Hits retracted its story on Wednesday, saying, “The fact is, we fucked up. We apologize to Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eric [Greenspan, the band’s lawyer] and Guy O for any disruption we’ve caused.” Here’s what really happened: Earlier this month, a well known promoter introduced Burkle to Q Prime founders Cliff Burnstein and Peter Mensch, as Burkle explores buying several management firms during the pandemic and folding them into a larger management group company, similar to Live Nation-backed firm Maverick. They discussed a deal, but no numbers were finalized and there was no formal offer on the table. Then the Chili Peppers told Mensch they were taking management inhouse, difficult news for the band’s manager of 20 years. “The article [that followed] was like a double gut punch” says o...