The UFC-Reebok deal is less than a year old. It’s been implemented for less than four months. In that short span of time, however, the deal has already produced enough missteps and miscalculations for the entire six-year term. At each turn, the deal seems like it couldn’t get any worse…until it does. How did we get to this point? Let’s have a look!
July 2009 – The origins of the UFC-Reebok deal go all the way back to the summer of 2009 when the UFC institutes a sponsorship tax. The UFC, as reported by Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, begins charging potential sponsors $100,000 for the right to appear on UFC broadcasts for a six-year term.