Canadian promoter takes on ‘Big’ John McCarthy about refs receiving extra pay

It's always been one of the bizarre phenomenons at MMA events.

What other sport has fans that give raucous ovations to "name" referees? For some reason, many MMA fans enjoy seeing "Big" John McCarthy and Herb Dean and show them the love. Somehow we don't see that happening anytime soon at baseball game with "Cowboy" Joe West or in the NBA with Joey Crawford.

McCarthy recognizes this oddit and he along with certain promoters may be cashing in on it. That doesn't sit right with Canadian promoter Mark Pavelich. The MFC chief throws a lot of bull at the wall and generally none of it sticks, but this time, he may have uncovered a pretty serious issue.

Pavelich says promoters are paying some MMA referees extra "appearance" fees to work events.

"It's outrageous and absolutely inappropriate. These certain referees are charging anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 just to show up, bark out a catchphrase, and supervise a fight. But these fees aren't being paid by any commission. They are paid by a show owner or promoter," Pavelich said in a recent MFC newsletter. "[...]
And how can you not call into question the ethics of these referees. Would you not expect their loyalties to be torn when some promoter is willing to pay them 10K, and that same referee is then calling the action when the promoter's top fighters are in action."

Pavelich says commissions need to lay down the law.

"There are a number of very good referees out there, including those that have worked recent MFC events. But even they shouldn't be allowed to just toss out a price tag, or have a commission toss out one for them. There should be a pay scale in place ? here's what you get paid (plus reasonable expenses) … take it or leave it," said Pavelich.

McCarthy responded to Pavelich on MMA.tv's Underground Forum and in doing so confirmed that he has received additional dollars to work events.

If I have a promoter contact me about working their show it is my right to ask for whatever fee I feel is fair. Most of the time that promoter is using my name to help promote their show and I should be compensated for that because it goes beyond the normal scope of the job. Now they are using you to help possibly sell tickets," said McCarthy.

In a sense McCarthy is right, that's not fair. But he also has the right to tell the promoter that his name can't be used in any promotional efforts to push the event.

"Have I ever made $10,000 to work a show, No. I have made different amounts of money throughout my career," McCarthy wrote. "Last night I worked a show and made $280 for the night."

McCarthy alleges that Pavelich is only pushing the issue as part of an agenda to help out a Canadian friend/official who's been left out of UFC 129 and several other big events in Canada.

Does anyone else see the potential problem here? In no way are we saying McCarthy, Dean or any of the other big-name referees would do a favor for a promoter or one of their star fighters, but anything that could potentially put any referee's integrity into question has to be stymied before the issue arises.

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Strikeforce Champ Gilbert Melendez Brutalizes Tatsuya Kawajiri

by Michael David SmithStrikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez made short work of Tatsuya Kawajiri on Saturday night, pummeling him with powerful strikes and finishing him with brutal elbows to the head on the ground to win a first-round technical knockout.

Melendez beat Kawajiri in a close decision in Pride in 2006, but there was nothing close this time around: Melendez dropped Kawajiri with punches in the opening seconds of the first round, blasted him with knees in the Thai clinch, took control on the ground and eventually finished the fight with vicious elbows.

 

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Lightweight crystal ball: The 2012 rankings

It's the deepest class in the world, so much so that the top of the 155-pound division could be turned on its ear by this time next year. UFC champion Frank Edgar escaped with his title after fighting to a draw against Gray Maynard at UFC 125. Edgar's a great fighter, but people doubt him because of his size and lack of finishing prowess. With challengers coming at him from all directions, will Edgar still be the No. 1 lightweight in the world in Apr. of 2012?

Maynard, Anthony Pettis, Gilbert Melendez and Jim Miller are probably all two wins away from being the undisputed top dog in the division.  With a hot 2011, Sean Sherk, Shinya Aoki, Melvin Guillard, Clay Guida, George Sotiropoulos and Evan Dunham could all force their way into the picture as well. Additional wild cards include Ben Henderson and Eddie Alvarez, if he can escape Bellator. Now that's depth.

