UFC class action lawsuit: Everything you need to know about the case involving 1200 fighters

UFC is facing legal trouble that can collapse its business model. The organization is heavily criticized for its monopolizing practices and unsatisfactory athlete payment structure. A U.S. District Court, in its 80-page order, has allowed for a class action lawsuit filed by ex-UFC fighters to proceed.

The esteemed MMA organization is largely credited for turning a marginalized sport like MMA into a worldwide phenomenon. The premier combat sports organization has steadily grown in popularity and produced some of the greatest mixed martial arts talents in history.

Unfortunately, draconian monopolizing practices have also played a major role in the exponential growth. This has enabled the organization to maintain a firm grip on the entire industry.

But fighters, the product that the WME-IMG-owned organization actually sells and depends solely upon for making profits have gained little from the organization’s growth. A group of UFC fighters decided to take action against the Las Vegas-based promotion’s monopolizing practices and the control it practiced over their career trajectories. Let’s check out everything that happened in this regard from 2014 to 2023.

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All about the anti-trust class action lawsuit against the UFC

In December 2014, an anti-trust lawsuit was filed against Zuffa, LLC the majority owner of the Ultimate Fighting Championship at the time. Former UFC fighters Brandon Vera and Pablo Garza were the plaintiffs listed in this lawsuit filed in the California Northern District Court. Several other lawsuits were filed by then-current and former fighters like Kung Lee, Dennis Hallman, Jon Fitch, and Nate Quarry.

The lawsuits primarily alleged that the UFC was violating the anti-trust laws by using its status in the MMA industry to keep the fighter pay low and control their career trajectories.

In a statement released in December 2014, the UFC said:

“We are proud of the company we have built, confident in our legal position, and intend to prevail in the lawsuit,” The statement read.

Needless to say, the premier MMA organization decided to defend against the class action lawsuit and hired Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP as their attorneys. There was little to no progress in the matter for nearly eight years.

However, the process took a major turn in 2022. One of the lawsuits, which had CB Dolloway and Kajan Johnson as plaintiffs, was allowed to move forward as a Class Action Lawsuit by US District Judge Richard Boulware of Las Vegas.

On August 9, 2023, Judge Boulware established the allegations made in another lawsuit filed by Kung Le and allowed the class-action lawsuit to proceed. The case was originally filed as an Identity Class. However, it has now been certified as a Bout Class.

This means a total of 1200-plus fighters that competed at events from December 2010 to June 2017 are now automatically the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. But the fighters can voluntarily step out of the process if they so choose.

At the moment, the Dana White-led MMA promotion faces the risk of paying anywhere between $811 million to $1.6 billion in damages. However, the court has not ruled on class certification in a separate lawsuit that involves fighters that have competed in the UFC events from 2017 to 2023.

The court order has established that the MMA organization has kept fighters locked up in an anti-competitive manner and even acquired and shut down competing leagues to maintain its hegemony.

The UFC was represented by the law firm Paul Weiss in this case. Lead counsel William A. Isaacson has alleged that the lawsuits are 'legally' and 'factually' meritless and the court order is just one step in the legal process.

Stay tuned with Sportskeeda for future updates on the matter.