The UFC is going to court. The organisation is currently facing an antitrust lawsuit, certified by a Nevada court, spearheaded by a crop of fighters including Cung Le, Nate Quarry and Jon Fitch.
The case dates back to 2014, and claims that the UFC violated the Sherman Antitrust Act, eliminating its competitors in order to control fighters’ earnings.
UFC Headed To Court In Class Action Antitrust Lawsuit
While the UFC has long denied any wrongdoing, the court sees things differently. Erik Margaren offered a summary of the case:
“In a nutshell, there’s three things the court said. Number 1: That they use oppressive contracts. Number 2: That they use ruthless tactics outside of those oppressive contracts, and combined those two things keep fighters from really ever enjoying free agency.
And 3: The court found that the UFC has bought up competition not to necessarily make their product better, but instead to give fighters fewer choices on the open market.”
The UFC has enjoyed near-monopoly as the biggest MMA promotion in the game. As such, fighters were rarely tempted into free agency despite complaints about the promotion’s relatively low wage structure compared to other major sports.
However, recently, major stars have been leaving the UFC for seemingly greener pastures. Former heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou moved to the Professional Fighters’ League with a record-setting contract that includes a guarantee for his opponents.
Nate Diaz, a veteran of the sport and a firm fan favorite, fought out his contract and recently dabbled in influencer boxing, making tremendous amount of money in the process. The ramifications of the case are enormous, with BloodyElbow leading the coverage.
The plaintiffs in the class action suit are seeking damages in the range of $811 million to $1.6 billion. As an antitrust case, if the suit goes to trial and the plaintiffs win, the damages could be tripled.
The court also found that the UFC had “unfettered power” to suppress fighter pay, using coercive tactics to effectively trap fighters in oppressive contracts.
Currently, UFC fighter pay sits at around 13% of the promotion’s revenue. In the sport of boxing, fighter pay can be as high as 70% of revenue, while in other major sports athletes earn closer to 50% of revenue.
The UFC is also facing stern competition both in the United States and abroad. ONE Fighting Championship is dominating the market in Asia, and the Professional Fighters’ League is already expanding internationally and picking up former UFC stars.
We’re nowhere near close to the UFC losing its dominance, but the promotion’s reign at the top could soon be over.
