SUMMARY
- Many fighters have spoken out against the wrongdoings of the UFC with the Anti-Trust lawsuit.
- However, as Ken Shamrock explains, a promising fighter like Mikey Burnett could not do the same.
The UFC has seen a lot of fighters speak out against them with the recent Anti-Trust Lawsuit. With thousands of fighters claiming that they were not paid what they were due, the matter has become a rather serious one. However, as Ken Shamrock reveals, some fighters, like Mikey Burnett could not take matters to court.
Recently, former UFC fighter Ken Shamrock appeared on the JAXXON podcast, hosted by Quinton Jackson and Bear Degidio. Among the host of topics the trio touched upon, was how the UFC failed to care of athletes who had helped build the company in its early days. Here, Jackson pointed out to one of Shamrock’s old teammates who used to fight in the UFC.
Remembering the fighter, Ken stated, “That was Mikey Burnett. He was pound for pound, one of my best fighters”. Further, Shamrock went on to reveal how the fighter was disgraced by the UFC. “He won his first fight, they (the UFC) said he’d get a title shot (against Pat Miletich)”. Due to a very close split-decision loss, it was stated that Mikey would then get a rematch against Miletich, which never transpired, despite Burnett winning his next fights.
Who is Mikey Burnett and why did he leave the UFC?
As Ken Shamrock further revealed, the outcome of the fight between Mikey Burnett and Pat Miletich was debatable. Whilst Miletich was awarded the split-decision victory and crowned the first UFC welterweight champion at UFC 17.5, many felt that Burnett was the more deserving candidate. As such, Shamrock and Co. heavily contested for a rematch.
After much stalling and having Burnett fight other fighters, the UFC declared that they were not ready for the rematch. “Then they said yeah we’re not ready for a rematch, and I literally blew up. And then, Mikey quit and went into boxing”. Further, Ken added, “He (Burnett) did okay but there is no money in boxing”. As ‘Rampage’ pointed out, Burnett was one of the first to integrate boxing into MMA.
Despite what Shamrock had to say, Burnett’s UFC record reads 2-1 (8-5-1, MMA). Following their first fight in 1998, Mikey and Pat were set to meet again in Strikeforce in 2009. However, despite a lot of talk, a fight did not transpire. Notably, Burnett and his son were caught in a shooting incident involving armed robbers in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 2016. Although both Mikey and his son were shot, both survived their injuries.
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson reveals how he was swindled by the UFC
Safe to say, Mikey Burnett was not the only fighter to be wronged by the UFC. Before Ken Shamrock explained Burnett’s story, it was Quinton Jackson who picked up the part about not being paid what the UFC owed him. For old-school fans, Jackson was known for his fan-friendly way of fighting and his bitter feud with Rashad Evans.
Prior to their fight at UFC 114, ‘Rampage’ and Rashad coached opposite each other on the 10th season of The Ultimate Fighter. Owing to the success of their show, the fight was highly sought after and expected to break over a million PPV buys, which it did, but the fighters were told otherwise.
Speaking on the podcast, Jackson said, “When I fought Rashad Evans, I had a crazy contract. If I get over a million buys, my pay-per-view all the way up here. So, they told me we did just under a million buys. But in the press, he said that we did over a million buys. And I told him, ‘Pay me like you told the press,’ so I don’t know, but I got paid like we didn’t hit a million. That’s not fair.” Something very similar had occurred with Shamrock as well.
For his fights against Tito Ortiz, ‘The World’s Most Dangerous Man’ was meant to hit a certain number of buys. However, just like Jackson, Shamrock was told that they missed the number by a few buys. As it turns out, that was not the case, and the fighter was cheated out of money that was rightfully his. With that said Shamrock and Jackson also agreed that the problem was with the ‘old regime’ and people no longer working in the UFC.