Affliction didn’t pinch any pennies during its debut event as it shelled out bags of cash to its fighters. The payout was necessary to establish Affliction as a competitor, but how long can it keep affording these hefty payouts? Simple mathematics will say not for long. Tim Sylvia was grossly overpaid and Andrei Arlovski made over four times what he would have collected in the UFC.

Yet, it may have been a necessary evil to bring Affliction to the forefront of the mma world. The event turned out to be a success, but now the pay days could create a problem. Quality fighters looking to jump ship from the UFC could come to expect paychecks that are equally as high. That may bode well for the fighters, but could turn out to hurt Affliction in the long run.

Ben Fowlkes of Sports Illustrated takes a look at where Affliction stands and how the clothing company might just be able to survive as a fight promoter.

Tags: Andrei Arlovksi, Tim Sylvia