“Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman.”
-Justice Louis Brandeis
INTRODUCTION TO WAMMA
In the first installment of this article which can be read here, boxing’s history with the “sanctioning body” was examined. Instead of restoring integrity and legitimacy to the sport, these self-proclaimed reformers brought scandal and disrepute. These sanctioning bodies provide virtually no service other than publishing “independent” rankings, and extract sanctioning fees from the purses of fighters-a practice which has been called “legalized extortion.” The sanctioning bodies are not accountable to anyone, and influence peddling and outright lobbying by promoters is common place.
WAMMA, however, promises to bring the sport of MMA to “unprecedented levels of integrity, legitimacy and prosperity.” Indeed, a good deal of WAMMA’s marketing strategy is focused on the integrity of the individuals involved. In its presentation materials presented to the Association of Boxing Commissions in July of this year, WAMMA states that it is “comprised of successful, highly ethical, entrepreneurs suited to guide the operation of a MMA association and sanctioning body” for MMA.
David Szady, a 33-year veteran of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, brings “unquestionable integrity” to the table for WAMMA. Szady, current CEO of WAMMA, stated that one of the reasons he became involved with WAMMA after a long career with the FBI was “to bring that face of integrity, to create transparency within the MMA world and to create and add to the legitimacy” of the sport of MMA.1 WAMMA’s focus on integrity in its marketing efforts parallels the formative years of the IBF, which was founded by a longtime homicide detective and Commissioner of the New Jersey State Athletic Commission.
Szady and Michael Lynch, an attorney and current Chief Operating Officer of WAMMA, promise to take only the virtuous elements of boxing’s model. Interestingly, two partners in WAMMA, attorney Fred Levin, who represents famed boxer Roy Jones, Jr., and Kay Stephenson, a former coach in the NFL, attempted to form a similar sanctioning body in boxing several years ago. According to Pat Militich, a spokesman for WAMMA, their efforts in boxing failed because “in the boxing world, things were so entrenched that it was very difficult to get this done.”2
In MMA, by contrast, the sport is in flux, and no sanctioning bodies currently exist. According to WAMMA, this is exactly why it will emerge as the one and only sanctioning body. Szady explained that WAMMA is hoping “to get out there in front of this, as fast as we can, with the most reputable people in the world to rank the fighters and with a sanctioning body that’s recognized by the promoters as the sanctioning body.”3 By being ahead of the curve, WAMMA seeks to be the one and only sanctioning body for MMA, and avoid the plagues caused by the “alphabet-soup” in boxing. Militich agrees, stating “coming together with WAMMA — that one sanctioning body that can help unify all of this — makes perfect sense to me. To be honest with you, there’s no need for another sanctioning body after this happens.”4
WAMMA recently crowned its first “undisputed” champion in heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, who dispatched Tim Syvlia 36 seconds into the first round at the Affliction Banned event. Danny Acosta of Sherdog.com called this development the “most positive precedent in MMA since rules and weight classes were instituted,” and declared that the belt around Fedor’s waist is a “direct call to make MMA a unified sport, to create battles between the best of the best.”5
Despite the blessing of Danny Acosta from Sherdog.com, is WAMMA likely to be the “reform” body it touts itself to be, leading MMA to “unprecedented levels of integrity, legitimacy and prosperity?” And has WAMMA, as it promises, taken only the good from the boxing model, and left all the problematic features of the boxing sanctioning body behind?
CORPORATE STRUCTURE OF WAMMA
Michael Lynch explained that WAMMA is a for-profit corporation funded by “over 50 confidential angel investors.” As a private company, the identity of the investors remain confidential. Interestingly, WAMMA states that a large percentage of its financing comes from “active participants” in the business of MMA.
WAMMA: SANCTIONING BODY AND RANKINGS
WAMMA’s stated goal is simple, to crown an undisputed champion in each of 7 weight divisions (soon to be 9) based upon its rankings system. WAMMA states that it has “developed a strong, neutral, unbiased ranking committee and ranking methodology” that is the “gold standard” for the sport of MMA. “We feel like this will be a great thing for the fighters, the promoters and the fans of this sport, to finally start having ranked fighters from all organizations competing for a unified title,” said WAMMA CEO Dave Szady.6 WAMMA stresses that it has assembled an “objective ranking board comprised of 20 of the most knowledgeable MMA media in the world.”7 A review of the rankings board members is notable in part for whom is not included, as well as inclusion of other members who are new to the sport of MMA.8 One might even say that the panel has been assembled, at least in part, to obtain access to and favor from media outlets and to appease promotional interests.
