SUMMARY
- In 2014, fighters filed a lawsuit against the UFC for unfair business practices.
- TKO had offered to pay a settlement of $335 million which may get rejected by the court.
The UFC is a haven for some of the best mixed martial arts fighters in the world. For years we’ve seen fighters in this promotion pave the way for aspirants to take over. Unfortunately, a few years the UFC was slammed with an antitrust lawsuit that put the promotion’s reputation on the line.
Fighters are known for having the most dangerous jobs in the world. Putting aside the fighting aspect of the sport, even weight cuts are quite dangerous too. The UFC was sued by a couple of fighters named Cung Le, Nate Quarry, and Jon Fitch nearly a decade ago. They claimed that the UFC followed unfair business practices by underpaying athletes and trying to down other promotions.
TKO had offered to settle the UFC Antitrust Lawsuit for $335 million
Interestingly, Le, Quarry, and Fitch weren’t the only fighters who stepped up against the UFC in this matter. And it was their parent company at the time that had to take the damage. Eventually, a second lawsuit was filed against Zuffa and Endeavor as well. In 2021, Kajan Johnson and C.B. Dollaway claimed that the UFC had committed a few anti-competitive violations.
🚨| The UFC antitrust lawsuit will no longer go to trial.
A settlement of $335 million has been agreed between both parties.
The company anticipates that the settlement will be tax deductible. pic.twitter.com/LjHqXJAix1
— MMA Orbit (@mma_orbit) March 20, 2024
These fighters accumulatively demanded a $1.6 billion settlement. However, TKO, the current parent company had offered to pay $335 million to settle the dispute. The fighters also released a combined statement announcing the settlement that had been reached.
The UFC could end up facing a trial
Unfortunately, Dana White and the UFC might be miles away from settling this lawsuit. A recent update on the case from Josh Gross claimed that Judge Boulware “did not grant preliminary approval for the UFC class-action antitrust settlement today… Boulware expressed several areas of concern and it sure seemed to me that he’s leaning toward denying the deal and moving to a jury trial.”
Holy smokes. There might actually be an antitrust trial. Wow. https://t.co/pf3iYjNS50
— Luke Thomas🏋️♀️ (@lthomasnews) July 12, 2024
Now, there are two ways this lawsuit could go after the judge’s pending approval. If Boulware rejects the settlement, the UFC could re-negotiate a settlement and pay up to resolve the lawsuit. Or it could go into trial, which is a much riskier position to be in if you’re the UFC.