Chapter 360 A good opportunity to make money
"What time did he make an appointment?"
Du Sheng was not surprised.
He is not a UFC fighter yet, he just got the entry ticket in a special way.
UFC is about to completely surpass kickboxing and become the second largest event in the world after boxing.
And boxing has also declined, and the UFC even has a chance to win the first major event.
Signing a formal contract with it will have more advantages than disadvantages, whether it is improving your reputation or gaining reputation points.
"Let's go tonight. UFC is currently in a stage of rapid expansion and he wants to meet you as soon as possible."
Don King said:
"The report where you made fun of UFC and boxing when K1 won last time brought a lot of heat to the lighthouse country's fighting circle."
At that time, there were a lot of news in North America hyping that Du Sheng was about to join the UFC and face off against Tyson’s successor ‘De La Hoya’.
After the finals, in an interview, Du Sheng even said that as long as the top ten boxers in the world in the same weight class dare to challenge, they will be guaranteed to "get tetanus with one punch and meet their ancestors with two punches." This also aroused a lot of public opinion in North America.
It's a pity that De La Hoya is in the boxing circle and has said that he has no plans to fight in the UFC across the border. This hot spot is gone.
Speaking of this, Tang Jin looked at Du Sheng ambiguously:
"The scandal between you and Hilton's daughter has been making a lot of noise in the past two days. You are considered a celebrity here. Dana Bai has been unable to sit still for a long time and contacted me twice."
This principle of striking while the iron is hot is well known at home and abroad.
Even more so in the fighting circle, otherwise the UFC would not have climbed so fast.
"No problem, let's meet as soon as possible. You decide the location and we'll treat you."
Du Sheng readily agreed.
If Dana White can show sincerity, he is not completely unacceptable.
But the premise is to ensure the freedom of competition, some strict terms must be added to the contract.
At present, whether it is due to ideals or profit considerations, the influence of boxing far exceeds that of the UFC.
Tang Jin has always hoped that Du Sheng would participate in boxing, so he had to fight for this.
That night, Hilton Hotel on the north side of Las Vegas.
Du Sheng met with UFC President Dana White.
At this time, Dana White has not yet shown the entrepreneurial style of the UFC in its heyday.
More of it retains the capable qualities of a professional boxer.
Dana White is undoubtedly the most business-minded representative among professional boxers, second only to middleweight superstar Oscar De La Hoya.
De La Hoya founded the Golden Boy boxing management company, which will become one of the three major promotion companies in a few years, with many top boxers under his command.
Not only that, De La Hoya is also involved in music, releasing records, and entering into copyright cooperation with many commercial companies.
It can be said that like Du Sheng, even if they are not professional boxers, they can still achieve brilliant achievements in other fields.
Of course, Dana White is no ordinary person.
After retiring, when he learned that the parent company of UFC intended to sell UFC, he had a keen insight into the future potential of mixed martial arts,
So he persuaded his friend Lorenzo Fertitta to buy UFC, and he would hold 10% of the shares and serve as president.
Although some people say that Dana White is not the real owner of the UFC, he accounts for most of the credit for the rise of the UFC.
You know, the year before last, UFC was still a small fighting event that was on the verge of bankruptcy.
It is not uncommon in history for this kind of boxing match to disappear completely once it closes down.
What's even more serious is that most cable companies have stopped cooperating with UFC.
Before Internet pay-per-view became popular, television broadcasts were almost the main source of revenue for fighting events.
After Dana White took over, he not only gradually reversed the decadent situation and promoted the legalization of UFC, but also made it one of the mainstream fighting sports attracting global attention.
"Du, I have been famous for a long time!
You are the boxer that I think, after Li Xiaolong, has the ability to change the boxing world! ”
Dana White is enthusiastic and highly rated.
It can be seen from his sincere tone that he really admires Du Sheng.
As a supporter of Li Xiaolong's boxing skills, Dana White once publicly declared that Li Xiaolong was the pioneer of mixed martial arts.
To a certain extent, he did not have the prejudice and arrogance of the traditional lighthouse countrymen towards yellow boxers.
This was one of the reasons why Du Sheng was willing to fly over thousands of miles away.
"Haha, Mr. Bai Dana is overrated. It is also an honor for me to meet you."
Du Sheng shook hands with Dana White politely and said with a smile:
"In my mind, your contribution to UFC and mixed martial arts should be recorded in history."
Perhaps it was Du Sheng's humility and politeness that surprised Dana Bai.
He smiled in a joking tone:
"I have read reports about you on the Internet before, and I thought you were a difficult person to get along with.
I didn't expect you to be so humble and polite, and even took the initiative to treat me to a meeting. It seems that many things have to be seen to be believed. ”
"The media has a tendency to hype, and what they report about me is not the truth, but the image created based on needs."
Du Sheng smiled slightly and said:
"To use a word popular in our Eastern entertainment circle to describe it, that is facial expression."
“Facialization?”
Hearing this word, Dana Bai was slightly confused, and then laughed heartily:
“That’s an apt description, yes, a Facebook tag built for demand.
