It's a big week for the IFL, which is prepping for the finals of its World Grand Prix event this Saturday at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. The card, to be televised live on HDNet at 9:30 p.m. ET, will feature five title matches that will crown first-time champions in the featherweight, lightweight welterweight, middleweight, and heavyweight divisions.

Despite a crammed schedule because of the holiday, IFL co-founder and commissioner Kurt Otto still found time to do an interview with me to address a number of issues coming out of last week's conference call with the media intended to give the public a better idea about planned changes for 2008.

Below is a transcript of my conversation with Otto.

Sam Caplan: The IFL World Grand Prix is this Saturday and will be going up against UFC 79. The WGP is scheduled to be televised on HDNet starting at 9:30 p.m. ET. Initially, I had heard that the IFL was looking to do a two-hour telecast starting at 8 p.m. ET so that the event could serve as a lead-in to UFC 79. Now, you guys will be going head-to-head for an hour and a half. Is there any concern about going head-to-head against the UFC pay-per-view?

Kurt Otto: No, I think that if you're a true fan of MMA, in my opinion, if I was to buy the UFC pay-per-view, I'd be switching back and forth regardless because there's such a time span in between the UFC fights that I would want to get everything in.

Sam Caplan: During the conference call last week you chronicled how Kurt Angle joined IFL officials in Florida during the team finals in September. You used the term "buyer's remorse" in regard to Angle's feelings about competing in MMA after he had watched the event live. Were you implying that maybe Angle is having second thoughts about getting involved in MMA as a participant?

Kurt Otto: No. I think what happened was that he was very enthusiastic initially and he came down just to see our format and to see some great fights, and to just see our system in place. He was very, very excited and very impressed. And then we had discussed getting him into some type of MMA training regimen with any of our coaches or athletes. At that point he was very busy with his new contract that he had with TNA and his first obligation is to them.

I think it (got) to a point where he started looking at this realistically (and) that there was a possibility that he could be injured and kind of screw up his existing contract that's paying him very well. I think he just started looking at it realistically. Do I think he's counting it (MMA) out completely? No, I truly believe that he wants to compete in MMA (but) I just think it's a timing issue.

Again, when you go and see a fight live and you're that close, it puts a little different perspective on things and you start to look at this realistically and I think he looked at it like "Wow, you know I could get screwed up here and then ultimately screw up my contract." In my opinion, I think he held off on that point but he does want to do it. In his heart, I think he does want to do it.

Sam Caplan: Is there any chance of Angle being involved as a coach in 2008?

Kurt Otto: I don't know if he'd have anything to offer at this point. The only thing he'd have to offer is his athleticism, his training regimen, and obviously his wrestling ability. He would be able to offer something to our athletes that aren't strong in wrestling and team up with one of our existing coaches. But to solely coach a team? No.

Sam Caplan: You had mentioned during the conference call that you had three possible opponents in mind for Angle and that if he fought for the IFL that it would likely be on pay-per-view. You didn't want to name the three possible opponents but are any of the fighters you have in mind currently on the IFL roster?

Kurt Otto: Yeah, they would involved with our existing company.

Sam Caplan: The telecast on Saturday on HDNet is only a one-fight deal with the possibility of a contract in 2008, as I understand it. Is that correct?

Kurt Otto: That's correct.

Sam Caplan: You're also currently talking to MyNetworkTV. Is that correct as well?

Kurt Otto: Yes, of course. Jay Larkin is heading that up in reference to our FSN deal and our MyNetwork deal. Jay is trying to fine tune those two to benefit the IFL the best and also their network as well. It has to be a win/win situation, otherwise it just doesn't work. We're just trying to fine tune the carburetor and get it right.

Sam Caplan: I wanted to ask about the win/win situation because there's so much talk in the MMA industry right now about potential TV deals with CBS, NBC, and HBO. One thing that has really hurt newer promotions like the IFL and EliteXC that have gotten on TV in the last year or so is that they've gotten the TV exposure. But if you look at the SEC filings, they are losing money each show due to the fact that the production costs outweigh the content fees they are bringing in. Can you talk about just how important it is to make sure you have the right deal?

