Zuffa
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| Zuffa, LLC | |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Founder | Frank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta |
| Headquarters | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Key people | Dana White, President |
| Industry | Sports promotion |
| Owner | Frank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White |
| Subsidiaries | Ultimate Fighting Championship, World Extreme Cagefighting |
Zuffa, LLC is an American sports promotion company specializing in the promotion of mixed martial arts. It was founded in January 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada to be the new parent entity behind the Ultimate Fighting Championship by Station Casinos executives Frank Fertitta III and Lorenzo Fertitta, after they purchased the UFC from Semaphore Entertainment Group. The word "Zuffa" is an Italian word, meaning "brawl" or "fight with no rules".[citation needed] Zuffa is the entity credited with taking the UFC and mixed martial arts in the United States from a marginalized sport to being the fastest growing sport in the country, with fast-rising popularity within the highly-desired 18-30 male demographic.[citation needed]
Zuffa is headed by the Fertittas and President Dana White.[citation needed]
[edit] History
On December 11, 2006, Zuffa acquired the assets of the World Fighting Alliance, and formed WFA Enterprises, LLC. as a subsidiary to handle these assets, including select fighter contracts.[1] On the same day, it was reported that Zuffa was formalizing plans to buy World Extreme Cagefighting, to be run as a separate promotion from the UFC.
On March 27, 2007, it was announced that Frank Fertitta III and Lorenzo Fertitta were acquiring the assets of PRIDE Fighting Championships, the UFC's largest rival, from Dream Stage Entertainment. To handle the take over, the Fertitta brothers created a new corporate entity to handle the assets, Pride FC Worldwide Holdings LLC. With common ownership in place, Zuffa and Pride Worldwide would be working closely together. [2][3] Although goals of reviving PRIDE were not realized, many of PRIDE's assets, including contracts with fighters and intellectual property, are now regularly utilized by the UFC.
Zuffa also acquired select assets from now defunct promotion, WFA.
[edit] Zuffa's role in regulation
Zuffa is often credited with "cleaning up" mixed martial arts in the United States, also known as "no holds barred" fighting, but its contributions to the regulation of the sport have often been exaggerated by the media.[citation needed] The current rules used in the UFC were first established by the New Jersey Athletic Control Board in 2000, in consultation with the UFC and other MMA promotions in the United States.[citation needed] The first UFC event under the new rules was UFC 28, held before Zuffa's takeover. New Jersey's Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts has since been established throughout the country by other state athletic commissions, including Nevada and California.[citation needed] The UFC has however kept close ties with state commissions, especially the Nevada State Athletic Commission, of which Lorenzo Fertitta was a former board member.[citation needed]
