No, the actual note to be made here is the idea that UFC screwed up and they are “ruined” in Japan, and oh, are they screwed. Truth is Zach Arnold, the leader of this type of nonsense, is on record saying the Japanese market is pretty dead. SHOOTO and Pancrase will exist, and do well for small productions. But UFC is in America, and puts on “western” shows. Why waste so much money in a market that doesn’t want Americans, w/ a Pride name that’s tainted, and a fanbase diminished. PRIDE lost money for years running shows in domes for TV simply because in Japan the idea of flash is more important than making money. It’s all image. Japan is dead. Dana White is going there anytime soon regardless. There are maybe 4-6 Japanese fighters that the UFC would want, and frankly, if they aren’t signed, Jordan Breen and six other people who are smart mark MMA fans will cry foul. no one else will know or care.

Pride was a great organization that made alot of fighters wealthy and entertained alot of fans. But there is a reason why fighters were paid in cash the night of the show, lack of commissions left to mismatches and “freak show” fights, hometown decisions were made by judges w/o credentials to protect fighters, booking was done for entertainment and not sport (the Japanese see no difference w/ MMA and Pro Wrestling, something rarely mentioned in MMA sports influenced writers), and finally, that PRIDE was probably going to fold if UFC didn’t buy the libary, though I do take issue w/ you writing 70 million USD. The highest price quoted was 65 million, but the actual price is said to actually be about 10-15 million, since due dillegence is done after the sale is announced, so between March and September things changed. A quote would have satisfied my admittedly sensitive eyes.

With so many Pride fighters filtering in to UFC, and the UFC remaining strong at the PPV box office, slowly they will recover there loses. Wether they should have let the company die and recover the tape library and tradmarks in bancrupcty is a better question, but they survive regardless.

Finally, would like to add that Dave Meltzer reported the reasons for the financial report by Standards and Poor. It comes down the loans owed years from now, with alot of smoke that actually leads to no fire (unless Zach Arnold uses details to make a story out of nothing, which is always possible..oops, he did). if UFC defaults on loans in 2015, then there’s a story:)

Good article!