After a tropical storm delayed the show, Nemesis Fighting put on their “Global Invasion” show over the weekend. Unfortunately, it appears the storm isn’t over for the participating fighters. MMA Weekly reports that at least 8 fighters on the show – a show which included former UFC fighters Keith Jardine, Paul Buentello, Eliot Marshall, and Kerry Schall – have not been paid. From the story:
Coach Mike Winkeljohn, who is a lead coach along with Greg Jackson at Team Jackson/Winkeljohn in New Mexico, spoke about the problems with MMAWeekly Radio on Monday night.
“As far as I know none of the fighters got paid,” said Winkeljohn, who worked with fighters like Keith Jardine and John Dodson on the card. “I believe they all got handed checks, but the checking account bounced those checks. It did not have any money in it, so a lot of fraud involved and it’s real upsetting. It’s a black eye to the sport. They promise these guys one thing and do the other.”
…
Fighters and managers speaking to MMAWeekly.com confirmed that checks that were attempted to be cashed were returned, and as of now there’s been no contact by the promoter to try and rectify the situation.MMAWeekly.com sent messages to both Nemesis Fighting and Tim Fields directly to get comment on the situation, but none were returned as of Tuesday afternoon.
While I certainly don’t condone a promoter failing to pay fighters, one must wonder if there was an element of “sounds too good to be true” at play here. In a story about the event being postponed, Sherdog noted that Nemesis “had marketed the event as a ‘four-day, all-inclusive, world-class experience in paradise.'” Ticket buyers would have access to the fighters prior to weigh-ins, and that a celebrity golf tournament had been planned.