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It might not be getting much coverage from the media, but right now, the UFC is embroiled in a class-action lawsuit filed by several disgruntled former fighters.
The UFC is currently battling against this class action lawsuit, which is hoping to force the promotion to pay out millions – but who are the fighters behind it, and why are they taking the UFC to court?
Essentially, the lawsuit is all about fighter pay and the fact that these fighters believe that the UFC has behaved in a non-competitive way to keep wages as low as possible.
The truth of that can only be decided by the courts, but for now, here is a look at the six fighters initially involved in the lawsuit and what might’ve inspired them to file it.
#1 Cung Le (UFC record: 2-2)
Former StrikeForce middleweight champion Cung Le probably has more reason to be angry with the UFC than any of the other fighters involved in the class action lawsuit.
Le rose to fame with StrikeForce before their buyout at the hands of Zuffa, coming into the world of MMA with a big reputation built in sanshou and kickboxing.
Almost exclusively fighting smaller opponents in his early years, Le was decried by many fans as a “can crusher” but somewhat proved his worth with wins over Frank Shamrock and Scott Smith.
When the UFC brought StrikeForce’s fighters over to the octagon, Le was a surprise arrival in late 2012, fighting Wanderlei Silva at UFC 139 in a thrilling bout.
He then defeated Patrick Cote and Rich Franklin and coached in the inaugural season of TUF China before losing to Michael Bisping in 2014.
It was the Bisping fight that caused Le and the UFC to clash. Following the fight, Le reportedly tested positive for elevated HGH levels and was suspended from competition for a year.
However, Le disputed the test and appeared to have a point. According to reports, the testing laboratory used didn’t use an appropriate HGH test, wasn’t WADA-approved, and also destroyed the blood sample before further tests could be done.
The controversy caused Le to demand his release from the UFC, and just months later, his involvement in the class-action lawsuit was revealed.
#2 Nate Quarry (UFC record: 7-3)
One of the UFC’s original homegrown TUF stars, Nate Quarry, seemed every bit the company man during his first few years with the promotion.
Quarry shot to fame following his stint on the first season of TUF. After winning his first three UFC fights, Quarry was handed a shot at UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 56.
The fight didn’t go too well for Quarry, who was knocked out. Nonetheless, he returned following spinal surgery in 2007 and put together a solid 4-2 record before stepping away from MMA in 2010.
So what triggered Quarry to become involved with this lawsuit? From interviews with the man himself, it seems like he doesn’t really have beef with the UFC aside from the fact that he wants them to pay more and for the fighters to earn a larger slice of the pie.
That seems reasonable enough. Given that Quarry was supposedly paid just $10k to fight Franklin in a UFC title fight in what was a major headliner at the time, it’s easy to understand why he’d feel that way.
#3 Jon Fitch (UFC record: 14-3-2)
Jon Fitch undoubtedly had the most successful run in the UFC of all the fighters involved in the class action lawsuit.
Part of the UFC roster from 2005 to 2013, Fitch quickly rose through the ranks and, at his peak, was widely recognized as one of the best welterweights on the planet. Even at that point, though, things weren’t always plain sailing for the native of Indiana.
Due to a perceived dull fighting style, Fitch had to win a ridiculous eight fights in a row before getting a shot at the UFC welterweight title, a fight he would lose to champion Georges St. Pierre.
In late 2008, he found himself in the UFC’s bad books and was even temporarily released from the promotion for refusing to sign a licensing agreement that would allow the UFC to use his name and likeness in their video game.
Once he returned, a five-fight win streak appeared to have him on the cusp of another title shot, but due to the one-sided nature of his first fight with GSP, the UFC passed him over.
Once his record became patchy – he went 1-2-1 from 2011 to 2013 – he was quickly released from the UFC. Dana White suggested it was down to the fact that he was “super expensive” to book in fights.
With all of these issues with the UFC, it’s no surprise that Fitch has become involved with the class action lawsuit. In particular, Fitch has pushed for the Ali Act to be enforced – something which would probably have guaranteed him a title shot more quickly than the UFC granted him.
#4 Javier Vazquez (UFC record: 1-0)
Javier Vazquez is perhaps the most surprising name on the list of plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit against the UFC. That’s because he had just one fight inside the octagon – a win over Joe Stevenson – before seemingly retiring from MMA.
In an ideal world, Vazquez would’ve debuted in the UFC much sooner than 2011. The grappling ace was originally supposed to debut in the UFC in 2004 at UFC 46, but a serious knee injury prevented that and kept him out of action for the better part of four years.
Vazquez ended up signing with Zuffa in the WEC in 2009, and after picking up wins over Jens Pulver and Mackens Semerzier, he made his way to the UFC for his lone fight there in 2011.
So what exactly happened? The information seems hard to find when it comes to Vazquez. A January 2013 interview confirmed that he’d retired from MMA – with fights remaining on his UFC contract – as he felt that he had “nothing physically left to give.”
In this instance, it’s hard to say what his motivation for joining the lawsuit as a plaintiff is – but one can probably surmise it’s due to similar reasons as Nate Quarry.
#5 Kyle Kingsbury (UFC record: 4-5)
Kyle Kingsbury debuted in the UFC in 2008 following a somewhat infamous stint on TUF 8 that saw him embroiled in some seriously puerile behavior.
However, Kingsbury was also an excellent athlete and a good prospect at 205lbs. He showed that by putting together a decent record of 4-1 in the octagon – peaking with a win over Fabio Maldonado in 2011.
Kingsbury struggled when he made a step up in competition, and his UFC career ended in 2014 following four straight losses. However, it's worth noting that dropping fights to Jimi Manuwa and Glover Teixeira was hardly shameful.
After announcing his retirement from MMA in the summer of 2014, Kingsbury’s name was quickly added to the list of plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit against the UFC at the end of that year.
Unlike Nate Quarry and Jon Fitch, Kingsbury has hardly been vocal in terms of interviews regarding his treatment by the UFC.
However, he is on record stating that he had to moonlight in other jobs during his UFC career and even claimed that Burger King treated him better than the promotion.
Kingsbury also claimed that the best year he had with the UFC saw him make $100k before expenses – meaning that, like Quarry, his reasons for joining the lawsuit would likely be financial ones.
#6 Brandon Vera (UFC record: 8-7-1)
Despite fighting for the UFC from 2005 to 2013 and becoming a genuine UFC title contender at several points, Brandon Vera’s relationship with the promotion was not always plain sailing.
Vera won his first four UFC fights to take his overall record to 8-0 and going into 2007, it seemed like he was on the cusp of a shot at the UFC heavyweight title.
However, 'The Truth' quickly found himself in hot water with the UFC. Vera revealed that he had one fight remaining on his deal with the promotion and was willing to listen to offers from Elite XC, who were at the time attempting to compete with the UFC.
The UFC’s response? They gave Vera’s title shot to Randy Couture and benched him for almost a year. When he returned, the momentum he’d put together was gone, and he lost to Tim Sylvia in his return bout before settling into a middling run that ended when he left the promotion in 2013.
Vera currently fights for ONE Championship but joined the class-action lawsuit against the UFC in 2014.
The UFC’s habit of “benching” fighters before the final fight on their contract was one of the issues brought up by Jon Fitch and Kyle Kingsbury in a 2020 court hearing for the lawsuit. It’s safe to say, then, that Vera’s issues with the UFC probably stem back to the 2007 incident.