In response to whether its rankings committee members are truly independent, Lynch states, “yes, the ranking board members are independent of WAMMA.” Independence from WAMMA, however, in no way equals objectivity. Independence can be compromised in a myriad of ways, including employment with existing promotions, media outlets, and sports agencies. The current composition of WAMMA’s ranking board indicates conflicts exist in each of these areas. Additionally, the rankings committee chair, Sam Caplan, receives compensation from WAMMA.9 Finally, WAMMA states that a “large percentage” of its financing “has come from active participants in the business” but will not reveal the identity of these investors.10 Who are these active participants in the MMA industry that are investors in WAMMA? Are they media outlets? Promoters? MMA instructors? Agencies? All of the above? WAMMA won’t say. Thus, additional conflicts may also be present.
Lynch, however, emphatically defends WAMMA’s rankings objectivity. “I simply don’t see any bias against the UFC or any promotion whatsoever. In fact, in regard to the UFC our rankings scream pure objectivity, as evidenced by the fact that Zuffa fighters dominate the WAMMA rankings even though the UFC is not participating with WAMMA at this time,” declared Lynch. WAMMA has not published any rankings criteria, but according to Lynch, “WAMMA certainly wouldn’t be opposed to doing so.”
WAMMA: RECOGNITION BY PROMOTIONS
A number of industry sources indicated to this author that WAMMA, in exchange for the right to sanction the title bout between Fedor Emelianenko and Tim Sylvia, paid Affliction MMA a fee of $200,000. WAMMA emphatically denies this claim. WAMMA stresses that it is “not associated with any individual promotional group,” and is committed to having “WAMMA Champions across promotional lines.” WAMMA publicly declares “100% support” from Adrenaline MMA, the promotion of promoter-manager Monte Cox. Adrenaline MMA and Monte Cox, according to WAMMA, are “a key player in WAMMA relationship building.” Adrenaline MMA’s support for WAMMA is interesting. Tim Sylvia, a fighter managed by Monte Cox and signed to the Adrenaline MMA promotion, indicated that his title fights (in the event he defeated Fedor) would likely be in the Affliction promotion, with non-title bouts occurring in Adrenaline MMA.11
In addition to Adrenaline MMA and Affliction, WAMMA declares the full support of HDNet Fights and Strikeforce, each of whom are said to be committed to having WAMMA champions across promotional lines.12 According to the renowned John McCarthy, virtually all promotions except the UFC will benefit “if they can have a fighter, fighting on their promotion that is recognized as the truly best fighter in the world at whatever given weight class.”13 McCarthy continued:
“Right now Affliction has Fedor Emelianenko fighting on their promotion and he is the WAMMA Heavyweight champion of the world after his 36 second destruction of Tim Sylvia. Everybody that knows this sport and is being honest would say that Fedor is the best heavyweight in the world at this time hands down. . . So right now if you want to see the best Heavyweight fighter in the world fight you go to Affliction not to the UFC. That is the way all of the promoters besides the UFC want it because it adds legitimacy to their promotions, it shows people that are not the hardcore fans of the sport that there are other promotions putting on high caliber fights with great fighters, so all other promoters are behind WAMMA being recognized as the sanctioning body that recognizes the true world champion.”14
As for the UFC, WAMMA indicates that they “have the utmost respect for all that they have done in the sport and we hope that one day they will recognize the value of having cross promotional champions and producing WORLD champions and not just promotional champions.”15 However, Dana White, President of the UFC, has continuously blasted WAMMA stating that the for-profit sanctioning body is “exactly what this sport doesn’t need. They’re just another group of guys looking to make some money and get a piece of the pie.”16 White later said that “sanctioning bodies are what killed boxing. They’re a virus in this sport.” As to whether the UFC would ever participate in WAMMA’s sanctioning body, White adamantly declared that the UFC “will never be involved.”17 “Sanctioning organizations are the biggest problems with boxing,” said White. “They’re corrupt.”18
The UFC’s refusal to recognize WAMMA is entirely predictable, as John McCarthy correctly states:
“The UFC is not going to support WAMMA anytime soon. The WAMMA organization does nothing for the UFC and only hurts them. The UFC wants to be the start and the end for a fans interest in MMA. They are already the “Brand” when it comes to Mixed Martial Arts.”19
Indeed, while it would be a welcome occurrence, it is inconceivable that the WAMMA founders expected the UFC’s cooperation with and recognition of WAMMA. By recognizing WAMMA, the UFC would be legitimizing fighters contracted with other promotions with absolutely no benefit to itself. As John McCarthy states, the UFC is already the “brand” for MMA, and needs no “legitimization” with the general public. The UFC promotion is the gold-standard for MMA, and a large percentage of MMA fans do not follow, and indeed are not aware of any other promotions. In fact, it can be argued that the UFC brand is so powerful it is approaching synonymy with the sport of MMA itself.
