Chris Leben (left) is a great fighter but also has demons that need to be dealt with. Photo Courtesy: Zuffa, LLC
Dana White please step up and take care of your fighters
Chris Leben will miss his next scheduled fight due to a parole violation. Photo Courtesy: Zuffa, LLC
There has been an outcry lately by a lot of MMA fans, myself included, for Dana White and the UFC to step up and pay their fighters better. The top draws make the best money but it still fails to meet the standards set by some of the boxing pay-outs. I do like the fact that fighters get bonuses for winning the fight and of course they get paid from their sponsors which is a great source of revenue for them.
The fighters can get by just fine on all that money but there is something Dana White, the UFC and all other fight organizations can start doing to help their fighters: take care of your fighters outside of the cage. The prototype for helping out fighters is Chris Leben. Leben was recently sentenced to jail time stemming from an earlier DUI arrest. It’s no secret that Leben has always had issues with alcohol. Pop in an episode of The Ultimate Fighter: Season One to see how alcohol and Leben don’t mix.
Leben is a good fighter and maybe if he was cleaned up he could be a great fighter. Many people criticize Vince McMahon and the WWE for several things but one of the best things they do is pay for current and former performers to get help in rehab. Granted, the WWE lifestyle causes a lot of the problems with substance abuse but at least McMahon offers the services to try and get clean. White and the UFC could and should offer similar outreach programs for their fighters.
Fighters put in countless hours of training and put their bodies through hell in fights and an outlet is obviously needed for them to blow off steam. Too many fighters take it too far either with alcohol or drugs thus damaging their long-term success. Yes, the fighters are adults and should fend for themselves, but far too many come from a broken past and giving them another option for help is needed.
As MMA gets more popular and the fighters become more mainstream, the spotlight will only intensify. I hope all fight organizations take care of their investments to allow the sport to grow into the premiere contact sport in America.
This entry was posted
on Monday, May 12th, 2008 at 6:59 pm and is filed under In the Cage, WWE, Vince McMahon, Chris Leben, The Ultimate Fighter, Pay-Per-View, Dana White, UFC.
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3 Responses to “Dana White please step up and take care of your fighters”
May 13th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
hmm ok let me start out by saying yes i think thay should get payed more. but i also understand where mr white is comeing from, thay have to build there fighters pay up.
May 14th, 2008 at 4:21 am
The time has come for Dana White to see that everyone who fights in the UFC has health coverage and benefits to ensure their welfare. Hopefully the salaries of the lower rung fighters will be increased as well. This would benefit the organization by squelching the rumors that the UFC and MMA are just a passing fad and give more credance to the argument that MMA is becoming a mainstream sport. Also. any organization that offers rehabilitation for employees with substance issues has my respect.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:22 pm
I don’t think it’s the responsibility of UFC or any organization to have to provide substance abuse provisions or treatment programs. If you are a fighter and decide to drink or take illegal drugs then that is your problem buddy. Obviously you do not take your craft serious and as such why should I foot the bill for your bonehead ideas? And while everyone would live to see an combative sport organization whether it be MMA or Boxing step up and provide retirement benefits or health care the fact of the matter is that the costs would be so great that the fightere’s purses would drop considerably.
I’m not sold on the fact that MMA fighters don’t make as much as boxers. Granted the boxing superstars of today get paid a king’s ransom compared to the superstars of MMA but for the average MMA fight I think his purse is in line with your average boxer. Furthermore MMA fighters seem to enjoy more endorsement deals then your average boxer.
The fact is that upper echelon boxers get paid more becuase they have the backing of networks like HBO and Showtime who have deeper pockets then say VS. or Spike. If MMA landed on HBO then you would see fighters making more.
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