Sources: UFC owners in advanced talks to sell promotion
7:46 PM ET
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Darren RovellESPN Senior Writer
The owners of the UFC are in advanced talks to sell the business, sources told ESPN.com.
At least four bidders are believed to have submitted bids for the organization, including WME/IMG, China Media Capital, The Blackstone Group and Dalian Wanda Group. The winning bid, should things proceed, is expected to be for a valuation between $3.5 billion and $4 billion, multiple sources with knowledge of the negotiations told ESPN.com.
"As a private company, we don't discuss speculation or rumors related to our business," said David Sholler, vice president of public relations and athlete marketing for the UFC.
Ronda Rousey and
Conor McGregor.
Rousey and McGregor each headlined three UFC events in 2015. Rousey's title fight against
Holly Holm in November set a new company attendance record at Etihad Stadium. One month later, McGregor's title fight against
Jose Aldo in Las Vegas drew the promotion's second-highest gate receipts in its history, with ticket sales grossing more than $10 million.
Other bidders said to be in the mix are WME/IMG, which owns media properties and represents athletes, including Rousey, the former UFC bantamweight champion. Blackstone Group is also believed to be a bidder. A senior executive at the private equity firm, David Blitzer, owns a minority stake in the
New Jersey Devils,
Philadelphia 76ers and British soccer team Crystal Palace.
Another bidder is state-backed investment firm China Media Capital, which in October beat out Dalian Wanda and national broadcaster CCTV to win the broadcast rights for the Chinese Super League, the highest level of soccer in the country. In December, CMC, with another Chinese investment group, Citic Capital, bought a 13 percent stake of British soccer team Manchester City for a reported $400 million. UFC executive vice president Garry Cook was CEO of Manchester City from 2008 to 2011.
It's not surprising that the leading bid is said to be from China. Chinese companies have made $110.8 billion worth of deals in 2016 compared with $106 billion for all of 2015, according to Dealogic, a financial markets data provider.
ESPN.com MMA staff writer Brett Okamoto contributed to this story.