Instead, WAMMA’s initial intent appears to be in lending credibility and legitimacy to other promotions (and thereby establishing itself), in an effort to compete with the UFC. In boxing, television networks needed to legitimize matches to the general public following scandal. In MMA, legitimacy is sought by promotions seeking to compete with the juggernaut UFC-brand. Promotions seeking legitimacy for themselves and the fighters they promote have little to lose by joining such an “alliance.” As Lynch states, it’s a win-win scenario for WAMMA and the promotions alike:
“WAMMA is an independent company that brings a value added proposition to promoters, fighters and the sport as a whole through its neutral unbiased rankings, unified Championships and derives its revenue from corporate sponsors not promoters. By having an undisputed champion or champions inside their promotions, promoters will have the opportunity to sell more tickets to events, reap greater PPV revenue and add to the allure and branding of their promotions by having the very best fighters.”
WAMMA is ambitious and is not content with simply providing “objective rankings.” As its press releases, public interviews and presentation materials indicate, WAMMA intends to emerge as the central power in the sport of MMA. Key to its success is establishing the WAMMA brand, which will be discussed further below. As the WAMMA brand gains traction throughout the media outlets serving on its rankings committee, and later, with the general public, promoters who were quick to jump on board may later regret their affiliation.
WAMMA CHAMPIONS: UNDISPUTED?
WAMMA, despite the current refusal of the UFC to recognize it as a sanctioning body, publicly declares that it is hopeful that the UFC will “jump on board with the idea of an undisputed and unified champion.” According to Lynch, WAMMA does not intend to end promotional titles, but instead, aims “to add the top tier beyond promotional lines.”20
Unlike the Ring Magazine Champion’s policy, which awards its belt to the top ranked fighter in each weight class based upon in-ring performance, WAMMA awards its belts only to fighters appearing in promotions that agree to “work with” WAMMA. For example, Anderson Silva, the current middleweight champion of the UFC, recently faced Dan Henderson, the reigning champion from the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships. This bout matched the reigning champions from the two largest MMA promotions in the world. WAMMA did not sanction the bout, or offer to award its belt to the winner.21
Thus, WAMMA is not creating “unified” or “undisputed” champions, and is not, in reality, presenting its belts in a truly objective fashion to the most deserving fighters. Unlike Ring Magazine, which awards its belts purely on merit and in total disregard to other sanctioning bodies or promotional affiliations, WAMMA is, in essence, simply creating another belt.
Additionally, unlike the Ring Magazine Champion’s policy, WAMMA intends to name “mandatory” challengers based upon its rankings, and will strip champions if they don’t face the WAMMA-named challenger within a 9-12 month period. In an action that indicates a future where sanctioning fees will be collected not only for title matches, but also “contender” bouts, WAMMA recently publicized an “eliminator” bout for the right to fight Fedor Emelianenko for the heavyweight title. “We couldn’t be more excited to see Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett faceoff for the right to take on Fedor for the WAMMA World Heavyweight Championship,” stated Szady in a company-issued press release. “In the spirit of crowning undisputed champions, we couldn’t be happier than to have two of the fighters who arguably deserve a shot at Fedor fighting it out for the chance to take on the champ.”22
To its credit, WAMMA has demonstrated patience in awarding its belts, awarding only its heavyweight title to Fedor Emelianenko. In a fight that later fell through, WAMMA did not sanction a bout between Vitor Belfort and Matt Lindland for its middleweight title. As Lynch stated, “WAMMA made an executive decision that the Lindland/Belfort fight did not rise to WAMMA Championship status.”23
WAMMA: SOURCE OF PROFITS
As a for-profit private company, WAMMA is in the business to earn profits. WAMMA seeks to derive earnings by selling “corporate sponsorship” for its title belts awarded in every weight class, in addition to “corporate sponsorship of rankings, resale of rankings for use in publications and broadcasts, online ad revenue, merchandise, and online membership revenue.” The online membership revenue will be derived from WAMMA’s website which is designed to “communicate brand identity” and to serve as an MMA-community portal. WAMMA also seeks to profit through merchandising sales with its brand, and a “complete online store for WAMMA merchandise sales will be an integral part of the site.”
