UFC and Affliction Partner After Trilogy Cancellation

Zuffa, LLC, owner of the UFC and WEC, and Affliction officially announced their collaboration Friday night in the wake of the cancellation of Affliction’s third MMA event, Trilogy, after ninth-ranked heavyweight “Babyface Assassin” Josh Barnett (20-5) tested positive for 2a-methyl-5a-androstan-3a-ol-17-one, an anabolic steroid, and was denied a license by the California State Athletic Commission to fight Fighters.com Heavyweight Champion “Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (29-1).

UFC President Dana White stated, “We are excited about the return of Affliction to the UFC and look forward to seeing our fighters once again walk into the Octagon wearing the Affliction brands. Affliction is an innovator of mixing fashion with this sport and we are looking forward to working together to promote the sport.”

Eric Foss, co-founder of Affliction, added, “Our brand is synonymous with the ‘Live Fast’ approach to life and UFC is the perfect venue for us to market our brand. We have come to an agreement with the UFC which we feel will be the best for the sport and will help the UFC continue delivering the highest caliber of fights.”

Yahoo!Sports reported Friday afternoon that the collaboration includes an agreement that Affliction would cease promoting mixed martial arts events.

A spokesperson for M-1 Global, Affliction’s partner promoting three MMA events, responded to Fighters.com’s request for comment Friday afternoon saying, “This is the first I hear of this.”

Affliction Veep Tom Atencio has not responded to Fighters.com’s request for comment.