Kurt Otto: Of course. When you're building a brand in a sport this fast, all of a sudden it just catapults in the last year where promotions all of a sudden start to realize that television has to be a part of the component, otherwise you're dead in the water. People need to see what you're doing. And it costs a certain amount of money to produce a level of a show that you're going to be proud of at the end of the day.

With that, you have to have all your oars in the water, meaning if you're not going to get a strong TV deal because it's new and the networks want to test the waters and you're going to have to compensate by getting great sponsorship deals to make up for the lack of revenue on the TV side. until this sport truly becomes palatable and the fans are educated, then there's going to be a want and need. Once you have that want and need then they're going to be throwing the bigger dollars at it.

It's like anything new. I think these networks are sticking their toe in it. I think certain cable networks are obviously a little more on board because they have the flexibility to do that, but then again you're not going to get great sponsorship because there aren't as many eyeballs looking at it. So it's a double-edged sword. So you have to have that balance and when you're building a brand, it's going to take money to get that thing up to speed to attract new networks to take a look at what you're doing.

Sam Caplan: You mentioned that Jay Larkin is heading up the talks with MyNetworkTV. Can you talk about what it's been like working with Jay so far?

Kurt Otto: It's been great. It's been refreshing. Gareb (Shamus) did a great job but he took it to the point he was able to take it to. As a company, there was a need for change. We have to tighten the belt and get more efficient across the board, from a-to-z. And Jay was that kind of guy to have that ability to spin plates. He can keep everything going at one time. Coming from the background that he came from, he was probably a better fit. I'm personally excited about him. I know our staff is excited about him. And Jay already in a short period in heading up the company has already done great things and he's going to continue to do great things.

He's wearing many different hats right now in the company, just trying to fine tune a bunch of different things. But I think Jay understands that the coaches and the fighters, our athletes, I handle, and he handles the other side of the company, and that's the business and revenue side and the ticket sales and the sponsorship. Again, we're all pitching in. We all want this to work. I'm even working along with sponsorship. You've got to do whatever it takes to win. It's important that you've got the right tool for the right job. So Jay has really fine tuned our staff and orchestrated our staff and who fits where and why and (he is) just running the company more efficiently.

Sam Caplan: I haven't had a chance to ask you about Gareb and his departure. Can you discuss the circumstances that led to his departure and whether it was amicable?

Kurt Otto: I don't really want to touch too much on the details on it. All I can say is that Gareb loved this company and his intentions were always right. His heart was in it and as I said, his intentions were always right. But we just felt as a company -- when you are a public company and you're the CEO of the company, there's just a tremendous amount of pressure on you. So when things are going great, you're the best. When things aren't going great, well then you don't know what you're doing. You can't win. It's a very challenging position and it takes a special kind of person to fill those shoes.

Again, he did the best that his ability would let him do and we're just excited about Jay heading up the company. But Gareb is a good guy. When I first thought of this idea and Gareb came aboard and we started building this thing. We were enthusiastic and we were excited about it and that never stopped. But I just wanted to say for the record that I'm more excited about this company than I've ever been, from day one. We're excited about the new format and we're excited about where we're going. (And) we're excited about new sponsorships that we're going to be working with. Things are looking good.

Sam Caplan: You spoke about a lot of the new things that you're excited about for next year but one thing I am looking forward to on a personal level are some of the new prospects you have coming in set to compete full-time in 2008 such as L.C. Davis and Tim Kennedy. Who are some other fighters that people should look out for next season?

Kurt Otto: We're going to be having all of our top guys returning, which is great. And then we're going to see who develops out of the IFL Draft that we had. There were some talented guys that came along in the West Coast, Midwest, and East Coast tryouts that we had and we plan on pulling from that roster of guys that were finalists and getting them into some prelim bouts and getting them some ring time because the commission will not allow lopsided matchups. So you've got to get them in there, unfortunately, with someone who has a similar record.

Now, that doesn't always stand. You can have a guy that's 2-0 who's dynamic but because he's 2-0 you have to place him against the right opponent. So we're going to try and build these guys up and get them in there and build up their records. And then our existing guys that we have, as of Saturday we'll have developed six champions, which is going to completely change the direction of the company. Our goal is to try and put on eight live events and trying to get five live fights on there with two title fights as our goal, and then resourcing them as future airings as far as one-hour shows. It's a very similar format to another successful organization.