According to WAMMA, “title sponsors will use the WAMMA Champions in promotional campaigns and for sponsorship opportunities.” In response to whether WAMMA enters into any marketing or promotional agreements with fighters, Lynch responded, “No, WAMMA is fighter and promoter neutral.” Thus, it remains entirely unclear what obligates a WAMMA champion to advertise or perform any other marketing obligations for any title sponsors. Is WAMMA relying upon the merchandising rights being sought and obtained contractually by cooperating promotions? Again, Lynch states that WAMMA has not entered into any “joint-marketing,” “consulting,” “branding” or any other such agreement with any promotion. Furthermore, if any such title sponsors are available for marketing opportunities, one wonders why it wouldn’t benefit the fighter more to obtain it for himself or herself.
WAMMA’s for-profit model is akin to the boxing model, but far more ambitious. Like the UFC before it, WAMMA seeks to become a powerful brand itself. This model is in stark contrast to the Ring Magazine Champion’s policy, which has emerged as the only credible rankings system in boxing. Ring Magazine embarks on a journalistic endeavor and is not seeking to directly profit through sales of sponsorships or by charging sanctioning fees. Thus, at the outset, WAMMA’s for-profit model appears to compromise its ability to issue “objective” rankings.
Big fights generate interest, as the networks and pay-per-view providers learned long ago. Interest in a title bout featuring the No. 1 ranked challenger and reigning champion generates sponsorship dollars and ratings, while a fight between the No. 7 and No. 10 fighter in a given weight class will generate much lower interest and revenue. One wonders whether it is inevitable, due to an alignment of interest (if nothing else), that fighters from participating promotions will creep up the WAMMA rankings in curious ways. The counterparts established in boxing indicate that this is nearly a certain phenomenon.
WAMMA AND SANCTIONING FEES
On June 20, 2008, when asked about whether WAMMA will charge sanctioning fees for its title matches, Szady replied:
“No. We are not taking any sanctioning fee from a promoter nor are we taking any percentage of a purse from a fighter. Our business model and our revenue stream come strictly from our sponsors for the WAMMA belt or for sponsoring the events themselves along with the promoters.”
Lynch, echoing Szady, replied:
“WAMMA is in no way charging a sanctioning fee from the Affliction promotion nor are we asking for a percentage of the fighter’s purses. As Dave said we truly are trying to emulate the best aspects of boxing’s sanctioning bodies while eliminating all the aspects of sanctioning bodies that we find in boxing that will be a detriment to the sport.”24
Szady’s response above is unqualified as to whether WAMMA will charge sanctioning fees. The response of Lynch however, who is a lawyer, may leave room for maneuver. Lynch’s reply in regards to WAMMA not charging sanctioning fees may be read as applying only to the Fedor Emelianenko-Tim Sylvia title bout in the Affliction promotion.
In order to eliminate the possibility of any misunderstanding, I asked Lynch whether WAMMA can state, “with 100% certainty, that sanctioning fees will never be sought and/or collected from any promotion and/or any fighters purse.” Lynch replied, “Yes. . . Most importantly, WAMMA will NEVER make a living off a fighter’s back by taxing a fighter’s purse.” However, in WAMMA’s materials presented to athletic commissions at the ABC Convention for MMA held in Montreal, WAMMA indicates that it will “receive revenue from title sponsors, online portal subscriptions, sale of unique digital content, merchandising, and in the future sanctioning fees.”25
The WAMMA brand is not yet established, and networks are not yet utilizing its rankings. Thus, the necessary traction does not yet exist for WAMMA to require sanctioning fees. If the WAMMA brand becomes entrenched, however, sanctioning fees, as WAMMA’s own presentation materials indicate, will follow.
WAMMA: AN MMA ASSOCIATION?
