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Chapter 283 - 258: Fame and Fortune, Can’t Help but Admire

Chapter 283: Chapter 258: Fame and Fortune, Can’t Help but Admire

"Fight with Silvar?" Wu was somewhat surprised upon hearing this.

Silvar, a legendary figure in the UFC, was considered the best MMA athlete in the world by the authoritative fighting website Sherdog!

He was the unrivaled champion of the middleweight class, having dominated the UFC middleweight division for seven years, successfully defending his title ten times! (Note 1)

Such a legendary figure, even if Wu didn’t know much about the UFC, he had heard of the other party’s fame.

"Yes!"

Just mentioning Silvar’s name got Song Yidong excited because he was his idol, "But I’ve also heard that Silvar is actually very proud and conceited; he doesn’t easily spar with others in private, let alone a woman. If Li Tongyun hadn’t been highly praised by sister Li, I actually wouldn’t have believed it."

"So what is this Li Tongyun doing now?" Wu was a bit interested.

Song Yidong shook his head: "I’m not sure either, but when I was chatting with sister Li before, she mentioned that Li Tongyun had helped analyze a fight for Blood Demon Flosen. Oh right, she also practices Traditional Martial Arts, and she highly values it. After sister Li successfully defended her title and returned home, she visited some Traditional Martial Arts masters. The fact that she’s learning Long Arm Fist now is actually influenced by Li Tongyun."

Hearing this, Wu decided to pay this person a visit. Someone who could help Zhang Weili clinch the championship, spar with Silvar and even be invited by him to become a fighting coach, and signed with Blood Demon Flosen – such a person’s level could be guessed.

"Could you ask for Li Tongyun’s contact information for me? I’d like to meet this person," Wu said to Song Yidong.

Song Yidong nodded: "No problem, I’ll ask sister Li for it later. But hey, this person is quite strange, usually only signing for one fight and never a long-term contract. After sister Li won the championship, she sought her out many times, hoping to sign a long-term deal, but she was turned down."

Wu nodded. Since the other party also practiced Traditional Martial Arts, they should have common topics to discuss and he might have a chance to persuade her to sign a two-year contract with him.

As long as he secured a strategy coach for fight analysis, there would be no need for him to sign with William.

Thinking of this, Wu felt much better and took the initiative to raise his glass for a toast.

Chen Gang, who was sitting nearby, suddenly spoke up, "Wu’s main focus next will be preparing for his first fight, and the next issue of ’Seeking Martial Arts’ might feature a lot of UFC-related content. Could we also interview Song Yidong?"

Qian Lichuan was delighted by the words and quickly toasted Chen Gang: "Absolutely, of course, we can, thank you Director Chen, cheers to you!"

Song Yidong also raised his glass to Chen Gang to express his thanks.

With the current popularity of ’Seeking Martial Arts,’ just showing up on camera could lead to a huge amount of attention, not to mention Song Yidong already had a modest reputation and was a contracted UFC fighter. This was definitely a good thing for Song Yidong.

What does the UFC rely on to make money? Obviously, it depends on the fans’ support. The more viewers who enjoy watching a fighter’s matches, the higher his value becomes. Now with Dana White paying so much attention to the Hua Country market, as long as Song Yidong’s popularity in Hua Country increases, his appearance fee would naturally skyrocket.

This meal was worth it!

Qian Lichuan’s expression was excited, and he kept toasting, drinking heartily: "Help yourselves, folks, I’m all in!"

Wu smiled at Chen Gang, knowing he had done him a favor.

"Do you use Weibo, Brother Dong?" asked Wu.

Song Yidong nodded: "I have an account."

"How about we post a video?" Wu suggested.

Song Yidong paused for a moment before laughing, "Sure, why not."

Qian Lichuan’s face already brightened with a smile.

"Wu, I toast you. Your performance during that terrorist attack was nothing short of macho, I’m impressed!"

Song Yidong stood up and toasted Wu personally.

Qian Lichuan looked at Song Yidong in surprise and then raised his glass to Chen Gang, joining in the toast.

And so, the atmosphere in the room became completely jovial...

The next day, the Weibo short video of Wu and Song Yidong drinking together hit the Weibo hot spot list, and it even made it onto the Weibo hot search in the top twenties.

Song Yidong’s Weibo account, originally with only 130,000 followers, gained over a million new followers overnight because of the video with Wu.

...

New York, UFC headquarters.

In the president’s office, Dana White and William were conversing.

"So he’s pretty adamant?" asked Dana White.

William nodded: "He would rather raise the commission rate than sign a long-term contract, insisting at most on a two-year deal and claiming that he’s not short of money."

Dana White was somewhat speechless. Fame and fortune, after all, aren’t many people famous just to gain more benefits? What’s a person who isn’t short of money doing in the UFC? Simply for fame?

