Issue 126
March 2015
England-based sports management group EPOK Agency and talent group Soul Artist Management have joined forces in a new venture to offer fighters an additional career path. The partnership will give athletes the chance to earn money as models or even begin a career in the world of entertainment while they continue their fight career.
The two teams are looking to push fighters into mainstream media outlets, enhance their brands and gain exposure in areas they couldn’t before. According to the head of EPOK, Ajay Chander, UFC welterweight and professional model Alan Jouban will be the first client to fully benefit from the opportunities Soul Artist Management’s sports athletic department has to offer.
“It’s harder to pick up sponsorships now,” says Chandler. “I think with the deal that we now have – and if I am going to be completely honest about it, I’ll use Alan Jouban as an example – we are going to be in a position where Alan is going to be earning more outside of the UFC than he is in it.
“There is no two ways about that. To have that regular income stream it is all about growing your popularity, growing your fan base and being able to attract big endorsements. And we will be able to do that with Soul.”
UFC Fight Pass adds eight more organizations’ archives
The UFC’s digital streaming service will expand its library to include the archives of eight more MMA promotions this spring. Subscribers will have access to more than 6,500 extra hours of content including approximately 13,000 fights.
The new content includes fights from Cage Rage, Extreme Challenge, XFO, UCMMA, HookNShoot, TKO, King of the Cage and Pancrase. UFC chief content officer, Marshall Zelaznik, also teased the possibility of live streams from those organizations that are still actively promoting fights, as well as the addition of more new ones.
“There are more acquisitions to come,” he said. “There are a number of irons in the fire. Promoters are looking at Fight Pass. It’s a challenging world to get your content out there. Fight Pass is becoming the gold seal for MMA.”
Monster Energy drink close to million-dollar UFC deal
Talks between the UFC and Monster Energy Drink are rumored to have taken place to set up a multi-million dollar deal to bring the Bellator MMA sponsor inside the Octagon too.
The deal was said to be worth more than $7 million and could be used alongside the Reebok deal to bump up the sponsorship pay of many of the fighters on the UFC roster.
These reports come on the heels of former energy drink sponsor Xyience ending their relationship with the Octagon. Monster has a long history in the world of MMA, having sponsored fighters including ‘Rampage’ Jackson, Dominick Cruz and Michael Chandler.
1,237,000
Lyoto Machida’s 62 second body kick KO over CB Dollaway at UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Dollaway was seen by 1,237,000 people on Fox Sports 1 in the US alone.
Rallying/Crashed: The MMA business can be cruel and kind
Rallying: Badbreed
UK-based MMA equipment company Badbreed has gone from strength to strength lately, creating quality gear for fighters to use in the gym and cage. Its new signature competition gi is a must-have for all BJJ practitioners.
Crashed: Pimpit
You may have seen Pimpit walkout tees and shorts in multiple MMA promotions but they have slowly faded away. Once a visual brand that capitalized on the growing MMA market, it has now fallen away like many others.
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