Trading Shots: Is the UFC unpromoting dissatisfied fighters?

Some familiar themes emerged this past week as UFC management responded to complaints from UFC labor. In this week’s Trading Shots, MMAjunkie columnist Ben Fowlkes and retired UFC and WEC fighter Danny Downes debate what it all means.

* * * *

Fowlkes: A couple interesting things happened this week, Danny. First, Anderson Silva declared himself old and tired, saying he was tired of being jerked around by the UFC and wanted an interim title fight against Yoel Romero or he was going to retire.

Meanwhile, in Stockton, Nate Diaz explained that he wasn’t going to fight again until the UFC met his number, which it had thus far refused to do.

Where it gets really interesting? The response from UFC President Dana White. According to him, Silva should retire and Diaz should take what he can get, because he’s not popular enough to justify what he’s asking for.

I realize that this is mostly strategy on White’s part, but am I alone in thinking that maybe it’s not a brilliant move by the promoter to play down the popularity of his fighters and drive his own legends out of the sport, all just to save himself a few bucks or keep the upper hand? How are you going to sell their next fights when you just told us one guy should quit and the other is a nobody?

Downes: On its face, it does seem like an odd move for a promoter to be underselling his fighters. When you think about it, though, what does he really have to lose? How many people are fans of Diaz, then hear White’s statements and say, “You know what? Maybe Dana is right. No way I’m going to buy a Diaz pay-per-view!”

When it suits him, White will contradict himself completely and not bat an eye. He’ll probably still call Silva “kid.”

It may not hurt him with fans or prospective PPV buyers, but I would agree that it isn’t best for his working relationships with the fighters on the roster. If you listen to interviews with most fighters, White has been noticeably absent.

In recent interviews with Frank Mir and Diaz, both remarked how their texts and/or calls to White have gone unanswered. Other fighters also have talked about how they haven’t spoken with White in months.

The UFC president has taken a lower profile in recent years, but outside the odd TMZ rant or interview with a UFC employee, he’s now all but disappeared from public view. Some of this may be WME-IMG running a tighter ship. The new owners probably prefer contractual negotiations to take place between lawyers instead of via text messages. White’s habit for just saying stuff has also caused the company more problems then hurting Silva’s feelings.

All this leads me to the question, is White still relevant? Yes, he still has a position with the UFC with a great degree of power, but how relevant is he to the larger discourse of MMA and the UFC? Sure, his statements provide an easy headline (UFC President throws [insert new target] under the bus!), but isn’t it about time we give a little less attention to what he says? Rants or inane statements are not policy.

Fowlkes: Aren’t they, though? To some extent? Because it’s not like White is saying one thing while the UFC is doing another.

It would appear, at least for now, that Silva is not getting that interim title fight he wants. It would also appear that Diaz isn’t getting a payday big enough to lure him back into the cage. You could argue that White’s justifications are all his own and do not reflect the views of UFC ownership, but at the end of the day, the decisions are still the same.

To me, it’s starting to seem like White is painting by numbers here. This guy wants more money or a bigger fight? Sorry, we can’t do that because nobody cares about him. (Nevermind the fact that one of the biggest headlines of the week was Diaz announcing on an internet talk show that he’s not fighting right now.) This former champ is thinking about retiring? Hey, if you even utter the word, you should quit. (Nevermind that he said the same thing about Miesha Tate shortly before she won the title.)

It’s all straight out of White’s promoter playbook, and it feels like the goal is making sure that the fighter never becomes bigger than the brand, even when that hurts the product in the short term. What I can’t help but wonder is, what if that’s exactly what the new owners want from the UFC President? What if they’re fine with this habit of unpromoting UFC fighters who kick up a fuss, as long as it keeps costs down and keeps the machine running lean?

To me, that sounds like bad news for the big picture. If there’s anything we’ve learned over the last few years, it’s that MMA is a star-driven sport. Right now the UFC is essentially telling us that there’s only one star, and he’s off changing diapers. If you suppress the other would-be stars just to save yourself some cash, where does that leave you in the end?

Downes: When it comes to someone like White, I always ask myself the same questions. Is he a genius Machiavelli pulling all the right strings? Do I disagree with the policy because I just can’t see the three dimensional chess he’s playing? Or is he a Mr. Magoo that happens to be in the right place at the right time despite himself?

In the context of this discussion we have to ask if this is a conscious, thought-out policy of the UFC, or if it’s a reactionary attitude born out of machismo.

I suppose it doesn’t matter what the motivations are because the results remain the same. I agree that the UFC has placed a premium on the brand being greater than an individual, but the powers that be are willing to break that protocol when it suits them.

Ronda Rousey fought in the UFC, but millions of people didn’t spend money to watch the “UFC fights.” They wanted to watch the Rousey fight. When you call Rousey a “once-in-a-lifetime athlete” you are making her bigger than the three little letters.

The McGregor/Aldo world tour wasn’t about the UFC featherweight championship. It was about putting Conor McGregor out there and letting him work his “Mystic Mac” magic. Perhaps the UFC regrets creating that monster, but it helped profits in the short term.

What these two aberrations have in common is that the UFC is willing to make an individual a brand as long as he/she is a company man/woman. Outside giant world tours, if you cooperated with UFC brass in the old administration, you could get other fringe benefits. Sometimes it would be an off-the-record bonus. Maybe you even flew in Uncle Frank’s private jet. As petty as they could be to perceived enemies, the UFC could be equally generous to allies.

Under the new ownership, though, you have to ask what benefit there is to being a company guy. Is Ari Emanuel going to hang out with fighters on the Vegas strip? Will fighters be able to text Patrick Whitesell to get a hookup on some tickets? As the incentives for fighters to be quiet rapidly diminish, we shouldn’t be surprised when fighters like Silva express their dissatisfactions. I guess I just wonder where they were five years ago when it could have made a difference.

Ben Fowlkes is MMAjunkie and USA TODAY’s MMA columnist. Danny Downes, a retired UFC and WEC fighter, is an MMAjunkie contributor who has also written for UFC.com and UFC 360. Follow them on twitter at @benfowlkesMMA and @dannyboydownes.