Q: With it proving to be a nightmare, if you guys knew then what you know now, would you still go through with it?
DW: Yes.
Q: Because you felt with the library that it was worth it?
DW: To me it was. To me, personally, I wanted that library.
Q: When Pride was acquired, what was Zuffa's understanding of how contracts were structured in Pride and whether they could be transferred? It seemed like some fighters were willing to sign their contract over while some fighters weren't.
DW: It was one of a million nightmares. One of a million nightmares. The worst business deal ever done in the history of business. Crazy. It was totally bankrupt. They were out of money (and) had nothing. We wanted the company so we went in and bought it. It didn't matter how f----- it was, how crazy the deal was -- we got what we wanted.
Q: Were you guys under the impression that contracts would automatically transfer over or did you know that you would have to get fighters to sign over?
DW: It was sketchy. Some guys we knew, some guys we didn't.
Q: With all the problems encountered in the acquisition, was there an adjustment in the buyout price that was reported by the Associated Press?
DW: We never gave out the final price.
Q: But was the price that was put out there by the Associated Press anywhere close?
DW: You know I don't talk about money, man.
Q: You have said that Dec. 29 is a possible re-debut date for Wanderlei Silva. If Chuck Liddell defeats Keith Jardine at UFC 76 on Sept. 22, might Liddell fight next on Dec. 29?
DW: He might.
Q: So it's possible we could finally see Liddell vs. Silva on Dec. 29?
DW: It's possible. Liddell would have to win. Liddell would have to come out injury free. There's a lot of ifs.
Q: But if he's able to beat Jardine and get through the match healthy, is that the match we're going to see on Dec. 29?
DW: I'd like to see it, wouldn't you?
Q: (Laughs.) I've been waiting to see it for five years, Dana!
DW: You!?
Q: Josh Barnett was very critical of comments you made about Randy Couture right after his win at UFC 74 and somewhat questioned the legitimacy of Randy's title reign. Has Barnett burned a bridge to the UFC with his recent comments?
DW: He's just a punk. You know what? The thing is I don't want to even talk about Josh Barnett. Nobody even cares about Josh Barnett. I got Mirko Cro Cop, the guy that just beat the s--- out of him. I'm not interested in Josh Barnett at all as far as who he is as a person or as a fighter or how he represents the sport. I don't like anything about him.
If he's that talented and that great, then great, let Bodog or IFL or EliteProXC or whatever the hell the name of the rest of those companies -- let one of them sign him. If he's that great -- they're always trying to get a leg up on me, sign Josh Barnett you guys! He'll do wonders for your business.
Q: You were complimentary toward Denis Kang during the UFC 75 conference call, yet you stopped short of calling him one of Pride's major stars. Why is it that you feel he falls short of such a designation?
DW: I like Denis Kang. I think Denis Kang is a good fighter. To call Denis Kang one of the biggest stars in MMA? No, I wouldn't. I know Denis Kang has made a great living fighting over in Korea because he's (half) Korean. He's made a very good living fighting over there.
Denis Kang was supposed to be on Season 1 of The Ultimate Fighter but he ended up getting a good deal over in Korea. This is a guy we were looking at to be on season one of The Ultimate Fighter, I wouldn't call him one of the major superstars in MMA or one of the major superstars from Pride.
Q: There's been a lot of free-agent talk in regard to guys like Kang, Lesnar and Fedor. One name I haven't heard much about though is Gilbert Melendez. Does the UFC have any interest in him?
DW: I'm very interested in him. He's under contract with someone else right now. But yeah, I'm very interested in him.
Q: If Sean Sherk's appeal is upheld in October and he's forced to sit out a year, will he be welcomed back to the UFC after serving his suspension?
DW: Absolutely.
Q: You've said in the past that you need competition to exist because they help develop new stars. Two of your competitors, the IFL and EliteXC, are publicly traded and have shown significant losses as of late. When you hear about those reports, does that give you a sense of relief or a sense of concern because they won't be around to build new stars?
DW: First of all, the IFL isn't building any superstars right now. The IFL's model is stupid; the whole thing is going away. It doesn't concern me at all if the IFL goes away. They're not building any superstars -- that thing is just eating up air space on MyNetworkTV right now. I would have told you that it (IFL) was going to go away the first day it came out. I did, I told people if you want to lose your money, buy the IFL stock. I've always felt that way about the IFL.
These other companies? Yeah, I'd like to see these guys stick around. It's the breeding ground for up-and-coming fighters. It's a place where they can make some money so I'd hate to see them go away.
Q: You mentioned the IFL's TV contract. I recently read that it will be cut down to just one hour on Saturdays in the fall. They're going to be on during Saturdays at 8 p.m. ET and it turns out that nine MyNetworkTV affiliates have picked up UFC Wired at 7 p.m. ET. How do you feel about being a lead-in for the IFL?
DW: Oh my god. Seriously man? Just be honest. I'm always honest in my answers when you ask me and I'm the president of a major sports organization. Be honest, have you watched that f------ show?
Q: Yes, I do. Ever since they've changed production companies in July, I think it's been much improved. Before that, I thought the show lacked direction.
DW: Oh my god! If it was worse before than it is now (then) I can't even imagine. It's the worst thing I've ever seen. I watched it one time at Lorenzo (Fertitta)'s house for like 25 minutes, and we just kept looking at each other. It's the dumbest show I've ever seen. It's horrible. I can't believe that it's lasted this long.
Q: During the UFC 74 conference call, you mentioned you might be the problem standing in the way of a finalized deal with HBO. What specifically have you done that you feel has caused issues?
DW: You know, I want to do this thing the way that I want to do it. I have a very powerful brand, they have a very powerful brand and we're both trying to make sure that we protect our brand. So it's taken about a year longer than it should have.
Q: Is it an issue where the UFC wants to retain all control over production?
DW: It's a big part of it, yeah.
Q: Are there issues in addition to that that you can talk about?
DW: We're in contract negotiations with them. I can't be talking to the press what our issues are. (Laughs.) We've got enough f------ issues without me talking about our issues with the press.
Q: But you're still confident that a deal is going to get done?
DW: I'm very confident.
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Originally Posted by theEmpiric
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Shogun ends the debate
