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BoxingInsider.com: One last thing thing -- We asked Rampage before Pride, What's the biggest difference between UFC and Pride?'
He said the difference was money. What needs to happen to the UFC to be on the same level -- as far as compensation for the fighters?

Lorenzo Fertitta: I kind of call 'BS' on that. I don't think, from a money standpoint, we're that much different. I think, philosophically what's happening, and the way that the sport is moving now is different. Pride uses a format that we tried to use when we first started when we took over the company -- which is basically stacking the cards, where every fight is a blockbuster and you're paying every guy a certain amount of money. What's happening to the sport in America is similar to what happened in boxing over the years. Because you have guys who are turning into superstars, they demand more money. When the market and the revenues aren't growing along, it means that if they're going to demand more money and they're really what the draw is -- the reason that people are coming -- then other fighters on the card are going to get less money. So you are getting the haves and the have-nots.

The card that we had in September was a great card. There were great fights -- but people came to see Tito fight Randy. We tried to put on an entertaining card, but it was about Tito and Randy. Quite frankly, they were the guys who made the money. So that's really what the difference is. I think that we pay the superstars in our sport as much -- and compete at that level with Pride. It's just that we don't have sixteen fighters on the same card who are making that kind of money.

Lorenzo Fertita is completely WRONG. ZUFFA/UFC do pay a FEW guys "pride like" money. Guys like Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Vitor Belfort, Tank Abbott, and Pedro Rizzo for instance. But what you have to keep in mind is that Pride is paying that kind of money, and in most cases a LOT more. In many cases the fighters get paid in CASH in the form of $100 dollar bills. So I have no idea if these fighters are paying taxes on the cash they recieve....ok I have some idea. A lot of American fighters come home with their support team carrying briefcases of 100$ bills for them. Also Pride takes care of ALL medical costs, they are VERY generous on per diem money not only for fighters but also for their support staff. For the most part all the PRIDE fighters fly business class. These are just some of the reasons why the top dogs like PRIDE more. The one downside is PRIDE's habit of giving late notice on opponents. I will give UFC credit for that, you usually know a month or more ahead of time who you are fighting barring injury.