AFFLICTION BANNED: Pulling No Punches

Posted on | June 26, 2008 | 1 Comment

©Marc Wickert,

Knuckle Pit!

June 18, 2008

On July 19, 2008, Affliction Clothing and the Trump Organization, in association with Roy Englebrecht Events, will be presenting what is expected to be ‘A Bigger Bang’ in the world of mixed martial arts with Affliction Banned. And they are leaving no stone unturned to deliver what they are calling “The Greatest MMA Event in the History of the Sport”.

To be held at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, the main event will feature Pride’s undisputed heavyweight champion and M-1 legend Fedor ‘The Last Emperor’ Emelianenko (27-1) against former two-time UFC heavyweight champion and Team Miletich legend Tim ‘The Maine-iac’ Sylvia (24-4).

Also on this star-studded bill will be IFL’s undefeated heavyweight champion, Ben ‘War’ Rothwell (29-5), who is on a winning streak of 13 fights, versus another former UFC heavyweight champion, Andrei ‘The Pitbull’ Arlovski (12-5).

Making his US debut on the night will be Fedor’s brother, Alexsander Emelianenko (13-3), who will be facing Paul ‘The Headhunter’ Buentello (23-10).

Donald Trump confirmed his interest in MMA when he recently stated at a press conference: “I have been a fan of professional sports since childhood, and I am particularly impressed by the athleticism, courage, and strength of these disciplined athletes… This particular sport resembles my business style of being fast paced, strategic, and aggressive…remembering to never give up. I am particularly excited to partner with Affliction and become a major player in promotion of MMA, the youngest and fastest growing sport to emerge in the last century.”

Knucklepit.com caught up with New York-based Michael Cohen (Executive Vice President and Special Counsel to Donald Trump, and more recently, elected Chief Operating Officer for Affliction Entertainment), to give readers a bit of an insight into Affliction Banned, and Affliction Entertainment’s plans for global dominance.

Mr. Cohen says he has a specific passion for this venture in MMA because he enjoys the sport from both the perspective of a spectator and as a participant in the art of Muay Thai. “I love the sport. I believe that with the involvement of Donald Trump, Affliction Entertainment will become the dominant mixed martial arts company,” says Cohen.

Michael, you said, “I’m nearly speechless knowing Mr. Trump and Affliction have the trust in me for an event that features the greatest assembly of MMA fighters for one show in MMA history. This is like having Ali, Frazier, Tyson, Holyfield and other top heavyweights all on the same boxing card.” Will Affliction be focusing primarily on the heavyweight division or is that just the class mainly featured for Affliction Banned?

“No. Future events will include all weight classes. As more and more fighters defect from other organizations, Affliction will continue to sign the best fighters and pit them against one another. This willpresent the best possible card to MMA fans, nationally and internationally.”

Donald Trump

Obviously Affliction is the clothing company involved, but why ‘Affliction Banned’ for the title of the upcoming event?

“The term ‘Banned’ came from the historical relationship with the UFC. Dana White banned Affliction Clothing from being worn by UFC fighters. For several years, Affliction had been sponsoring many of these fighters’, whose income was significantly derived by the Affliction sponsorship.”

“When Dana White banned Affliction Clothing from the UFC, it dug into the pockets of the fighters. Affliction decided it was time to create their own league for the benefit of the company as well as the fighters.”

How often will your events be held?

“We are planning a number of events throughout the year. As the Affliction family of fighters grows, there will be more and more events scheduled.”

So are you looking at the prospect of one a month?

“Ultimately: It could potentially be even more. If there is a fighter out there today coming up in the world of MMA, I would recommend that he/she not look towards the UFC; but rather, towards other organizations, (such as Affliction), whose contracts are less stringent and provide opportunities for the fighters to be compensated for the services they provide.”

You don’t pull any punches, Michael.

“Why should I?”

Was Donald Trump’s attendance at UFC 85 mainly a PR exercise for Affliction MMA?

“No. It was based upon the relationship he has with Tito Ortiz. As you may be aware, Tito was on The Celebrity Apprentice this past season and Mr. Trump and Tito Ortiz had become quite friendly. Tito requested Mr. Trump to attend the event as his guest. There was no PR stunt involved; simply, it was a request by Tito based upon their friendship.”

It’s a huge card being billed as “The Greatest MMA Event in the History of the Sport”. With such a huge card, is that a sign of the organization’s commitment to the sport?

“The answer would be ‘yes’. Everything that Mr. Trump does, he does over the top, whether it’s erecting a 90-story building, the amenities he provides… Everything he does is the biggest, and this (as well) will be the biggest MMA event ever put on, to date.”

I believe you said of Affliction Banned, “It’s unprecedented and will revolutionize the way MMA fans view this sport.” How do you follow it up?

“You continue by featuring other great fighters. The match-ups are really what make the fights. There are certain fighters who match up well against one another. Our goal is to match the best fighter to the best competitor and put on the best show for the fans.”

Tim Sylvia and Fedor Emelianenko

Do you expect Affliction to be in complete competition with the UFC, or down the track, do you think there will be a more cooperative relationship, like the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, where they made sure they didn’t conflict with the release dates of their albums?

“Currently, the UFC is the preeminent organization in martial arts. I suspect that in a short period of time, Mr. Trump’s Affliction will surpass the UFC. We are not opposed to co-promoting with the UFC, to put their best fighters against Affliction’s best fighters to determine once and for all: Who is the true mixed martial arts champion for that specific weight class?

“We would not be opposed to a ‘co-promote’ down the road with the UFC. We would also prefer the fightersto be allies as opposed to being in an adversarial position with one another: It’s not good for the organization, it’s not good for the sport, and it’s definitely not good for the fans.”

Now that there are so many MMA organizations, will it become like boxing where there is a ‘world’ champion for every organization, rather than a unified world champion?

“That is something we would like to avoid. As we just discussed, we would not be opposed to co-promoting with the other organizations. The goal is create the best fights for the fans. It is important for the long term success of the sport to look beyond the leagues for certain events. It could make for some great championship fights.”

Do you see the MMA athletes and fans being the real winners here?

“Absolutely; without a doubt.”

Is it fair to guess that you guys have been talking with Randy Couture?

“And others, of course.”

Any comment on the outcome, or you can’t at this stage?

“I couldn’t at this time.”

Will we be seeing Affliction on p-p-v in Australia?

“We certainly hope so.”

No news at this stage?

“No news at this specific moment, but we certainly hope so, and it would be on p-p-v direct.”

Michael, what’s next after ‘Affliction Banned’?

“Tom Atencio, the Vice President over at Affliction, is in the process of completing the anticipated fight card for the second event. It is our belief, and I believe it will be the belief of the fans, that the second event card will be equally as impressive as the first.”

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