back
Gilbert Melendez
Bring Pailho Filho over from WEC
Joakim Hansenss
I would love if the UFC signed Takanori Gomi, Kawajiri, Ishida, and shinya Akoi. However i suspect that those fighters wont leave Japan and we might never c them in the UFC
If all the above mentioned fighters were to be signed by the UFC, we would all be able to Witness the Greatest and most competitive MMA organizations of all time.[/quote]
I agree with this entirely
How will the UFC handle the aquisition of all these fighters?
One UFC a month will not suffice, even 2 PPV will make it tough to keep all these fighters and fans interest. I would like to see a bi-weekly Fight Night. Like boxing in its hayday Friday Night Fights went off weekly. With the increase of fighters it is only logical that events will increase also!!!
This link is atleast half the reason alone why PrideFC is superior to the UFC. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=YYhQCfZpYiE
That song gives me goosebumps.
Fedor’s entrance song is also badass. I couldn’t find an entrance video of him with it, but the song alone is still badass. It fits him. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=-lJjR5N7sts
everytime i heard that loud fat lady from pride i wished that Mirko showed up and viciously head kicked her unconscious.
[quote comment=”136379″][quote comment=”136305″]Our fans know stand up only. That’s why all wrestlers get booed and grapplers too. Our fans don’t understand the ground game. All the transitions and scrambling done by two guys who know what there doing, is sweeter than any boxing science. American fans want toe to toe brawls like the Don Frye/Yoshihiro Takayama fight. No technique, no disipline, just all out fists flying fights. While that style will produce some nice knockouts, it’s not mixed martial arts. I agree with Joe Rogan when he says no fight should be stood up. If you can’t get off your back, that’s tough, you should have trained better.[/quote]
The only time a fight should be stood up is if they are both doing nothing.[/quote]
I agree with you on that.
[quote comment=”136775″]This link is atleast half the reason alone why PrideFC is superior to the UFC. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=YYhQCfZpYiE
That song gives me goosebumps.
Fedor’s entrance song is also badass. I couldn’t find an entrance video of him with it, but the song alone is still badass. It fits him. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=-lJjR5N7sts/quote
Pride’s production values make UFC seem like something in a basement somewhere.
Secodnly, pride will always be the best, i really hope someone can rise up through the UFC’s coprepration and chane the UFC in to pride or at least mold it like pride.
anyway, for everyone who was upset theyd have to buy all the pride dvd’s from Japan, go here and you can get them for free.
i used it, the guy has every single pride dvd ever for freee, even Shockwave 2002!
http://redsoxman.proboards91.com/index.cgi?board=fights
its under every fight free.
Dana, you will pay for this!
Pride vs UFC!
Pride had great production but it was being run into the ground because of bad business decisions and was losing its television broadcasting partner. Dana White and Zuffa have ressurected the first and most impotant MMA organization by buying UFC in 2001, if not for UFC there is no Pride. The best fighters will now be in the UFC and if you have watched UFC 70 through UFC 76, UFC is demolishing the Pride champs. This is the best move for everyone. The best fighters will now and have always been in the UFC.
I’ll admit that I wanted to watch the Superbowl of MMA as Champion vs Champion (Pride vs. UFC). Pride is a money losing endeavour and Pride is controlled by the Yakuza and if you have ever been to Japan you know that you want no part of that mess. Long live UFC!