The UFC and WWE have officially joined forces under TKO, a new sports entertainment company worth billions.
Last Tuesday, executives from the new group rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, signaling the opening of the new publicly traded company. Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, UFC CEO Dana White, UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier, TKO executive chairman Vince McMahon, WWE CCO Paul Levesque (“Triple H”), and other key figures participated in the event.
The merger between the two sports entertainment properties opens a new world of possibilities for each brand. There are already many parallels between professional wrestling and MMA. A number of former UFC fighters have gone on to become WWE Superstars, such as Ronda Rousey, Shayna Baszler, and Matt Riddle, among others. A few wrestlers have tried their hand at MMA, such as Brock Lesnar, who became UFC heavyweight champion before returning to WWE.
