Sherdog.com’s 2016 Story of the Year

It was in May when rumors of an impending Ultimate Fighting Championship sale began to gain momentum. During an appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show,” UFC President Dana White shot down and ESPN.com report that Zuffa was in “advanced talks” to sell the company, with at least four potential interested bidders in the hunt. “We’re not up for sale,” White said. “We’re always working on deals and our expansion globally. I’ve been saying since this thing came out, ‘No, we’re not for sale,’ but let me tell you what, if somebody shows up with $4 billion, we can talk. We can definitely talk.”White’s denial, as the running joke inside the MMA bubble goes, told savvy observers the sale was probably all but finalized. After all, it would not be the first time the promotion figurehead told the media one thing and the exact opposite happened. Sure enough, some two months later, Zuffa cashed in on what was a longshot investment back in 2000, selling the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion to William Morris Endeavor and International Management Group (WME-IMG) for a reported $4 billion. In a tumultuous and memorable year for mixed martial arts, the sale of the UFC surpasses the rise of union and labor groups, Conor McGregor’s two-division reign, the implosion of UFC 200 and the death of Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson as Sherdog’s “Story of the Year” — not only for its immediate impact, but for the changes the sale will inevitably enact in the coming months and years. Brothers Lorenzo Fertitta and Frank Fertitta III purchased the UFC for $2 million in 2000 and promoted their first event at UFC 30 on Feb. 23, 2001. After building the promotion into a massive mainstream success, the brothers relinquished their 40.5 ownership stakes for passive minority interest, with Lorenzo Fertitta stepping down from day-to-day operations as the company CEO. WME-IMG is one of the world’s largest talent agencies, representing artists in movies, music and television, as well as the NFL, NHL and some athletes in the UFC. The sale was the most lucrative ever for a professional sports franchise and signified just what a big business the UFC has become. “We’ve been fortunate over the years to represent [the] UFC and a number of its remarkable athletes,” WME-IMG CEOs Ariel Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell said in a joint statement. “It’s been exciting to watch the organization’s incredible growth over the last decade under the leadership of the Fertitta brothers, Dana White and their dedicated team. We’re now committed to pursuing new opportunities for [the] UFC and its talented athletes to ensure the sport’s continued growth and success on a global scale.” White, who once convinced the Fertittas, his longtime friends, to take a chance on the UFC, reaped the rewards from the sale. He …

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