WAMMA insists it is not merely a traditional sanctioning body content to crown champions based upon “objective” rankings. A recent press release issued by WAMMA announcing its “strategic alliance” with Gaylord Sports Management sheds light on WAMMA’s ambitions. In Gaylord, stated Szady, WAMMA has “found a partner who we trust to help grow WAMMA as an organization and a power in the MMA world.”
WAMMA, as the acronym indicates, also deems itself an “MMA Allilance.” What this “alliance” consists of is unknown, but apparently it is being designed to thwart the efforts of any would-be competitors. According to Szady, “the acceptance of the promoters to have WAMMA be the one true sanctioning and ranking body,” along with the “multi-faceted MMA alliance” being established will likely prevent the formation of any competing sanctioning body. To further cement its image as an “association,” WAMMA created a “new logo and brand image to better position the company as an Official MMA Association.” The new logo can be seen at the top of this article.
WAMMA also fashions itself as a “fighter advocate association.” As evidence of this, Szady has publicly declared that “Randy Couture and Pat Miletich are going to co-chair a fighter advisory board for WAMMA to take on such issues as fighter health care, fighter pensions, and other concerns that fighters may have for themselves.”26 A review of WAMMA’s bylaws indicates that the “fighter advisory board” is not one of the thirteen standing committees established by WAMMA. Likewise, Lynch declares that “WAMMA will always advocate for fighter-forward advances in the sport in regard to contracts, exclusivity, endorsements, sponsorship, disclosure” and the like, but declined to support the application of the Muhammad Ali Act to MMA.
WAMMA also claims it will “create a fighter focused association to support MMA competitors at all levels.” Fighter-members will receive “numerous tangible and intangible benefits.” Amazingly, WAMMA asserts that a “strong association will provide a barrier to entry for other organizations that seek to enter WAMMA’s market space,” and thus, provide WAMMA with a competitive advantage.
Audaciously, Lynch declares that WAMMA “has 100% support of the fighters themselves.” I have spoken to fighters and a number of the most successful agents in MMA, and their input was never solicited, nor have they ever spoken with any WAMMA officials. Thus, WAMMA’s claim appears to be puffery, at best. WAMMA, according to Lynch, is also “establishing an insurance pool to help supplement or in some cases provide insurance for WAMMA ranked fighters during training.” Additionally, WAMMA is establishing a “pension fund for fighters that have been ranked by WAMMA and have been WAMMA champions.” WAMMA aims to fund these initiatives by earmarking a portion of its gross profits, though what percentage is unstated. WAMMA also indicates that it will seek contributions from its promotional partners for each of these funds.
A “fighter-focused” association is not a fighters association at all, and admittedly, is being created to serve as a “barrier to entry” to WAMMA’s market space. One wonders why the “fighter advocates” involved with WAMMA don’t assist fighters in adopting a brand of their own. The fighters, through their own collective brand, could recognize an independent panel of experts that will award a title regardless of promotional affiliation, and thereby keep all the marketing, sponsorship, advertising and membership revenue for themselves. Under this model, the fighters would have an actual fighters association and retain all profits.
CONCLUSION
WAMMA promotes itself “as a multifaceted fighter and fan forward organization” dedicated to leading the sport of MMA “to unprecedented levels of integrity, legitimacy and prosperity.” As Justice Louis Brandeis notes above, sunlight is the best of all disinfectants, and light the most efficient policeman. How a private, for-profit entity aims to bring “integrity, legitimacy and prosperity” to the sport of MMA while operating largely in complete secrecy remains a mystery. It is entirely unclear how a private, for profit company is going to provide any better service than a “Ring Magazine” panel, and to boot, a panel recognized by the fighters under a collective brand would enable the fighters to retain this revenue for themselves and cut out the middleman.
“All [a sanctioning body] does is take money out of the fighter’s pockets,” said Kevin Iole, an MMA writer for Yahoo.com. “To me it’s just a money grab.”27 Carlos Arias, an MMA writer for the Orange County Register concurs. “They might start off with good intentions, but inevitably they end up with crooked rankings and ridiculous sanctioning fees.”28
Rob Maysey is a licensed attorney in the states of Arizona, California, and Minnesota. He received his BA in Politics from Whitman College and his JD from Cornell Law School. He has followed the sport of mixed martial arts closely since being introduced to Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 1998 by a law school classmate.
