Vince McMahon explains why he decided to pass on buying UFC in the early 2000s: “We create characters”
Former WWE owner Vince McMahon has opened up on his decision to pass on buying the UFC.
As many fans are likely aware, the UFC was sold for over 4 billion dollars back in mid-2016. However, some might not be aware, that the company was nearly sold a decade before that. In the early to mid-2000s, the company was hemorrhaging money. With that, the son of Vince McMahon, Shane, had an idea.
Shane McMahon wanted to buy the UFC, but the deal never came to fruition. While some murmurs about the potential buyout have come out in the last few years, it’s never been discussed at length. Well, that’s exactly what Vince McMahon did in a recently released Netflix documentary.
In the new series titled ‘Mr. McMahon’, the controversial promoter details his rise and his fall. During one of the episodes, Vince McMahon was asked about his talks to buy the UFC, and how close the deal came. According to the former WWE CEO, while his son was interested, he was never sold on the company.
Photo via WWE
Former WWE CEO Vince McMahon explains why he decided not to buy the UFC
The controversial promoter explained that in MMA, you obviously can’t script the results. While McMahon loves to tell stories over in the world of the WWE, that can’t be done over in the UFC. With that in mind, he decided to pass. Nearly two decades later, the two companies would merge and become the TKO Group.
“When it was presented in terms of buying UFC, I didn’t like that business model,” Vince McMahon stated in the documentary. “Our business model was that we created characters, much like Disney or someone else, and we can then use them forever. As opposed to a boxer/UFC [fighter]. Once you’re beat, once you’re hurt, your career is over. We’re in showbusiness and that is a sport.” (h/t Talksport)
He continued, “Ten years later, the UFC was sold for a lot of money. And Shane, I think, wants to take credit for the idea of buying UFC. Shane really thought that was the way to go. So, if that’s the way to go, ‘Shane, you take your money and put it in. It wouldn’t work because it would’ve taken a huge investment and Shane only had a little bit, so that’s not a good investment.”
What do you make of these comments from Vince McMahon? How do you think the UFC would’ve turned out under his power?
