Friday, June 20, 2008

What's the Value of a TUF Contract Nowadays?

The seventh season of "The Ultimate Fighter" is in the books and the finale is slated for Saturday night. Unfortunately, market saturation and an increasingly stale product has turned what was once a prestigious and coveted title and contract into something far less appealing. What does it mean to be a TUF winner nowadays? What's the current value of a winner's contract? First-season victors Forrest Griffin and Diego Sanchez each garnered six-figure salaries and free Mustang GT convertibles for their efforts, while subsequent winners Rashad Evans, Joe Stevenson, Kendall Grove and Michael Bisping received a moped, a scooter, a skateboard and a pair of roller skates, respectively. But a steady decline in ratings saw TUF 5 winner Nate Diaz's prize reduced to a used 3-speed bicycle (with responsibilty for a newspaper delivery route attached), while TUF 6 winner Mac Danzig is now contractually obligated to work part-time in a Las Vegas car wash. And what will contestants Amir Sadollah or CB Dollawayget get when one of them wins on Saturday? According to sources within Zuffa, the winner of TUF 7 becomes an indentured servant and property of Dana White.