In the wake of a calamitous week for Affliction, MMA fans are left with more questions than answers as they sort through the rumors and try to make sense of the inexplicable series of events that have rocked the MMA world. Are you asking yourself: "what's Guy Mezger going to say that I don't already know about this situation?" Well, there's a reason he is the mind behind HDNET Fights. Guy Mezger, president of HDNET Fights, has agreed to help shed some light on what has been a tumultuous and potentially historic week for MMA.

Guy, it's been a crazy week in MMA that has taken the fans on a roller coaster ride, let's cut right to the chase, what impact will the collapse of Affliction as a fight promoter have on MMA?

"There is no question that it is another setback for MMA. It is important that there are multiple organizations that are successful. The more successful organizations that there are, the greater the viewing opportunities for the fans and the more opportunities for fighters to break into the game and showcase their skills. So, it's a shame that the number of opportunities for quality fights for both fans and fighters have been reduced."

Yesterday I read one of your Twitter posts where you indicated that they had too much, too soon. Can you expand on this?

"Sure, simply stated, they bit off too much, too soon. Affliction is great at their core business of making t-shirts. However, this did not translate to their business of promoting MMA events. They were not organized enough. They did not have the financial resources in place for the long term. They needed a five-year plan. I don't think they had the long-term vision required to be successful as an MMA promoter. They should have built a foundation and grown the business over time."

Does the demise of Affliction as a promoter of fights open the door for HDNET Fights to promote fights or will you steer your organization away from the graveyard that is filled with the UFC's competitors?

"There is always a possibility that we will do shows, but for now it is much easier for us to help other organizations do shows. We have the T.V. element. We do T.V. very well. We have a great team of producers, film crew, and on-air personalities. However, down the road you never know what Mark (Cuban) may want to do, he might want to do some shows. But for the time being we have no plans of doing any shows. "

What lessons can other MMA promotions take from the failures of the IFL, Elite XC and Affliction?

"Scott Coker and Strikeforce are the best example of how to promote shows and grow a business the right way. Scott was smart; he started as a regional promotion first. He focused on developing athletes and their brand such as Frank Shamrock who is still very popular with MMA fans. It was not until the foundation was in place that Scott even thought about national expansion."

"Also, a key lesson is to build and cultivate a rapport with MMA fans. One of the things that killed the IFL was that their shows were not suited for the live audience. The shows were painfully long and lacked entertainment value. One of the things that...