Staff Columnists

NORMAN: What The Market Will Bear - Gilbert Melendez Found His Worth Between The UFC and Bellator

Mar 3, 2014 - 9:35:23 PM NORMAN: What The Market Will Bear - Gilbert Melendez Found His Worth Between The UFC and Bellator

There has been ongoing debate within the MMA community regarding fighter pay. While there has been increasing sentiment that UFC fighters should be paid more, there has also been an increasing tide swelling of fans determining a fighter's value. It reared its head once again when Bubba McDaniel mistakenly released his UFC earnings for 2013 via twitter and fans learned he made $33,200 for going 1-1. Immediately it prompted debate within MMA forums on his earnings and that this in fact was his worth.Included in the debate is Gilbert "El Nino" Melendez, who recently tested the free agent waters by actively seeking an offer from rival promoter Bellator. Rumors surfaced regarding terms of the Bellator contract, in which Melendez purportedly would receive a $200,000 appearance fee, $25,000 signing bonus, pay-per-view points, Spike TV show appearances plus a Viacom movie role. Once again fan sentiment began that Melendez was asking for too much money. There was no way, the argument went, that he should be making $200,000 per fight when the UFC was not paying some of their champions that much money.My rebuttal to these sentiments is that we as fans have absolutely no bearing on what professional athletes earn. Regardless of how big of a fan you are of the UFC and any specific fighter, you cannot and do not determine their value, the free market does. If Gilbert Melendez, or any other fighter for that matter, can go to an outside organization such as Bellator, World Series of Fighting (WSOF), or the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts (BAMMA) and begin a bidding war for their services, this in fact sets their value, and they should be compensated whatever the market will bear. This is how the free market works.Bjorn Rebney, CEO of Bellator, would agree, saying recently In the end Melendez's decison to test the free market greatly benefited him. He has been able to secure matching rights from the UFC and a coaching position on Season 20 of The Ultimate Fighter opposite current Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis. In a recent interview, Melendez said Upon learning the UFC excercised its matching rights, Rebney responded While I agree with Bjorn that an excellent opportunity was created whereby Melendez leveraged himself and set himself on a course to accomplish his goals, does this provide the same outlet for lower tier fighters?Honestly, I do not believe it does. In the case of Gilbert Melendez, he has been competing in mixed martial arts for over a decade, has a significant fan base, and is an entertaining fighter. Furthermore, he is a former Strikeforce and WEC Lightweight Champion and had just come off a Fight of the Night performance with Diego Sanchez, hence allowing him to enter contract negotiations from a position of strength. However, I worry lower tiered fighters like Bubba McDaniel still trying to establish their brand will not be afforded the same contract negotiation tactics or opportunities.