10 Things We Learned from Fedor Emelianenko's Leaked Contract

No Handpicking Opponents




Emelianenko didn't have much control over who he fought. He was allowed to reject one proposed opponent, but only one. After that he was forced to choose between two proposed opponents. Matchmaking was almost solely in the hands of his promoter, M-1 Global:

2.4. Opponent(s): Fighter's opponent in each Bout shall be assigned by Global, at Global's sole discretion, provided, however that Fighter shall be entitled an opportunity to reject, in the exercise of commercially reasonable judgment, the first proposed opponent. Under such condition, Global shall then offer Fighter one additional proposed opponent. If Fighter wants to reject any opponent, Fighter must send Global written notice of such rejection within 48 hours of receipt of written notice of the assignment by Global. Fighter shall be obligated, however, to accept one of two opponents offered by Global to Fighter for such Bout. Any opponent shall be selected by Global in good faith negotiation with Manager. Global is obligated to make every commercially reasonable effort to select opponents that positively support the career of Fighter and will lead to a respected bout within the industry.

10 Things We Learned from Fedor Emelianenko's Leaked Contract

It Pays to Win




The UFC pays fighters a win bonus, usually the same amount they make to show up and fight. M-1 Global has something similar for Fedor. He didn't earn a win bonus, but he did get paid more if he was winning fights than he did if he was losing them. Fedor, in short, had a million reasons to win each bout:

6.2. Fighter Services/Bouts: In consideration for the Fighter Services provided and rights granted by Fighter pursuant to this Agreement, Global shall pay Contractor the following sums within two business days after the conclusion of each respective Bout. 6.2.1. For the first Bout, the sum of Two Million Dollars (U.S.$2,000,000.00).

6.2.2. For each subsequent Bout: 6.2.2.1. If Fighter won the previous Bout, the sum of Two Million Dollars (U.S.$2,000,000.00); or 6.2.2.2. If Fighter lost the previous Bout the sum of One Million Dollars (U.S.$1,000,000.00).

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10 Things We Learned from Fedor Emelianenko's Leaked Contract

Fedor Got Paid Fedor fought three times over the term of this contract. Because he won each of those bouts, he was paid $2 million a fight. Combined with his signing bonus of $1.5 million, he took home some major cash for his trouble.

The leaked contract states:

Global and Fighter are party to a binding Letter of Intent dated September 25, 2007 (“LOI”) and Fighter has received the first payment of $1,500,000, a signing bonus, as provided therein.

10 Things We Learned from Fedor Emelianenko's Leaked Contract

Salaries and contract terms for top mixed martial arts fighters are a closely guarded secret. The UFC, for example, keeps their contracts completely under wraps. No one knows exactly how much top fighters make—and that's just the way the promotion likes it.

With that in mind, you can imagine the excitement of hardcore MMA fans on the Underground, a popular message board, when a fighter contract surfaced recently. Member "ShoeMoney," who has shown an ability to access other confidential information, got his hands on a 2008 contract between Russian great Fedor Emelianenko and promoter M-1 Global.

I can't vouch for certain that this leaked contract is authentic. If it's fake, someone spent an awful lot of time translating 45 pages into Russian and English. My hunch, but it's only a hunch, is that this is the real deal.

I intend to treat it as such and explore some of the intricacies of a high level fighter's promotional contract. Ready to dive in?Buy MMA Training Gear At Century MMA

2012 MMA All-Stars:

After Pat Curran won his featherweight crown, he and the referee dressed Joe Warren up in cabana wear, propped him on a broomstick and walked him up and down the beach in an effort to score chicks.

Buy MMA Training Gear At Century MMA

Eddie Wineland and Mike Easton, who has two victories in 2012, are also good candidates here. But Barao gets the nod after a win over Scott Jorgensen and a series of unfortunate events (for the other fighters) lifted him into an interim title fight with Urijah Faber. 

Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall, on the other hand, had to learn that lesson the hard way.

In March, Johnson was announced as a winner. Then it was later revealed it was a draw. I'm sorry...I didn't get that. Please re-enter your 29-digit account code.

In June, Johnson beat McCall fair and square to earn a date with Benavidez in the UFC flyweight tournament final. He gets top billing for pulling double duty in 2012.

  

UFC 148 Anderson Silva Forrest Griffin

It seems like we've been waiting on UFC 148 for years, but now, it's over and we must move on.

Saturday night Anderson Silva defeated his bitter rival Chael Sonnen by TKO and Forrest Griffin ended the career of Tito Ortiz.

So to kick off the moving on process, we're going to discuss what's next for the 11 men who came up short Saturday night in Las Vegas, Nev.

UFC 148: Silva-Sonnen II

With UFC 148 now only a week away, hosting the most anticipated rematch in the history of MMA in Anderson Silva-Chael Sonnen II, there’s plenty to talk about in the world of caged combat.

Fans are enthusiastically looking forward to this one, but they’re not overlooking several other big fights happening this summer.