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Morning Report: Dana White says fighters and managers 'better think long and hard' before signing with Bellator

By Shaun Al-Shatti

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Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

Since ominously predicting the situation would "get ugly," UFC President Dana White has remained largely silent regarding Bellator MMA's ongoing legal battle for the services of Eddie Alvarez.

However, after learning that a judge denied Alvarez's request for an injunction, one which would have allowed the former Bellator lightweight champion to fight at UFC 159, White held nothing back while speaking to the collected media at UFC on FOX 6's post-fight scrum.

"The judge must not have done his homework if he's agreeing that Spike TV and FOX are the same platforms," exclaimed White. "They're so f--king far apart, it's not even funny. It's two different f--king universes.

"I saw in their argument where they said, ‘Oh, Spike launches pay-per-views.' No, actually they don't. That's not true. We did. What they're doing is, they're saying -- not as much Spike, as Viacom -- has been saying, ‘We built the UFC.' No you f--king did not. No you did not, you arrogant, pompous jackass. You did not build the UFC. We'll see if you did."

Aside from the discrepancies between Spike TV and FOX, the pay-per-view aspect has been one of the case's primary sticking points. And White, much like Alvarez, fails to understand how a promotion with zero pay-per-view experience can skirt the issue.

"It's ridiculous," White fumed. "I don't know how a court or a judge couldn't see that. And even if they said, ‘You know what, let's really dive into this thing. Let's see what the lowest pay-per-view is the UFC has ever done. Let's see if we can find out what a low number is, what a high number is, and let's see if we can find a right number that Eddie Alvarez should be paid.' There's got to be some middle ground there. Say, okay, depending on what pay-per-view he would have been on, this is maybe what he should have been paid. Find a middle ground, and pay the kid what he should've been paid. There's nothing wrong with this whole situation as long as Eddie Alvarez gets paid.

"This isn't one of those situations where you're talking about, ‘Poor little Bellator.' Viacom owns Bellator. They're the owners of Bellator. They pull the triggers. They make the money. They have the money, they decide what's going on over there.

"These are boxing guys, man," an exasperated White finished. "This is what boxing guys do. They sue everybody. They're always in court, every 15 minutes. So this is something, this Eddie Alvarez situation, if you look at the 13-year history of the UFC, and our relationship with fighters, and what we've done, there's always going to be a situation where guys need more money. Everybody wants to make more money. You guys want to make more money. Everybody needs to make more money. That's never going to change. That's in all of sports, okay?

"But you better think long and hard if you're a manager or a fighter and you're about to do a deal with Bellator. Think long and hard about how you negotiate that contract."

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6 MUST-READ STORIES

Judge rules against Alvarez, White responds. A federal judge denied Eddie Alvarez's request for an injunction, one which would have allowed the former Bellator lightweight champion to fight at UFC 159. A day later, UFC President Dana White's response was clear: "You better think long and hard if you're a manager or a fighter and you're about to do a deal with Bellator. Think long and hard about how you negotiate that contract."

Johnson retains title. UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson recovered from early trouble to edge John Dodson and successfully defend his title via unanimous decision in UFC on FOX 6's bonus winning main event. (Video.) For more, check out reaction from the pros.

Pettis, Lamas stake contender claims. Anthony Pettis soundly defeated Donald Cerrone with a dazzling array of strikes midway through the first round at UFC on FOX 6, declaring himself to be "the best in the lightweight division." For his work, the former WEC champ will now receive the next title shot against the winner of Benson Henderson vs. Gilbert Melendez. Likewise, top featherweight contender Ricardo Lamas dismantled Erik Koch in a bloody two-round affair, explaining afterward that he no longer intends to "fly under the radar." (Video.)

UFC almost booked Fedor vs. Lesnar. According to Dana White, a long-rumored bout pitting former PRIDE legend Fedor Emelianenko against former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar at Cowboys Stadium nearly came to fruition prior to each man's retirement from MMA.

Rampage's UFC run ends in loss. Brazilian up-and-comer Glover Teixeira outstruck and outwrestled Quinton "Rampage" Jackson to sieze a unanimous decision victory in Jackson's final UFC fight. (Video.)

Despite hiccups, FOX 6 ratings strong. Even with a few broadcast hiccups and at least one FOX affiliate cutting off Johnson vs. Dodson to air The Big Bang Theory, preliminary ratings for Saturday night's UFC on FOX 6 broadcast were up 13-percent from FOX 5, scoring 3.77 million viewers with a 1.8 rating among adults age 18-49.

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MEDIA STEW

Dana White explaining Anderson Silva's next move during Saturday's post-fight scrum: "We're waiting on something." On a completely unrelated note, Rashad Evans fights this weekend.

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"I've been fighting for 13 years. The game has changed a lot. Maybe I'll just be one of those fighters that come in and excite the crowd. Be like Gary Goodridge." - Rampage Jackson, evoking a some frightening imagery.

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If you missed any part of last week's Bellator 86 main card, or just plain want to see it again, feel free to check it out below.

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Apparently Mike Swick filmed this. Aside from it being one of the more pointless videos we've ever posted, all I have to add is: That rat is gigantic.

(HT: MiddleEasy)

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Championship commercials, part 1.

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Championship commercials, part 2.

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John Dodson may have come up short on Saturday night, but at least he won our hearts with this performance.

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THE MIGHTIEST OF MICE

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RAMPAGE NO MORE

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SHOWTIME LIVES

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AFTERMATH

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JONNY BONES MAKING THE ROUNDS

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RAGE

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BARNETT SPEAKS

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SPEECHLESS

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FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Announced over the weekend (Friday, January 25, 2013 - Sunday, January 27, 2013):

  • N/A

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    Found something you'd like to see in the Morning Report? Just hit me on Twitter @shaunalshatti and we'll include it in tomorrow's column.

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