Issue 123

December 2014

UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ brawl with rival Daniel Cormier in August at a press event to promote their bout cost the 27-year-old his endorsement deal with sportswear giant Nike.

Jones revealed the information during a Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) disciplinary hearing regarding the melee, which happened in a Las Vegas hotel. When asked what punishment he expected to be levied after he punched Cormier in reply to the wrestler shoving him in the neck during an arranged staredown, Jones told the commission members he had faced some already. 

“I’ve lost a very big endorsement of mine, one of my biggest,” said Jones. “I’ve lost people who were interested in sponsoring me, those were going to be gigantic deals.”

One of Jones’ lawyers, Ofir Ventura, confirmed the former deal was the Nike agreement ‘Bones’ signed in 2012 and included lines of signature T-shirts and shoes. Ventura also revealed one of the failed agreements was worth six figures.

Jones signing with ultra high-profile Nike, at a similar time to former UFC champs Anderson Silva and Junior Dos Santos, was seen as a landmark moment for MMA in the West – Japanese fighters Caol Uno and Yoshihiro Akiyama enjoyed similar agreements in their native country years before.

The NSAC ultimately handed Jones a $50,000 fine and 40 hours of community service, Cormier was given a $9,000 fine and 20 hours of community service.

Industry jobs

Who: Russell Stone

Info: Co-founder of sports apparel manufacturer Virus Action Sports Performance, sponsor of UFC featherweight Cub Swanson

When did you start Virus and why?

“We started Virus in 2010 after the TapouT office was shut down in California, where I worked before. There was a huge hole in the market for performance apparel that was innovative, beneficial, well built and affordable. We went after sports that were not being served by our competitors. One we felt especially close to was MMA. Early on we had top MMA athletes using and testing our gear. Soon MMA retailers were looking at taking our products on.” 

Can you give an example of a time when the company may have been struggling and bounced back?

“We struggled early on. I recall a moment with my partner Ryan Rubiano (also from TapouT). We just launched the brand, had some decent initial sales but wondered, “How are we going to pull this off?’

“I called the UFC’s Cub Swanson to come over and get reconnected after friend and adviser Evan Shoman suggested I do. I was always a fan of Cub and worked with him in the past. He was going through tough times and it really felt like we were at the same place with our careers. 

“Working with Cub, his rise in his career soon paralleled our business growth. He really became a partner with us then and we have been mystically connected since. It’s tough, however, having a top MMA athlete as a partner; just the other day he threatened taking me to the mat to settle disputes from here on out. Lucky me.”

8th

UFC president Dana White didn’t take offense when GQ magazine recently ranked him as the eighth biggest sleazebag in sport.

UFC expands TV reach into sub-Saharan Africa and deeper into Europe

The UFC has increased its broadcast reach by 7 million households after inking an agreement with the Kombat Sport HD channel. The deal will see Sub-Saharan Africa, France, Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg receive UFC events and shoulder programming from 2015 to 2016. It’s a first for that area of Africa. 

Along with a similar TV deal announced around the same time – via the Fight Channel which serves approximately 1.5 million households across Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina – it looks like Europe, Middle East and Africa UFC boss Garry Cook is lining his ducks up in the region before heading over to Las Vegas in the New Year to officially begin his new post as chief global officer.

$2,500

‘King Mo’ Lawal was fined $2,500 for flipping off the crowd after a TKO win at Bellator 123 in September. 

Rallying/Crashed: The MMA business can be cruel and kind

Rallying: Matefit

UFC fighters such as Miesha Tate and Benson Henderson have displayed the logo of Matefit, the official herbal tea partner of the UFC, since it debuted in the Octagon during Alexis Davis’ 16-second drubbing at the hands of Ronda Rousey in July.

Crashed: Famous stars and straps

Created by Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker, Famous Stars and Straps was hyper popular 5–10 years ago, and maintained strong ties with former UFC 135lb champ Dominick Cruz for much of his title reign. However, it wasn’t visible for his stunning UFC comeback win in September.