Sam Caplan: Is it premature to talk about some of the IFL Draft finalists that you think could have an impact in 2008?

Kurt Otto: Yeah, I don't want to do that. (Laughs) Then you're going to have guys gunning for them. I'd like to be low key about that until we find a camp for them to be on and then find a venue that would be right for them to compete at. So I'm going to hold off on mentioning any names but there is about 12-16 guys that I was highly impressed with.

Sam Caplan: It also came out during last week's conference call that you're now on speaking terms again with Monte Cox. Can you talk about how you guys worked things out?

Kurt Otto: Yeah. Actually, it was interesting, I was reaching out to Rory Markham. I was calling Rory with a question about where to send something to and Rory had spoken to Monte and Monte returned the phone call for Rory, directly to me. And we just started talking and it was silly how the whole thing went down. I don't want to rehash on what happened but at the end of the day, you've got to look past it and move on. Because at the end of the day, I have definitely learned a lot of things from Monte.

He's a good guy. Obviously, I disagreed with how some of the things went down but obviously he has to protect himself and do what he feels is right for his guys under his management. And now he's on to a new endeavor, becoming the CEO of M-1. I think that the synergy is there with M-1 and the IFL and I think there could be some possibilities there as well as HDNet Fights. I want to keep the door open, and I know Monte does.

I know where Monte stands and he knows where I stand and at the end of the day you have to put your egos aside and make things happen and take the sport to the next level. So, that's what we're going to do.

Sam Caplan: I wanted to also ask about Andre Gusmao being brought up during the conference call last week and your statement that in the past people had said the UFC wasn't interested in IFL fighters. Yet, we now have Andre Gusmao and there could be a bidding war over his services between the IFL and the UFC early next year. Do you feel a sense of validation because of that?

Kurt Otto: Yeah, sure. It's not just Andre Gusmao that they're interested in, they're interested in several of our fighters. Which is fine, it's flattering. This organization - the IFL - has put them (the fighters) on national TV for them to display their talent.

I've said it from day one; the IFL is just a vehicle and I've said this several times to our guys, that this is just a vehicle for success. Use this an opportunity to build your personal brand name. You're going to be on what I feel is one of the highest-level produced shows in MMA on some of the best networks in the world.

And I think what we pay our guys in relation to what other organizations pay them, I think they're doing great financially. So they're being paid very well. They're on a great stage and platform to build their name, but you can't want it for someone. If they want to try something different, you can't knock them for it. But if they're under contract and if they're professional, they have to understand that contracts are made for a reason. And that's to protect the athlete in addition to the promotion. At the end of the day these guys - and so do their managers - they have to get more in tune and get more of an understanding of the contract and understand what they're a part of.

In the situation with the UFC, I think that Andre was approached by the UFC and he was excited by the opportunity. But then reality set in, "Oh my god, okay, I didn't realize the contract worked like this" and so on and so on. So I got on the phone and spoke to Joe Silva and he was very professional and he said he'd hold off for now and that it wasn't his intention (to tamper with a contract). We'll see what the numbers are. I have a very, very good feeling that we were going to pay Andre more (than the UFC). But sometimes it isn't about the money, it's about other things.

Sam Caplan: I know this is a hectic week for you guys with a big card this Saturday.

Kurt Otto: We're just really excited to develop our champions. Obviously, (Vladimir) Matyushenko is already our guy at 205 but we have five more belts to put on and that's going to set the tone for '08. And I'm also excited to get Mario Sperry and Ian Freeman to display some of their up and coming guys; Freeman bringing Alex Cook over from the UK and Sperry having Marcello Salazar meet each other, and that's going to be great.

It's going to be interesting to see how this event pans out. We've had some injuries (considering) the grueling season we had and the pace we were going at, I'm surprised we didn't have more injuries. But guys like John Gunderson and Shad Lierley, these guys really wanted to compete and they were prepared. They were even risking going in with some existing injuries that they thought would heal up. Then Shad broke his toe (and) John re-injured his hand. These things happen, this is the fight game. A lot of guys go in there and fight hurt and that's not good either. We don't want to condone that. But Ryan Schultz stepped up and took the fight. He was prepared and he was ready. He's a stud and I know he wants another shot at Chris (Horodecki). That's going to be an unbelievable high-energy fight.

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com