Ever since that loss to Paddy Pimblett at UFC 314, Michael Chandler has found himself in a precarious position. He never got that ‘red panty night’ fight against Conor McGregor, and even though the Irishman tends to keep teasing about a comeback against the former Bellator champion, it doesn’t look like that fight is ever coming to fruition. However, Chandler isn’t going to slip out of relevance, as he’s maintaining his presence across social media platforms and garnered attention recently for his take on Dana White and Co.’s new TV deal.
Dana White recently made a historic announcement, with the UFC signing a $7.7 billion TV deal with Skydance’s Paramount, with certain events to simulcast on the CBS network from 2026 onwards. This was a huge win for the fans as the PPV model will cease to exist when the deal comes into effect because every time they had to pay $79.99 to watch a numbered event. This also seemed to be a victory for those who access illegal streams to watch UFC PPVs, but Michael Chandler seemed to have a message for them, trying to stick up to Dana White, as they are his biggest enemies because he’s been waging a war on them from a legal standpoint for years.
There have been reports that the yearly cost of being a UFC fan costs people over a thousand dollars every year. But now, it looks like the total will be less than a couple of hundred dollars. Now that things are looking financially friendly, Michael Chandler took a shot at the illegal streamers with a post on Threads. “Are all you scummy illegal streamers going to pony up and pay the Paramount subscription?”
Well, a certain user on the platform decided to share his perspective, claiming that the “average American” cannot afford the PPV fee. Defending those who access such streaming sites, the user even took shots at Michael Chandler’s dirty tactics inside the Octagon, calling it “scummy.” It would have been better for ‘Iron’ to scoot past that comment and ignore it, but he decided to respond to the comment, using McDonald’s as an example to convey his message. Chandler wrote, “That McDonald’s cheeseburger you eat costs you $5 but costs McDonald’s 7 cents…do you steal those too? Asking for a friend.”
MMA: UFC 274-Chandler vs Ferguson, May 7, 2022 Phoenix, Arizona, USA Michael Chandler during UFC 274 at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports, 07.05.2022 19:38:19, 18361648, Michael Chandler, MMA PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xMarkxJ.xRebilasx 18361648
Well, a lot of fans have shown their support to Dana White after penning the $7.7B deal. However, there is a UFC legend who recently blasted the Las Vegas-based promotion, and even claimed that the whole Paramount deal was “terrible.” Let’s take a look at that front.
Dana White and Co. slammed by UFC legend after signing new TV deal
The UFC CEO recently claimed that the new TV deal is likely to increase the money that fighters earn in the promotion. But for the former double champion, Georges St-Pierre, that’s not the case. The Canadian star believes that this deal might be more beneficial to the UFC than the fighters, especially because there will be no PPV points. As such, St-Pierre believes this will take away the fighters’ ability to negotiate a better deal for themselves.
“It could be good for the UFC as a promoter, but terrible for the fighters because when I was competing, I was able to have a great argument to negotiate on my contract,” Georges St-Pierre told Covers in a recent interview. “So it might be a bad thing for the fighters in a way that they have less leverage. I think it’s going to take off some leverage for the big names to have an argument to negotiate more money.”
While the fighters might face issues, things have now become easier for UFC fans to access. So, maybe Michael Chandler wasn’t wrong in calling the illegal streamers out on social media. What do you think? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below.
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