Tim Kennedy rips Reebok deal, says he'd 'definitely' fight for Scott Coker in Bellator

When Reebok partnered with the UFC, expectations were high.

The deal was set to spring the UFC one step closer to mainstream legitimacy. And it allowed Reebok to join forces with one of the fastest-growing sports in the world.

Then the official ‘fighter kits’ were unveiled in what was a less-than-inspiring debut. Rumors of slow sales circulated amidst an avalanche of negative press over shrinking sponsorship checks to the fighters.

Prior to the Reebok deal, fighters were left to procure their own sponsorships and the result was fight night trunks often looked like confusing strip mall billboards.

Was it ideal for all parties? No. But fighters at least had options.

Now, not so much.

One fighter that hasn't pulled punches in voicing his displeasure over the Reebok/UFC marriage is middleweight Tim Kennedy. In August, after a UFC Fight Night, it was reported that every fighter on the card, combined, made just over $100,000.

Kennedy, feeling the need to speak up, revealed that he made more in one fight under his old employer, Strikeforce, than every fighter on that UFC Fight Night combined.

He went on to throw some shade at the design of the UFC Fight Kits, and days later his official kit was pulled from the Reebok online store.

“I think they pulled it right as I started talking,” recalled Kennedy in a recent radio interview, “and I was like, it’s super ugly and overpriced, and that I only get like 70 cents per every kit that’s sold, or something horrific.”

When asked if that was an accurate number – 70 cents – Kennedy replied, “Well, I’m not sure if I’ve ever sold a single one of my fighter kits but I’ve definitely never gotten a check from them. And we are still looking at the merchandise agreement trying to just figure out what we would actually get – if we got anything from the sale of a Tim Kennedy fighter kit.

“So there’s actually a really good chance, let’s say if a million people bought a Tim Kennedy fighter kit t-shirt, I might not get any money at all. If you can you imagine that.”

Now, one could presume that being so outspoken might earn you a call from notoriously ‘passionate’ UFC president Dana White – a man who has made a career out of battling with vocal employees (take your pick: Couture, Ortiz, Shamrock, Silva).

But if Kennedy is worried about upsetting the boss, he sure isn’t showing it.

“What are you going to say to me?” he said. “If I say this is how much I made in my last fight in sponsorship money, here’s how much I made in my last Strikeforce fight with sponsorship money, here’s how much I made in a title fight in Strikeforce, and here’s how much I’m going to make now with the new Reebok deal – like, how are you going to argue that? Because, obviously, I’m not an idiot.”

Kennedy is anything but an idiot.

On top of being a UFC middleweight contender and owner of a few different successful businesses, he is also a sniper assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group since 2004. Although he has reportedly retired from active duty, he still takes jobs around the world as needed.

So, if you’re wondering where his general nonchalance and willingness to speak his mind comes into play, that should give you a pretty good idea.

He continued, “Like, you can’t call [expletive] on me, because everything I say is true. And then you’re just going to have pie in your face.

“Yeah, maybe [Dana White] can call me and say ‘Hey, we don’t appreciate those comments. Could you tone it down a little bit?’ But you also know that I’m always going to speak my mind. How are you gonna tell a guy that’s always gonna say what he thinks to be true, to shut up? ‘Cause that’s just not how he rolls. I don’t know. It’s a tough thing when you know you’ve got me on your roster.”

For the last year Kennedy has remained healthy but unable to obtain a fight. He speculates that perhaps it has something to do with his willingness to speak up. He is training two to three times a day and would like a fight whenever possible. He mentioned the winner of the upcoming Vitor Belfort-Dan Henderson match as a potential future opponent.

Kennedy is unwilling to share any information about how many fights are left on his UFC contract. But he is more than willing to share his thoughts about where you might see him fight when his time with Dana White and the UFC is up.

“Scott’s awesome,” he said when asked about his former Strikeforce boss, and current Bellator president, Scott Coker. “I love fighting for Scott. Scott was fun, Scott made exciting fights. Scott made entertaining fights. It wasn’t quite Pride but it was the best that you could do without having a bunch of guys hopped up on every single steroid they put their hands on. Which is what Strikeforce was: It was an opportunity for people that like to entertain to really put on and display their skillset. If I wasn’t contractually obligated to the UFC, would I go fight for Scott Coker? I think I definitely would. I love the guy, I love fighting for him, and I kind of miss those days.”

- - - - - - -

Ryan McKinnell is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports Cagewriter blog. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!