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The UFC and WWE have long had a historical link. The MMA promotion was founded due to a long-held interest in fighting. People across the globe have always wondered who the best fighters in the world are. Ironically, this is also part of what led to the rise of professional wrestling.
While the WWE is more rooted in theatrics and predetermined matches, the toughman image of pro-wrestlers only recently changed. For this reason, a potential marriage between the UFC and WWE was always a topic of conversation. Now, however, it's been made official.
In a stunning move, Endeavor Group—the UFC's parent company—will combine with the WWE. Doing so will form a $21 billion juggernaut that will merge two entities that never quite saw eye to eye despite their similarities. It has been described as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
With a controlling stake in WWE now in Endeavor's hands, fans have taken to social media to create memes out of the situation. However, the creation of a single publicly traded company from the world's biggest pro-wrestling and MMA promotions has had more serious implications.
How merger has affected UFC and WWE shares?
According to Reuters, both promotions have agreed to provide roughly $150 million in cash to finance the newly publicly traded company. The agreement has had an impact on WWE shares, changing each share to a value of $106. This has caused the company's shares to experience a 6% decrease.
Meanwhile, Endeavor, the UFC's parent company, experienced a 0.3% uptick in its share value. In the wake of WWE's sale, current executive chairman of the company Vince McMahon made an interesting announcement that may or may not be positively received by WWE fans.
The former CEO claimed that he would be involved on the creative side of things, which has been under the control of his son-in-law, Paul Levesque. According to the executive chairman, he will be involved in a higher level of the creative process.
