Update: Affliction Cancels ‘Trilogy’

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King Spadez

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Apr 5, 2003
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http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/update-affliction-cancels-trilogy-18705

A week of misfortune turned to disaster for Affliction Entertainment on Friday, as the promotion canceled Affliction “Trilogy,” which had been scheduled for Aug. 1 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

“Finding an opponent for the number one-ranked MMA heavyweight champion in such a short period of time was a huge endeavor, and I’m thrilled at the amount of fighters willing to take on this challenge,” Affliction Entertainment Vice President Tom Atencio said in a news release. “But in the end, we just didn’t have enough time to promote a new fight to our standards.”

SI.com reported the news first Friday morning, and Sherdog.com confirmed shortly after. The cancellation -- which could spell the end of Affliction's year-long run as a mixed martial arts promotion -- comes on the heels of heavyweight Josh Barnett's failed drug test, which forced him out of the “Trilogy” main event against Fedor Emelianenko on Wednesday. Barnett, 32, tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid and was denied licensure by the California State Athletic Commission.

Promoters scrambled to find a replacement opponent for Emelianenko and reportedly considered middleweight Vitor Belfort, light heavyweight prospect Muhammed Lawal and heavyweights Brett Rogers, Paul Buentello, Jeff Monson and Bobby Lashley.

Atencio declined to comment further when reached by Sherdog.com.
 
Shogun Locc

Shogun Locc

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Feb 7, 2006
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Sources: Some "Affliction: Trilogy" bouts could be secured for Aug. 28 M-1 event

Some of the undercard bouts slated for the recently canceled "Affliction: Trilogy" bout could end up on M-1 Global's Aug. 28 "premium fight series" event.

Sources close to the organization, which was the co-promoter of "Trilogy," today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that company officials are trying to secure some of the show's previously scheduled bouts, most notably Gegard Mousasi vs. Renato "Babalu" Sobral, for its upcoming show.

"M-1: Breakthrough," currently headlined by Don Frye vs. "King" Mo Lawal, takes place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in California and airs on HDNet.

M-1 Global is perhaps best known for its country-vs.-country "M-1 Challenge" series, but the global organization now wants to focus on the U.S. market with a traditional event series.

Earlier today Affliction Entertainment began contacting fighters who were slated to compete on the organization's Aug. 1 "Trilogy" card with news of the cancellation. In a statement issued by the company, Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio stated the cancellation resulted from the loss of Josh Barnett, who was slated to fight No. 1 ranked heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko in the night's main event. Barnett failed a drug test due to an anabolic steroid and was denied a license by the California State Athletic Commission earlier this week.

Part of a star-studded undercard – which featured names such as Paul Buentello, Takanori Gomi, Jay Hieron and Ben Rothwell – could be secured for the M-1 event. (In fact, two of the un-aired preliminary card bouts on "Trilogy," Lucio Linhares vs. Mikhail Zayats and Rob Broughton vs. Jessie Gibbs, were billed as "M-1 showcase fights.")

According to one source, the organization is working with a limited budget and is unlikely to afford a fight such as the co-main event of Vitor Belfort vs. Jorge Santiago, but it is actively pursuing some other, more afforable matchups.

There's also speculation that some of the matchups or competitors could end up on the Aug. 15 Strikeforce card, though MMAjunkie.com has been unable to get confirmation about any such plans.
 
Shogun Locc

Shogun Locc

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DONE FIGHTING, AFFLICTION NOW A UFC SPONSOR

In a sea change for the promotional landscape of mixed martial arts, Affliction has agreed to cease promoting fights and become an official sponsor of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports first reported the news on Friday afternoon, and a UFC official confirmed the report to MMAWeekly.com.

A joint announcement between the Las Vegas-based promotion and California-based clothing maker is expected soon.

Few details about the deal are known, but the popular clothing brand could be seen on Zuffa fighters as soon as Aug. 8, when UFC 101 lands in Philadelphia.

A similar deal was first proposed last October after the postponement of Affliction’s second event, “Day of Reckoning.” Executives from the UFC and Affliction met in secret in Las Vegas and offered to take Affliction on as a sponsor and co-branded apparel maker in exchange for ceasing to promote fights. Affliction executives rejected the offer after a fiery confrontation between co-founder Todd Beard and UFC co-owner Lorenzo Ferttita.

The fate of fighters marooned by Affliction’s cancellation of its third show, “Trilogy,” is unknown at this time.
 
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