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UFC issues official response to anti-trust lawsuit

Published Dec. 17, 2014 12:45 p.m. ET

Elias Cepeda

The UFC issued a minimal response to an anti-trust lawsuit filed by three current and former fighters on their roster, yesterday. Former welterweight title challenger Jon Fitch, former middleweight title contender Nate Quarry and current UFC middleweight Cung Le jointly filed suit against the UFC for allegedly establishing a monopoly in the professional MMA marketplace, and controlling fighter compensation.

The UFC responded with a short statement on their website saying that they will defend themselves.

"The UFC is aware of the action filed today but has not been served, nor has it had the opportunity to review the document. The UFC will vigorously defend itself and its business practices," the statement read, in its entirety.

In 2012, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigated the UFC's business practices to see if they had violated anti-trust statutes, after its parent company, Zuffa, purchased rival promotion Strikeforce. After six months, the FTC closed the investigation and no action was recommended or mandated by the agency.

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