***Edited. I was informed Danny Acosta’s piece on Sherdog.com was an opinion-editorial, and thus, clarified this in the article.
[1] Brookhouse, Brent. “Interview With WAMMA CEO Dave Szady and COO Michael Lynch,” bloodyelbow.com, June 20, 2008. http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2008/6/20/555552/bloodyelbow-exclusive-inte.
[2] Hall, Joe. “WAMMA’s Wish: To Unite MMA,” Sherdog.com, November 15, 2007.
[3] Id.
[4] Id.
[5] Acosta, Danny. “Affliction, Fedor Prove MMA is Bigger Than UFC,” Sherdog.com, July 22, 2008.
[6] Vilonia, Bill. “WAMMA’s first title bout increases profile in mixed martial arts,” www.pnj.com, June 25, 2008. http://m.pnj.com/news.jsp?key=92762&rc=sp&p=1.
[7] At time of writing, WAMMA’s website lists the biographies of 23 members who are part of its rankings board.
[8] WAMMA’s ranking board members can be viewed at this link: http://www.gowamma.com/rankings.asp.
[9] Hall, Joe. “WAMMA’s Wish: To Unite MMA,” Sherdog.com, November 15, 2007.
[10] WAMMA’s “ABC Presentation” dated July 3, 2008.
[11] Andrest, David. “Tim Sylvia on a quest to fight the best,” mmajunkie.com, July 8, 2008. http://mmajunkie.com/news/4757/tim-sylvia-on-a-quest-to-fight-the-best.mma.
[12] Brookhouse, Brent. “Interview With WAMMA CEO Dave Szady and COO Michael Lynch,” bloodyelbow.com, June 20, 2008; ; WAMMA’s “ABC Presentation” dated July 3, 2008.
[13] McCarthy, John. “Questions About WAMMA,” thefightnetwork.com, August 8, 2008. http://www.thefightnetwork.com/blog/post/1014/question_about_wamma.
[14] Id.
[15] Brookhouse, Brent. “Interview With WAMMA CEO Dave Szady and COO Michael Lynch,” bloodyelbow.com, June 20, 2008; ; WAMMA’s “ABC Presentation” dated July 3, 2008.
[16] McCarthy, Michael. “Sanctioning Body out to add ‘structure,’” USA Today, November 15, 2007.
[17] Skretta, Dave. “Group aims to become MMA’s sanctioning body / Drive to unify, legitimize sport of mixed martial arts is hitting full stride,” The Houston Chronicle, December 16, 2007.
[18] Avila, David A. “Will sanctioning organization help MMA?” www.nbcsports.com, February 21, 2008. http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/23275918/.
[19] McCarthy, John. “Questions About WAMMA,” thefightnetwork.com, August 8, 2008. http://www.thefightnetwork.com/blog/post/1014/question_about_wamma.
[20] Brookhouse, Brent. “Interview With WAMMA CEO Dave Szady and COO Michael Lynch,” bloodyelbow.com, June 20, 2008; ; WAMMA’s “ABC Presentation” dated July 3, 2008.
[21] Chiappetta, Mike. “WAMMA’s ‘Undisputed’ championship further muddles MMA scene,” NBCsports.com, June 30, 2008.
[22] Caplan, Sam. “Barnett vs. Arlovski to decide top contender for WAMMA heavyweight title; other “Day of Reckoning” details emerge,” www.fiveouncesofpain.com, August 7, 2008. http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2008/08/07/barnett-vs-arlovski-to-decide-top-contender-for-wamma-heavyweight-title-other-day-of-reckoning-details-emerge/.
[23] DreamFighters.com Exclusive Interview with C.O.O of WAMMA, Michael Lynch, August 8, 2008. http://dreamfighters.com/site/?action=detail&id=1218212619.
[24] Brookhouse, Brent. “Interview With WAMMA CEO Dave Szady and COO Michael Lynch,” bloodyelbow.com, June 20, 2008.
[25] Bold and underline formatting added by author for emphasis.
[26] Brookhouse, Brent. “Interview With WAMMA CEO Dave Szady and COO Michael Lynch,” bloodyelbow.com, June 20, 2008.
[27] Vilonia, Bill. “WAMMA’s first title bout increases profile in mixed martial arts,” www.pnj.com, June 25, 2008. http://m.pnj.com/news.jsp?key=92762&rc=sp&p=1.
[28] Id.