UFC Purchases LA Boxing, Converting to UFC Gyms Nationwide

The UFC expanded their business far beyond the Octagon when they first opened a series of UFC branded gyms in the last couple of years.

That expansion will see an even larger growth in 2013 as the UFC has purchased the LA Boxing franchise and all gyms will soon be converted to UFC-branded facilities.

UFC President Dana White confirmed the news on Monday.

“We just bought LA Boxing so all of those are going to be converted into UFC gyms,” White said when speaking to a trade group at the New Media Expo.

Rumors of the purchase began to circulate in December, and sources speaking to MMAWeekly.com also confirmed the final sale should be done in January.

Now the UFC model will take over the LA Boxing franchise, which sports more than 60 locations in 23 states.

The first LA Boxing gym was founded in 1992 in California, but has expanded into a franchised company with new facilities opened all over the United States in the last few years.

Now those gyms will be re-branded as UFC gyms as the company continues to expand into the health and fitness market.

“UFC gyms has been huge for us,” said White. “It’s been an incredible, incredible business for us.”

There was no further word on how quickly the takeover will be, but it sounds like very soon all of the LA Boxing locations in the U.S. will be UFC gyms in 2013.