Jake Paul and Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) see opportunity in the current MMA landscape.
There’s been quite a bit of pushback against the UFC as of late. Some are lambasting the promotion for stagnant fighter pay, while many fans have checked out of recent events due to a perceived decline in card quality. Even the silver linings have been dull. Fight fans were very excited at the prospect of the Paramount deal, which removed the heavy cost of monthly pay-per-view (PPV) charges, but instead those
same fans are now inundated with adverts and glitchy streams.
The UFC White House card is another example. After being touted ahead of time as the baddest card of all time, the actual end result is just a pretty good six-fight card that features Bo Nickal vs. Kyle Daukaus for some reason. Fans are ready for something new, which is why the reception to MVP’s stacked Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano-led fight card on Netflix has been so positive.
There’s space for another big player in MMA, and thus far, PFL (or whatever they’re going to start calling themselves now) hasn’t cut the mustard. According to Paul, the UFC’s decline is White’s fault, as he is failing to make the correct decisions, and the company has lost its soul to greed.
“Not smart enough,” Paul said of White on This Past Weekend with Theo Von (via Curtis Calhoun). “ … Just look at what he’s doing! You don’t get Jon Jones on the White House card? First of all, Justin Gaethje is going to lose to Ilia [Topuria] on the White House card. So you have a Spaniard beating a white American on the patriotic White House card? Big mistake. Why are you not going to pay Jon Jones? They’ve gotten greedy, and they’ve forgotten their hearts as a company.
“It’s dying, because the best people in the sport become wrestlers and they just hold on,” Paul continued. “Look at Khabib, Khamzat. Boring! No one wants that …who has Paramount?”
Unfortunately for Jake Paul, the UFC is still doing tremendously well financially. The Paramount deal was a massive windfall for the company, and just a couple weeks ago, UFC Seattle sold out to deliver the highest-grossing North American Fight Night ever. So while there may be grumblings amongst fight fans, those criticisms have yet to affect the promotion’s bottom line in any significant way.
Also, Uncle Dana is fully removed from fighter negotiations, so maybe Paul should be directing his ire at UFC CBO Hunter Campbell and company?
