It appears as if the sale of the UFC has finally been completed.
Despite issuing a statement denying the sale last month, Zuffa has agreed to sell the UFC to WME-IMG and MSD Capital for roughly $4 billion, Zuffa CEO Lorenzo Fertitta confirmed to Jeremy Botter of FloSports.
The sale was first reported by Chris Maathuis of KLAS-TV in Las Vegas.
Maathuis conducted an exclusive interview with Fertitta and UFC president Dana White that will air Monday morning to announce the papers on the deal have officially been signed.
White also confirmed to ESPN's Brett Okamoto that the deal had been completed. White said the sale of the UFC is very bittersweet, though he will remain on as president.
Fertitta and his brother Frank are also expected to stay on as minority investors.
The deal comes just a day after the historic UFC 200 that featured multiple title fights and the return of Brock Lesnar, but was also muddled by controversy and the removal of Jon Jones from the card. According to Maathuis, the $4-billion price tag makes the sale of the UFC the largest in the history of sports.
The Fertitta brothers created Zuffa and purchased the UFC in January 2001 for $2 million, bringing an incredible return on the investment a little over 15 years later. At the time the UFC was on the fringe of the sports world and unable to even air on PPV, but under White and the Fertitta brothers the organization has grown into a global phenomenon that is watched in over 150 countries.
