Over the weekend, former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz defeated Chuck Liddell in their trilogy fight. The bout took place in Golden Boy Promotion’s inaugural mixed martial arts (MMA) event in California. Ortiz knocked out Liddell in the first round of the contest. Liddell looked extremely sluggish and reluctant to engage with “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy.”
That being said, Ortiz seems to be all in with Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy MMA. After the fight, Ortiz threw a ton of support behind the promotion. He called on all fighters to give the venture a chance if they want to make the money they deserve. Speaking to MMA Junkie recently, Ortiz’s longtime manager, George Prajin, revealed his client wants a bigger role with Golden Boy MMA.
To be more specific, it sounds like Ortiz wants to be the ambassador for the De La Hoya promotion:
“Tito would love to be the ambassador,” Prajin said.
Prajin went on to defend the way Golden Boy MMA pays their fighters. While he admits those on the preliminary card are still competing in what is a “developmental sport,” top dogs who are a big draw can rest assure that they’ll “eat what they kill”:
“It’s very lucrative to those that are at the top that deserve to benefit from the revenue they bring to the organization,” Prajin said. “The UFC has done it better than anyone, but once they get to a certain level, they should benefit more from the revenue.”
