Brendan "Big Brown" Schaub is unafraid to speak openly on the UFC's exclusive partnership with Reebok, and the recently turned light heavyweight fighter is not a fan.
Speaking on a recent episode of his podcast with comedian Bryan Callen, The Fighter and The Kid, Schaub laid down his thoughts on the UFC's new sponsorship deal clearly and truthfully.
"There came a point—especially with this Reebok deal—where I said, 'OK,'" Schaub said on the show. "So I said to myself, 'OK, Reebok wants my exclusive rights inside the cage for 10 grand—man! And you know what's going on in my world as far as entertainment goes. Fighting will not pay the bills right now."
The former The Ultimate Fighter finalist then mentioned that, while his fighting mentality never waned, the deal totally changed his perspective on fighting when he evaluated his situation from all angles.
"The competitor in me goes, 'Let's do it, man," Schaub said. "The fighter in me, the guy who made a name for himself inside the Octagon and trains his ass off, very alive. He says, 'Let's fight next month.'"
"The brain and the people who are smarter than me...go, 'No, no, no.' You have too much else going on," Schaub continued. "You're making too much money elsewhere to be getting punched in the head."
Following this comment, Schaub talked about his recent appearance on Punch Drunk Sports, where he said the only fights that make sense for him moving forward are superfights. This comment spurred a discussion on the Mixed Martial Arts Underground forum, where some users questioned whether Schaub would ever fight again at all.
"I go on Punch Drunk and go, 'Man, the only thing that's going to get me out of bed is if you gave me a superfight,'" Schaub said on The Fighter and The Kid. "You wanna give me [Quinton] Rampage Jackson or you wanna give me [Mauricio] Shogun [Rua]—a big, blockbuster fight—I'll get out of bed for that."
Even then, Schaub noted, the fight wouldn't happen anytime soon.
"No time soon, because I have some crazy stuff going on, but, man, for me to fight for 10k for the Reebok deal, you're bats--t crazy, man. You're not getting Big Brown for 10k. If someone came to me right now and offered me three times that money, I wouldn't do it," Schaub exclaimed.
Right now, the Reebok deal is in its infancy with the UFC, and several fighters have spoken out and expressed discontent with its current terms. Schaub, however, has been one of the more vocal detractors (and certainly one of the most visible in the public eye), and his latest comments only enhance his past messages.
The issues now is whether more fighters will follow Schaub and put their fighting careers on the back burner until it makes sense to come back. The Reebok deal, for some fighters, sapped their initiative to fight by drastically reducing their paychecks.
Even if Schaub does fight again, he already said it wouldn't happen any time soon, and at 32 years old with 15 fights and four knockout losses under his belt, each passing day moves him a little further out of his prime. As time stretches on, a comeback becomes even less advisable, putting Brown in a precarious situation moving forward.
In time, we may see the UFC reshape the structure and payout of this deal, but for now, Big Brown is still clearly opposed to significant pay cut he's being forced to take at this stage in his career.
