Hulk Hogan Buries Another As Gawker Files For Bankruptcy

Billionaire investor Peter Thiel was on a mission to destroy Gawker Media. On Friday, he may have scored a victory.

Thiel secretly financed Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against the media company, which he won and was awarded a $140 million judgement. However, Gawker Media announced on Friday it has filed for bankruptcy protection and will seek out a buyer for the company.

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According to Recode, Gawker and its owner Nick Denton will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Friday in order to avoid paying out Hogan's $140 million settlement.

Recode noted Gawker already has a firm bid from publisher Ziff Davis to buy the entire company for less than $100 million. Ziff Davis itself is a holding company that boasts brands including IGN, AskMen and PCMag. It's run by a former Time executive Vivek Shah.

Denton estimated Gawker was worth in the $250 million to $300 million range last year when the Hogan trial was ongoing. Naturally, very few buyers would be interested in acquiring a property in the middle of an ongoing large lawsuit with a known celebrity.