# Sponsor refuses to pay Rick Hawn following Bellator 85 loss to Michael Chandler



## onip69 (Oct 14, 2012)

Sponsor refuses to pay Rick Hawn following Bellator 85 loss to Michael Chandler

By Jesse Holland on Jan 22, 1:26p 




Hawn loses his fight, then loses his money.

A cautionary tale for all uop-and-coming mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters. Read the fine print on that sponsorship agreement!

Talk about kicking a guy while he's down.

Former Bellator lightweight number one contender, Rick Hawn, came up short in his bid to capture the crown at last weekend's (Jan. 17, 2013) mixed martial arts (MMA) event on Spike TV, succumbing to a second-round rear naked choke at the hands of Michael Chandler.

And he didn't just lose the fight.

According to Hawn, he also lost a payday from one of his "main sponsors," who was so disappointed that "Genghis" didn't win, that he put a "stop payment" on his check because "great TV exposure" holds no weight in defeat.

Hawn shares his sponsor's explanation via Twitter:




> "At this point, a stop payment has been placed on check which cannot be cashed or deposited now. I will not comment on Rick and his fight. That is not my place. But what I will tell you is this: I took a huge chance with him. TV exposure was great...but it only holds weight if he wins or puts on a good show. Neither happened. At the end of the day...not one sole (sp) will run to [my] store and buy product because they [saw my logo and saw] Rick loose (sp) the fight. I've made it my career and business to know what nets a return on investment for the brand...and this is the number 1 reason why I DO NOT hand out money or product to fighters."


It should be noted that Hawn competed at the 2004 Olympics (Judo) and has a 14-2 record overall, not to mention he was in the main event on Spike TV. And it's not like he was beaten by Joey Bananas, either, as Chandler is one of the top 155 pounders not competing for ZUFFA.

Lame.

As a result of his pending lawsuit, Hawn was unable to comment or identify the sponsor in question when contacted by MMAmania.com, but we'll be sure to update you on this story as it unfolds.


http://www.mmamania.com/2013/1/22/1631615/sponsor-refuses-to-pay-rick-hawn-bellator-85-spike-mma


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## Killz (Oct 5, 2009)

According to mmafighting they have now agreed to pay him.


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## onip69 (Oct 14, 2012)

Killz said:


> According to mmafighting they have now agreed to pay him.


Thanks for that Killz. Good to see that they are now paying him.

Here is the update.







> *Sponsor agrees to pay Bellator's Rick Hawn after initially stopping sponsorship check*
> 
> By Ariel Helwani on Jan 22, 3:45p 19
> 
> ...



http://www.mmafighting.com/2013/1/2...-bellators-rick-hawn-after-initially-stopping


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## Stun Gun (Oct 24, 2012)

Rick Hawn for the UFC.


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## TheNinja (Dec 10, 2008)

MuscleSherk said:


> Rick Hawn for the UFC.


I dunno after that performance... Chandler made him his Bizzztch... And I'm a big Rick Hawn fan... I think he should stay fighting lower level guys at his old age of 36.


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## El Bresko (Mar 12, 2010)

That sponsor is a real bag of Ds. Like anybody is going to shop there now..


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## LL (Mar 12, 2011)

That company looks like shit.


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## Hexabob69 (Nov 8, 2008)

Umm. I just bought a lottery ticket and lost the drawing... I want my money back... WTF


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## Sportsman 2.0 (Jul 10, 2012)

El Bresko said:


> That sponsor is a real bag of Ds. Like anybody is going to shop there now..


Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. As all that crap wouldn't come afloat and be really bad publicity to their brand. 
Paying or not, big scratches on their rep now.


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## El Bresko (Mar 12, 2010)

Was this seriously over $1500? The owner of that company is not the brightest bulb in the drawer, is he?


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