Since Hulk Hogan’s body slammed Andre the Giant, the pro wrestling world hasn’t felt a greater impact: Endeavor Group, the parent company of cfuannounced a merger with WWE create a new company valued at more than 21 billion dollars, by CNN.
Endeavor will own 51% of the entity, while WWE shareholders will get 49%.
“This is a rare opportunity to create a pure global live sports and entertainment game designed for the direction the industry is heading,” Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel said in a statement. statement. “For decades, Vince and his team have demonstrated an incredible track record of innovation and creating shareholder value, and we believe Endeavor can deliver significant additional shareholder value by bringing together the UFC and WWE.”
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Emmanuel will also serve as CEO of the new company, while WWE’s Vince McMahon will retain his title as WWE Executive Chairman and Dana White will continue as UFC Chairman.
Vince McMahon, who grew a special villain mustache for the announcement, said that given Endeavor’s success with the UFC brand, this merger is “without a doubt the best outcome for our shareholders and the other stakeholders”. And promised viewers used to seeing him do great things that it would be “the greatest thing I’ve ever done.”
This mustache is wild on Vince McMahon.
CNBC with the exclusive interview on the merger between #WWE & #UFC pic.twitter.com/yMQj4xMb1Y— Logan Sherrill (@LoganSherrillTV) April 3, 2023
As of press time, Dana White has not spoken publicly about the merger, and reaction from both fanbases has been oddly muted on social media. Although Conor McGregor has tweeted a photo of himself wearing both the UFC and WWE championship belts, so there’s a hint of what’s in the works.
?? @wwe, @ufc, @TheMacLife ?? #itsinevitable pic.twitter.com/4m75uwZr23
—Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) April 2, 2023
It won’t be the first time these iconic brands have crossed paths. Ronda Rousey, Dave Bautista and Brock Lesnar are just three mega-stars who have moved between the UFC octagon and the WWE squared circle in the past.
While it remains to be seen how the “real” and “fake” fights will coalesce under one brand, one thing is for sure: it’s going to be bloody.
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