UFC

In two thousand and one, the UFC was banned in thirty six states. Senator John McCain called it human cockfighting. No television network would touch it. Dana White told his high school friends Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta to buy it. Two million dollars. They bought the entire organization for less than a single boxing purse. White built the business around one idea: the brand matters more than the fighter. In boxing, the fighter is everything. Muhammad Ali sold tickets. Mike Tyson sold pay-per-view. Floyd Mayweather negotiated hundred million dollar purses because promoters needed him. White built the opposite. Broadcasting deals belonged to the company. Sponsorships flowed to the company. Fighter compensation consumed sixteen to twenty percent of total revenue. Mid-tier fighters earned one hundred fifty thousand to two hundred thousand per fight. Champions earned five hundred thousand to five million.