Don Frye On UFC Lawsuit: They’re Going To Take Their Check And Run

Two-time UFC tournament champion and Pride veteran Don Frye isn’t exactly known for hiding his true feelings on all things MMA.

“The Predator” has earned a well-deserved reputation for telling it like it is, and with so many polarizing and developing stories circling the sport right now, it’s hardly a surprise to hear Frye speak up with his opinion on a wide variety of subjects.

Frye recently met up Submission Radio to discuss the new class action lawsuit leveled at the UFC by fighters Jon Fitch, Cung Le, and Nathan Quarry, which has been followed by two other suits filed by Dennis Hallman and Brandon Vera.

The fighters are seeking an undisclosed amount of reparations based on the accusation that the UFC monopolized the MMA market and crippled fighters’ power to negotiate and earn their true worth. But the decision rendered could literally take years to be reached in antitrust court, making an out-of-court settlement very distinct possibility. According to Frye, that’s exactly what is going to happen:

“You know, all I know about it is what I’ve read on the Internet like everybody else. And I think once these guys get a check wiggled in front of them, they’re going to bounce out. They’re going to take their check, and they’re going to run, you know.

It’s not going to last. I mean let’s face it, UFC can litigate you until your great grandchildren die of old age, you know? There’s no law firm that’s gonna take something like that on a percentage basis. And once UFC tells these guys, “Hey, I’ll give ya half a million dollars, and a million dollars to walk away” these guys are gonna take it and go buy themselves a boat and be gone.”

According to Frye, the fighters may say that they are battling it out for their fellow athletes, but all they really want is more money:

“Whenever I hear someone say, ”I’m doing it for the fighters, I’m doing it for the other athletes, I’m doing it for everybody else, I’m doing it for the little guy,” I wipe my ass with that comment. You know what, as soon as they get money, they’re going to go.”

It may sound like a bit of a harsh diagnosis from Frye, yet it may be an accurate one at the heart of the matter. After all, the huge antitrust suit could take years to even reach a trial in Northern California District Court, and there’s hardly any guarantee of a victory if and when it does.

That could easily translate into the UFC offering Le, Fitch, and the others a sizeable cash settlement, and although they are in fight mode right now, that tune could change very quickly if the dollar amount is right.

Or the fighters could simply decide that enough is enough and that they’re in it for the long haul to decisively stick it to the UFC in a suit they feel they can win. Just don’t be surprised to see Frye’s words, while harsh, to become reality.