TEXAS COURT GRANTS ZUFFA, LLC MOTION TO COMPEL RANDY COUTURE TO ARBITRATE IN NEVADA

Courtesy of the Ultimate Fighting Championship:

For Immediate Release:
August 4, 2008

Las Vegas, NV -- Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®), has been informed by the Texas Court of Appeals that it has granted Zuffa’s Motion to Compel Randy Couture to arbitrate in the District of Nevada, thereby staying all further action by HDNet against Zuffa in the state of Texas.

Specifically, the Court of Appeals found that the lower court had engaged in “a clear abuse of discretion” by permitting HDNet to litigate claims relating to Mr. Couture’s contract in Texas, rather than in Nevada, where Zuffa is presently pressing a breach of contract action against Mr. Couture.

Upon learning of the court’s decision, Zuffa’s Las Vegas counsel, Donald J. Campbell, Esq., explained the significance of the ruling:

“The practical effect of the Court’s decision is to allow Zuffa to continue its prosecution of claims against Mr. Couture in the Arbitration presently underway here in Nevada without any regard to the flaccid claims of HDNet and its management. Based upon evidence uncovered during the interrogation of Mr. Couture during his deposition, we have every confidence that Mr. Couture will be held accountable for the serious and ongoing breaches of his contractual obligations to Zuffa.”

The successful appeal to the Texas Court of Appeals was achieved by Mr. Barry F. McNeil, Esq. and his partners at the Texas law firm Haynes Boone, LLP.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship® is the world’s leading professional mixed martial arts organization and offers the premier series of MMA sports events. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., UFC® produces over twelve live pay-per-view events annually that are distributed residentially through North American cable and satellite providers including iNDEMAND Networks, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN Entertainment, Shaw Pay-Per-View, Bell ExpressVU, and Viewers Choice, and commercially through Joe Hand Promotions. In addition to its North American distribution, UFC programming is distributed in over 100 countries and territories throughout the world. For more information, or current UFC fight news, visit www.ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or www.ufcespanol.com.

Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa™, The Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks, trademarks, trade dress or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC or other respective owners.