It seems that deep down you still have the reserved and conservative image of an Oriental! ”
"No, no, Mr. Dana White, you are wrong about this.
I have always believed that the strong is king and deserves respect and awe.
Therefore, the image in the ring also reflects my appeal to a certain extent. ”
Du Sheng does not want to be regarded as a low-key and conservative traditional image by Dana White.
In interest negotiations, this image will be looked down upon.
"I also agree that strength is king." Dana Bai saw the resonance in the other party's eyes. This is the cornerstone of reaching a consensus.
Unlike Easterners who are accustomed to discussing business at the dinner table, people in Lighthouse countries generally don't like to talk business over food unless they are extremely familiar friends.
Therefore, Du Sheng did not discuss cooperation with Dana White at the dinner table.
The two just happily exchanged some anecdotes about the fighting field.
During this period, Dana White asked more about Du Sheng’s views on mixed martial arts.
After the meal, Dana Bai's eyes flashed with excitement.
Because Du Sheng is extremely optimistic about the prospects of UFC.
It is even predicted that it may surpass boxing and become the world's largest fighting event.
This coincides with Dana White's plan for the development of fighting.
He never expected that an Eastern boxer would be so optimistic about the UFC.
You know, there are currently no formal MMA events in the entire East.
For boxers in Asia as a whole, this is a blank space.
After the meal, both parties sat at the conference table and started talking about the main topic.
"Du, you just said that the reason why you don't mind having an affair with Hilton's daughter is to expand your reputation in North America.
Now I have a good opportunity to increase my reputation and make money at the same time. I wonder if you are interested? ”
"Join your UFC?"
Du Sheng asked with a smile. This is the core of today's meeting.
He preferred directness and simply opened the topic directly.
"Yes, I have studied your previous competitions and understand your interest in mixed martial arts.
It is no exaggeration to say that you have what it takes to become a middleweight champion, so I very much hope to sign you! ”
Dana Bai's words were not polite.
He carefully watched the videos of several key matches of Du Sheng, including the semi-finals of "Martial Arts".
Compared to ordinary people from the Lighthouse country who underestimate Du Sheng simply based on their stereotypes about Orientals, Dana Bai is very aware of how terrifying Du Sheng is in the field of fighting.
If Du Sheng was not from the East, but from the Lighthouse country, his record and identity would be enough to be regarded as the next boxing superstar comparable to Tyson.
A record of complete KO victory is not rare, but Dana Bai analyzed that Du Sheng's opponents and record were not fake, they were all real fights in the ring.
Moreover, the opponents were almost all the strongest that Du Sheng could challenge at that time.
In other words, this is not Du Sheng's limit!
"What kind of offer can UFC offer me if I sign me?"
Du Sheng asked directly about the price, no longer polite.
He is currently facing a shortage of funds.
Although a possible match with Chuck Liddell would bring a huge sum of money into the account, the expenses are also increasing day by day.
Leaving aside several major domestic projects, "Wanted" will be put on the agenda sooner or later, and this money will be expensive for everyone.
What's more, Du Sheng also has a grand vision to acquire K1.
All this requires huge funds to support.
This is also the premise for Du Sheng to agree to discuss cooperation with Dana Bai.
As long as the conditions are right, everything is negotiable!
"This is the contract we gave, take a look."
Dana Bai took out a contract and pushed it over:
"It includes a fixed income, bonuses for each victory, and best-of-match rewards, starting at at least $60,000 per victory, as well as additional rewards such as night event special awards and best player."
"Of course, I understand these may only be your starting points.
What sets the UFC apart is our willingness to share PPV (pay-per-view) revenue with star fighters.
This means that in the UFC, you can get a cut of pay-per-view just like a boxer. ”
Du Sheng took the contract and glanced at it a few times without commenting.
The treaties listed above are attractive.
If you are new to the boxing world, you may be attracted immediately.
After all, the appearance fee of an ordinary boxer is only tens of thousands of dollars, and there are no other fringe benefits, let alone a stable basic salary contract.
But for Du Sheng, these are far from enough.
He shook his head secretly in his mind. Dana White seemed to treat him as a newbie coming to North America, trying to attract him with empty promises?
"Sounds good, but I'm more pragmatic."
Du Sheng said calmly:
"What is the specific appearance fee and what is the PPV share ratio?
Since Mr. White opened his mouth, he should have already made up his mind on these details. ”
He does not object to competing in North America. The key lies in whether the remuneration is generous.
Moreover, he considers himself to have a huge advantage:
Able to accept high-density game pace.
Compared with top boxing champions who only compete once or twice a year, boxers who compete frequently are even more rare.
Fighting twice a month is not impossible for him, as long as he can find a suitable opponent.
At the end of the day, there are always risks in fighting.
Boxers risk their health and lives just to make more money.
Top boxers have become famous, and they all want to earn more from their gold belts or championships, so that they no longer stand out like newcomers.
These injury risks do not exist for Du Sheng.
He doesn't mind playing more games to make money, but he is afraid that the master will be lonely and no one will dare to challenge him.
………
(End of chapter)