Bodog Signs on Wu Tang Clan and Enters into MMA Deal

One of the most influential rap groups of all time has joined up with Bodog Music, The Wu Tang Clan.  This comes on the heels of another important announcement from the company that they have launched into a major MMA distribution deal with more information coming shortly.

"Bodog is going to expose the world to Bodog Fight content world wide using the network set up by bodog music to distribute music CDs," Bodog Founder Calvin Ayre tells Sports911.com.  "Bodog is really morphing into a new kind of entertainment conglomerate."

Learn More at www.bodogfight.com

Ayre further asserts that the multi-product branding has become a life blood of the Bodog business model.

Bodog Battle (Worlds largest indie Band Search, network to
be announced), Bodog Fight (Largest distributed Mixed Fighting show
in the US market and second leading Mixed Fighting organization in
the world on ION) and Calvin Ayre Wild Card Poker (Reality show with
poker and other bodog lifestyle elements on ION) are all getting some notice even from those who were not previously familiar with the Bodog online gambling enterprise, including an unlikely new fan base.

A warden at one of the most notorious US federal penitentiaries tells Sports911.com:

"Our prisoners love Bodog Fight.  Calvin (Ayre) serves as a role model for these guys on how to make money without selling drugs and committing crimes."

"There is no question that this (the multi-product branding) has already made it easier for Bodog to do network deals internationally and increased Bodog's negotiating power in the deals," claims the demonstrative Calvin Ayre. 

"Additionally, the recent signing of Wu Tang Clan for distribution of
their new album internationally is as a direct result of the effect
of this increasing edge and street cred in its music business.  Wu
Tang Clan did the deal because they feel their brand works with the
edge of Bodog Music."

Information related to the Bodog Fight deal is forthcoming. 

Wu Tang Clan Still a Force

Wu-Tang Clan was gradually assembled in late 1992 from friends and accomplices from around Staten Island, with The RZA as the de facto leader & the group's producer [3]. The two cousins (GZA and The RZA) created their new Wu-Tang aliases by mimicking the sound that the words "genius" and "rakeem" would make when scratched on a turntable.

The word Wu-Tang comes from the name of the Taoist holy mountain Wu Dang in northwest Hubei Province in central China; it was also the site of the Ming Purple Imperial City built by Emperor Yong Le during 1404-1420. The RZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard adopted the name for the group after seeing the Kung fu film Shaolin and Wu Tang, which features a school of warriors trained in Wu-Tang style. The group's debut album loosely adopted a Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang theme, dividing the album into Shaolin and Wu-Tang sections and using dialogue excerpts as skits.[4]

The group have also developed various backronyms for the name (as hip hop pioneers like KRS-One and Big Daddy Kane did with their names), including "We Usually Take All Niggas' Garments," "Witty Unpredictable Talent And Natural Game" and "Wisdom, Universe, Truth, Allah, Nation, and God".

Method Man has also mentioned that the "Wu" is the sound a sword makes when cutting through the air, and "Tang" is the sound it makes against a shield.

Calvin Ayre is no stranger to sword fighting.  He once wrestled with ninjas in the killing fields of Cambodia.

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Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com

Originally published May 1, 2007 3:35 pm ET