By Dave Walsh

The MMA landscape right now is far different than it has ever been before; what we find is a world where big corporations are actually competing with each other to get in on the MMA world while it is hot. We have CBS having their first successful EliteXC show (which of course was not without controversy) and with a second in the planning stages right now. We have NBC airing Strikeforce at some ungodly hour and actually pulling in good ratings and talks of a live show possibly within the next few months after NBC saw just how well CBS did in their initial outing. We have the UFC standing firm to their convictions running monthly PPV shows as well as the occasional SpikeTV special. We have WEC running every few months, with their last show pulling in astounding ratings. 

The latest entrant into the ever-expanding fight game will be Affliction, with Donald Trump the big corporate interest. The clothing company for “hip” guys who like gaudy t-shirts with skulls on them that retail for upwards of $150 will make their big MMA debut on July 19, in what is actually shaping up to be the biggest card of the year so far, with Fedor Emelianenko squaring off with Tim Sylvia in a clash of the former (never actually lost it) PRIDE Heavyweight Champion and the multi-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. What makes this fight so big is that we have not seen a heavyweight fight of this caliber and importance in years, at least since PRIDE folded up shop. Fedor can still be argued to be the top heavyweight in the world, and Sylvia is nipping at his heels. On top of that, other heavyweight standouts and top contenders like Andrei Arlovski, Josh Barnett, Aleks Emelianenko and Ben Rothwell help to fill out the card, as well as Matt Lindland, Renato “Babalu” Sobral and a few other names.

The reported, projected salaries for these fighters are through the roof, with millions of dollars being tossed around for the main event alone. While this doesn’t seem like a big deal, when big name fighters like Tito Ortiz, Randy Couture and Tim Sylvia have been, for the last year or so, making public statements about promoters and their “profit sharing” having a company like Affliction tossing real money at fighters will prove to be interesting. Look at it like an experiment; if the show is a success and the fighters are paid well and the show ends up profitable it could set a precedent for other companies, if not, Dana White will keep cackling and will be proven right in his statement that fighters “don’t know shit” about how the business works and what they should be paid.

Other than promoting some of the most exciting heavyweight fights seen in years, Affliction has taken a far different approach to the fight game than anybody else has; they have enlisted Donald Trump to be the figurehead of the promotion. Originally simply announced as being involved with Affliction, it was announced earlier this week that Michael D. Cohen, Executive Vice President & Special Counsel to Mr. Trump, was named Chief Operating Officer for the newly formed Affliction Entertainment. So it is beginning to look like Trump’s involvement with Affliction is a bit more than cosmetic, it looks like Trump might have a legitimate stake in the company, which means the chances of this being taken more seriously have just increased, as well as the visibility of this show has gone beyond the hardcore fight fans.

Fans have been decrying the use of Trump as a simple, cheap promotional tactic, and that it somehow detracts from the sport to have a crackerjack celebrity’s face as the draw as opposed to simply the fights. The reality is, using Trump’s resources and image to help promote the show is a very smart move on Affliction’s part. When this show was announced initially, as well as the insane pay structure and the building problems it looked like Affliction would go out in a one show blaze of glory. Instead, it looks like we might see more Affliction shows in the future and that there are many people pulling for this show to be a success. On top of all of this, the Trump name could help Affliction land a better TV deal than PPV and HDNet (which it seems like any fly-by-night fight company can get on, HDNet are just desperate).

The other wild card in this situation, and something that Trump involvement might actually help come to fruition is Tito Ortiz. Tito, as he has mentioned near the end of his UFC tenure, was in talks with Trump about starting up his own promotion, but noted that he was more about making money than staking out on his own. In a press conference last Thursday, Trump name-dropped Ortiz as a name he would like to see brought into Affliction after Tito’s tenure on “The Apprentice.” Contrary to UFC’s attempts to sully the name of Tito Ortiz over contract disputes and putting him in a fight against a fighter he had no real chance of beating (note: I make no claims to Tito being washed-up, but instead that Lyoto’s style was just a very bad match-up for Tito) in an attempt to publicly embarrass and emasculate Tito, Tito Ortiz is still a star. Tito had proven throughout the years to be one of the actual draws in MMA, and UFC’s attempts to push him down the card and make him look like a fool will most likely not destroy that drawing potential. Like him or hate him, respect his ability or think he is washed up, Tito Ortiz is one of the premiere stars in MMA, and should have no problem drawing outside of the UFC brand.

UFC promotes in a unique fashion, where the fighters aren’t as important as the UFC brand itself is. There are many standout stars in the UFC, and no doubt they help promote the cards, but the UFC name itself has proven to draw on its own, regardless of how weak a PPV card is. No other company has this unique advantage, but at the same time, no other name comes before UFC in Dana White’s eyes. Tito Ortiz spent his career promoting himself as a brand name, and it worked. Affliction is approaching MMA in the same fashion, but instead of simply cashing in on the still niche Affliction brand name, they are trying to take in as many brand names as they can; Affliction, Trump, Fedor (while not a tangible product, he is one of the biggest names to fight fans), rumblings of Megadeth performing at the show (yeah, seriously, WTF?), the possibility of Tito Ortiz. Affliction understands that this is a sport, but they are approaching it like an entertainment company, something that UFC, Pro Elite, Strikeforce and everybody else has neglected to do. Affliction has the lineup of fighters to make for a great sporting event, and is doing their best to brand this show to the moon to make sure it has mainstream appeal.

In the next few weeks leading up to July 19 we’ll see just exactly how serious Trump is about Affliction, as well as we’ll see if Affliction can deliver on their unique approach. What we do know is that they are both committed to spending the money, time and effort into making the Affliction: Banned show a success. The possibilities of Affliction succeeding where the next biggest name, EliteXC has failed is really something to look out for and could be very, very good for the North American MMA scene if the UFC can have some actual competition. With this noted, I fully expect Kevi Iole and the rest of the Zuffa-purchased pundits to call Donald Trump a poopy head and completely ignore any of Affliction’s possible merits.