White: Bickering between fighter organization efforts is ‘hilarious’

There currently are at least three efforts underway to organize fighters.

The first was the Mixed Martial arts Fighters Association (MMAFA), founded by attorney Robert Maysey in 2009. It is run by individuals with deep personal integrity and has broad goals across the sport at its professional level. The MMAFA is involved in a massive, multi-million dollar class action lawsuit underway, and hopes among other goals to expand the Federal Law covering professional boxing, The Muhammad Ali Act, to MMA. A bill towards that end has been introduced.

In August the formation of the Professional Fighters Association was announced. It is run by baseball agent Jeff Borris, who works for an agency that represents the Diaz brothers. He seeks to unionize UFC fighters, which will require a legal change of fighter status from independent contractor to employee.

Borris entered the space without so much as speaking with the MMAFA, which is, frankly, an overt FU. His highest profile supporter, UFC bantamweight Leslie Smith, disavowed her association with Borris over concerns that fighters she had promised confidentiality to appeared on a PFA document that went public. Borris denied the leak, and said he has higher profile supporters, but they are afraid to be public.

Recently, a new group seeking to organize fighters announced its formation the MMAAA. Where Borris said fighters are too frightened to come forward, the MMAAA launched with a media call that included Georges St-Pierre, Donald Cerrone, Tim Kennedy, Cain Velasquez and T.J. Dillashaw.

The MMAAA was started by Bellator MMA founder Bjorn Rebney, and has received support from CAA, arch rivals of new UFC owners WME-IMG. Shortly afterward, Rebney further revealed his plans, which include getting the UFC to acquiesce to a fighter’s union in exchange for an anti-trust exemption, like that enjoyed by the NFL.

The MMAFA has urged fighters to politely decline union solicitation requests from the PFA (or any other agent run effort), via Facebook. The MMAAA says the plans put forward by the MMAFA and the PFA will take too long, so sign up before midnight tonight. Attorneys for the MMAFA class-action suit have hit the MMAAA with a Cease and Desist letter.

During a recent interview with Canada’s TSN, UFC president Dana White described the in-fighting as comical.

The thing in the past used to be, ‘let’s start an organization and we’ll go out and compete against the UFC; the new thing is, ‘Let’s start an association or a union,’ said White, as transcribed by Mike Bohn for MMAjunkie. There’s three of them out there, and all three of them claim to be out for the best interest of the fighters. They’re all fighting with each other. They’re suing each other, they’re hitting each other with cease and desists. It’s hilarious.

White also had pointed words for Bjorn Rebney, who was not fighter friendly when he was a promoter.

He’s a bottom-feeder, said White. That’s what that guy is. He’s a guy that – he’s not out to make any real deals. The guy’s out to make money. I say this all the time to the fighters when they ask me about unions or associations: These guys are grown men and women; they can do whatever they want to do.

As a fighter there’s a lot of people that are trying to put their hand in your pocket. Be careful whose hand you let go in your pocket, especially a guy like that. I think that’s the major mistake this association made is having this guy be involved. It blows all credibility of what you’re saying you’re trying to do.