MMAPayout received news this morning that WAMMA is alive and well.
The following is a WAMMA press release announcing a new strategic partnership with Brand Asset Digital:
NEW YORK (August 20th, 2009) –The World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts (WAMMA) today announces a new strategic partnership with Brand Asset Digital, the distributed technologies company. The association between the two groups will help WAMMA incorporate new sponsorships into traditional and electronic platforms.
“We believe our combined efforts will help bring new sponsors into the MMA arena,” says WAMMA CEO Dave Szady. “I will also help advance WAMMA’s mission of promoting the integrity, legitimacy and prosperity of MMA.”
"Brand Asset Digital will provide WAMMA with unparalleled access to P2Plive streaming technology and our social networking platform providing them with the ultimate online experience," says Brand Asset Digital CEO Tim Hogan. "We are on the cutting edge of changing the LIVE experience on the internet and the future of online programming with P2PLive Streaming. We are looking forward to applying that technology to mixed martial arts."
WAMMA also congratulations Strikeforce on signing WAMMA Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko, and congratulates M-1 and Dream on their partnership with Strikeforce.
“All three of these organizations have been friends of WAMMA and these developments and plans to co-promote move the sport of MMA forward on a global scale,” said Szady. “The three of these organizations have a tremendous talent pool from which to draw and WAMMA looks forward to future Championship fights.”
Additionally, Szady addressed rumors of WAMMA’s demise, including blogosphere photos of vacant WAMMA offices.
“Clearly WAMMA is alive and well, and growing,” says Szady. “We are in the process of relocating to new office space in Pensacola and will resume our rankings this month. WAMMA has been actively seeking a new rankings committee chair. We plan to finalize a new Rankings Committee Chairperson and make that announcement shortly.”
About WAMMA
WAMMA is the only universally accepted global governing body in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).
WAMMA is dedicated to leading the sport of Mixed Martial Arts to unprecedented levels of integrity, legitimacy and prosperity. With the help of forward-looking MMA promotions, WAMMA has created an environment where fighters from all organizations have the opportunity to openly compete to be the one true, undisputed champion in their respective weight classes based on WAMMA’s objective MMA Rankings.
About Brand Asset Digital
Brand Asset Digital is a distributed technologies company with a core focus on P2P Search Marketing and Optimization, delivering efficient, high-quality, live streaming technology, and video centric social networking platforms. Our mission is to provide cutting edge products and services that enable and empower Advertisers and Content Owners to easily leverage these technologies within a robust, scalable architecture. We promote and build brands amid a vast, untapped audience. We are the P2P Solutions Company.
Payout Perspective:
Many thought WAMMA was dead when Pat Miletich and Sam Caplan left the organization – apparently they thought wrong.
This new partnership has been formed ostensibly to help develop and promote new sponsored MMA promotions, so I’d expect further partnership announcements to come. (Note: WAMMA went out of its way to acknowledge Strikeforce, Dream, and M-1)
WAMMA started out with noble intentions: trying to unify the sport under one set of worldwide rankings in search of even greater legitimacy. It didn’t happen the first time around, so it’ll be interesting to see what their new approach is.
I’m getting word that there’s been a significant shake-up not only within management, but also in philosophy. However, the overall goal still remains to "help improve the integrity, legitimacy, and prosperity" of the sport through a worldwide governing body.
I am most interested to see how WAMMA plans to tackle the issue of the UFC’s co-operation, or lack thereof. You can’t have legitimacy without the world’s premier MMA organization; or more to the point, without the UFC’s roster which accounts for 80% of the top 15 fighters every division.
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