Melendez certainly did his part last weekend against Tatsuya Kawajiri. He wasn't going to let judges screw up his first fight in front of Zuffa management. The Strikeforce lightweight champ made sure of that by unleashing a fury of elbows, knees and punches at Kawajiri.

Melendez is knocking at the UFC door for a fight against Edgar, Pettis, Maynard and the rest of the elite crew in the bigger fight promotion.

Melendez says his camp might be the best in the world. Looking at his competition with the "Skrap Pack," it's hard to disagree.

"It's discouraging in camp training with Nick [Diaz], Jake [Shields] and Nate [Diaz]," Melendez told HDNet's Inside MMA. "You question yourself, 'am I ready for this fight?' You know, you have these bad days. I'm getting smashed by these guys sometimes. And then you doubt yourself. And then you walk in there and you dominate, and then you realize that's how great your team is. We're evolving and we always constantly raise the bar against each other."

Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joined us to debate the future odds on an Edgar-Melendez fight and how he'd matchup against some of the other elite lightweights.

Here's my top 10 in Apr. of 2012:

1. Gilbert Melendez

2. Frank Edgar

3. Eddie Alvarez

4. Jim Miller

5. Anthony Pettis

6. Melvin Guillard

7. Gray Maynard

8. George Sotiropoulos

9. Ben Henderson

10. Evan Dunham

What's yours?

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Watch UFC 129 from your own room in the Rogers Centre

UFC 129 in Toronto sold out in record time, but fans left without seats have an option to get into the Rogers Centre: book a room for $1,300 in the Renaissance Hotel, which is a part of the Rogers Centre and looks into the large, domed arena. You and up to three friends can enjoy the fights from the privacy of a hotel room.

Of course, there's fine print:

The hotel plans on enforcing a strict set of special policies regarding the number of guests in the room, as well as the restriction of outside food and beverages, so be sure and check out the rules before booking the room.

You don't want to be watching a crucial moment in Jake Shields vs. Georges St. Pierre and have hotel security bust in and kick everyone out before you hear the judges decision, so it makes sense to follow these rules.

According to the Renaissance, the hotel rooms are comparable to 200 or 300-level seats, which are going for between $350-600 on Stubhub. A $1,300-room split four ways is $350. Throw in tax and food, and the room will cost about $400 a person, so it's not necessarily a cheaper option.

There are upsides to having a private room to watch the fights:

-- No line for the bathroom.

-- If a fight breaks out in the stands, that has no effect on you. Let the idiots tussle. They won't knock over your beer.

-- A break in the fights = naptime.

-- The guy yelling, "PUT HIM IN A BODYBAG!" is not sitting behind you. Neither is the armchair coach, the know-it-all, the fighting couple or the way-too-drunk-too-early-in-the-night guy. (Unless those are your friends. If they are, you can lock them in the bathroom.)

But it's not everything you could want in a fight-watching experience. A few years ago, a young woman tried to watch a Blue Jays game from a Renaissance room wearing nothing but a thong and a smile, and security quickly put an end to it.

More UFC 129 coverage on Yahoo! Sports:
Georges St. Pierre's training is just messing with us now
St. Pierre visualizes Toronto celebration

Would you want to watch the fights from a hotel room? Tell us in the comments or on Facebook.

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Ultimate Fighter's Ramsey Nijem Talks Tension on Team Dos Santos

by Michael David SmithRamsey Nijem is a contestant on this season of the Ultimate Fighter.On this week's episode of The Ultimate Fighter, Junior dos Santos had some trouble in the ranks of his coaching staff, and he had to reprimand his assistant, Lew Polley, for pushing his fighters too hard in practice.

Ramsey Nijem, a member of Team Dos Santos, said in his weekly interview with MMAFighting.com that he was glad dos Santos said something, because Polley had been taking his intense coaching style to extreme lengths.

Nijem also discussed the new member of Team Dos Santos and this week's fight between Len Bentley and Ryan McGillivray, and he offered an interesting preview of his own (not quite) nude scene in next week's episode. The full interview is below.

 

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