"He will probably contact other teams in the circle. Once he finds out more clearly, he should understand what you and your team mean," Dana White said.

"Even if he’s only after fame and wants to win a championship in UFC, he must have top-tier team support behind him."

William frowned, "But I’m afraid he’s too confident in himself and ends up signing with just any team."

Dana White thought for a moment, then picked up the phone on his desk to call Tom in.

"How’s Dan Hu’s side?"

Tom replied, "Dan Hu has agreed and is willing to fight Wu."

Dana White nodded. Dan Hu’s team wasn’t foolish either; Wu’s popularity in the United States was soaring. Seizing the opportunity to fight Wu could boost their own visibility, and if they could defeat ’Kung Fu Hero’, that would be quite a spectacle.

"Any latest news on Wu?" asked Dana White.

Since the nationwide broadcast on September 22, Dana White’s level of attention to Wu had increased more than just slightly. He had instructed Tom to keep a close watch on Wu, including Wu’s movements in Hua Country, and report back as soon as anything came up.

Tom pondered for a moment, "There was something last night."

"What?" Dana White pressed.

Tom said, "Wu went to Washington and met with Song Yidong. They had drinks together and even posted a short video on Hua Country’s internet, attracting quite a bit of attention."

"Song Yidong."

Dana White had a memory of Song Yidong as well; he had previously planned to use Song Yidong to tap into Hua Country’s market. However, Song Yidong’s abilities needed improvement and couldn’t meet Dana White’s expectations just yet. Once Wu appeared, he shifted his entire focus to Wu.

"Song Yidong’s latest match is against Tony, scheduled as the main event, right?" Dana White inquired.

Tom shook his head, "No, there are many stars in this edition, so his match is arranged as the co-main event."

Dana White considered for a moment, then told Tom, "Arrange it so that Song Yidong’s match is the main event."

Tom nodded, "Okay."

"Furthermore," Dana White continued, "spread the word that Song Yidong’s match was originally the co-main event, but it has been suddenly changed to the main event, got it?"

Tom hesitated, then affirmed, "Understood."

...

On October 13, the UFC official website released the latest competition card with a total of thirteen matches, including five main events.

Among the five main events were two fighters from Hua Country; one was Featherweight ’Kung Fu Monkey’ Song Yidong, who would face the fifteenth-ranked Tony in the featherweight division. The other was the recently popular ’Kung Fu Hero’ Wu, whose opponent was the sixth-ranked lightweight, Dan Hu.

The news about the UFC’s latest edition stirred up heated discussions in both the United States and Hua Country, with Wu, of course, being the main topic.

Entering the UFC and fighting a sixth-ranked contestant in the first match was a treatment usually reserved for fighters who had achieved a lot of glory in other Mixed Martial Arts events. As a newcomer with hardly any fight record, Wu had made history.

The audience in Hua Country was naturally looking forward to Wu bringing Traditional Martial Arts to the UFC octagon for the first time, while the American audience was eager to see how ’Kung Fu Hero’ performed in the octagon, as real combat and competition can differ.

Without a doubt, the upcoming match between Wu and Dan Hu had become a focal point, and the hype quickly escalated.

In Washington, Qian Lichuan excitedly put his arm around Song Yidong’s shoulder.

"I’ve heard some news; because of the high profile fighters this edition, your match against Tony was originally planned as a co-main event, but Dana White decided to change it to a main event. Rumors, just rumors, suggest it was after hearing about your drinks with Wu that he suddenly made the decision."

Song Yidong’s expression was complex. Main and co-main events represent different levels of importance; in UFC’s official marketing, main event fighters receive better promotional resources and garner more attention.

Most directly, main event fighters earn much higher appearance fees than co-main fighters, get more commercial sponsorships, and usually take the bonuses from each edition’s matches.

In short, the income of the main and co-main events is on different scales.

"Xiao Dong, how about it, listening to your brother is never wrong, is it? Just having a meal with Wu and you reap such rewards, so in the future, you should maintain a good relationship with Wu—it’s only beneficial for you," Qian Lichuan said earnestly.

Song Yidong was silent. In just one night, his Mo Yin account gained over a million followers. Originally only fit for a co-main event, now he was part of a main event, meaning he would earn at least an extra hundred thousand US dollars—nearly seven hundred thousand yuan.

And all this, just because he had dinner with Wu, who happened to post a video afterwards.

"Brother Qian, I understand," Song Yidong nodded.

Last night, when Wu called him ’Brother Dong’ during their dinner, he felt a bit smug, thinking that the difference between them wasn’t that big after all.

But in just one day, he had come to deeply appreciate the fame and fortune embodied by Wu.

He had no choice but to acknowledge it.

Note 1: Silvar, in reality, is Anderson Silva, who is now 45 years old and has fallen from the throne. But in this book, he remains in his prime as Legendary Spider. For those interested, you can check out his matches—just one word: sensational!