UFC News: Mehdi Baghdad asked to fight injured if he didn't want to get fired
All the MMA fans that subscribe to watch UFC shows must understand the struggle fighters undergo to strike a deal with their employer. Reportedly, the UFC is not just underpaying their employees but also forcing them into the Octagon despite being injured. One such fighter who suffered the same fate is Mehdi Baghdad.
Baghdad was forced to cancel his bout with Jon Tuck at UFC Fight Night 97 in Manila due to an abdominal hernia that required surgery, according to Mmmamania.com. This is what he had to say about the unfortunate situation:
“I was in [an] emergency the night before I gave the bad news that I had to pull out. I called my manager, my manager called Joe Silva. And Joe Silva just answered back like, ‘You need to pull out? We [will] cut you.’ And my manager said, ‘Come on, man, you can’t do that! The doctor said that he has to do surgery; he can’t fight. And then he [has to] force himself to fight? He can't! He has to do surgery.' So my manager let me know. 'They need you to go fight, or you are fired.’’’
Baghdad was forcefully released from his contract as he couldn’t fight in the Manila card, but thanks to BJ Penn he was saved. The whole Manila card was pulled as BJ Penn had injured a rib and would require time out from the sport again.
The bottom line? The bottom line is that only popular fighters get to pull out of a fight while the rest of them are forced to fight in whatever condition they are in. The former two-divisional champion Penn has won only one match in the last seven years.
Most of the smaller fighters usually fight at any given condition, as they struggle to make their end meals. Hence, as a result of the starvation, the promotion takes advantage of them.
The UFC has a monopoly over the mixed martial arts business and is gradually conquering the boxing spectators too. This might soon result in the decline in the sport of boxing.
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