Current and former fighters have filed multiple class-action lawsuits against the UFC on Tuesday substantial amount of money on the grounds it violated antitrust laws. Three such antitrust lawsuits have been confirmed thus far.UFC responded with a statement on its website that reads, "The UFC is aware of the action filed today but has not been served, nor has it had the opportunity to review the document. The UFC will vigorously defend itself and its business practices."
According to a separate report from Brookhouse released on Tuesday, three of the fighters involved in the lawsuit are Jon Fitch, Cung Le and Nate Quarry. Brookhouse provided details on the specifics of the lawsuit:Brookhouse and Nash also state in the original report that UFC's new sponsorship deal with Reebok "appears to have reached into the suit, resulting in some strategic changes."
UFC and Reebok agreed upon that new deal on Dec. 1, per UFC.com, with UFC Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Fertitta saying it's "the biggest non-broadcast partnership that our company has ever signed."
However, the blockbuster agreement has not been met with praise from all UFC fighters. Heavyweight Brendan Schaub, who co-hosts the podcast The Fighter & The Kid, recently claimed that his sponsors were pulling out because of the Reebok deal, via Kelefa Sanneh of The New Yorker.
"I make twice as much money off sponsors than I do what the UFC pays me," Schaub said. Before his latest fight, he claimed that about six of his sponsors pulled out, per Sanneh.
"It's the lowest I've ever made on sponsorship money," he said.Fighters generate income through various sponsorship deals, which can be seen on their attire in the ring and banners that get held over the cage prior to the start of a fight.
It's unclear how much of a role the Reebok deal is playing in the class-action lawsuit, but Schaub's comments and the details in the lawsuit certainly paint a dark picture of what the future holds for the largest MMA promotion in the world.
Source http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2299031-ufc-sued-by-fighters-in-class-action-lawsuit-latest-details-and-reaction
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