Fightland is a website covering mixed martial arts (MMA).[1] Launched in September 2012, it is part of Vice Media, Inc. network channels.[2] Vice Media states that Fightland is a joint venture with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).[3]The New Yorker describes it as a vertical in which the UFC is sponsoring the whole website, and in general, concludes that "Vice's sponsored material can feel like a strange beast, neither advertising nor regular content but something in between."[4]
Fightland has been criticized by Cagepotato and Deadspin for not being transparent to their readers that it is funded by the UFC, and that it is operating as a marketing arm or acting as a shill.[5][6] The UFC, Vice Media and Fightland refused to comment on the subject when asked.[7]AtUFC 164 weigh-ins, UFC president Dana White wore an official Fightland T-shirt.[8][9]
Fightland editor-in-chief is Michael Hresko.[10] A notable writer for the website is MMA analyst Jack Slack.[11] Other notable writers include Peter Carroll[12] and Tom Taylor.[13]
Fightland was a 2014 World MMA Awards nominee for the "MMA media source of the year" award.[14]
On May 15, 2023, Vice Media formally filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, as part of a possible sale to a consortium of lenders including Fortress Investment Group, which will, alongside Soros Fund Management and Monroe Capital, invest $225 million as a credit bid for nearly all of its assets.[15]
