ESPN blasts the UFC because their pay is allegedly lacking in regards to other mainstream organizations, but that’s just it—what does “mainstream” really mean?
This is the question MMA fans and pundits should be asking themselves, not whether $6,000 to show is enough for undercard fighters, because determining whether or not the sport is mainstream will put fighter pay into a better perspective.
True, the league minimums in the NFL, NBA and MLB are far above the minimum salary in the UFC, but the UFC’s “mainstream” appeal may be far behind that of the other major entities, the deal with FOX notwithstanding.
However, this is because the sports are significantly larger domestically (and internationally in some cases) than the UFC.
Case in point—and something everyone involved in MMA has experienced—go up to the average person and ask if they know what MMA is. You’ll be met with a “no” (or “Metropolitan Museum of Art” if you ask someone cultured) and an awkward look.
And, as we all know, the second you mention those three magic letters, U, F and C, the person you’re talking to will immediately know what you’re talking about.
But does a majority of people knowing that there’s something called the UFC (or just UFC to some people, as if it were its own sport) and that is has to do with “cage fighting” really qualify as mainstream?
Hardly.
Then how is mainstream acceptance to be determined?
Will the the UFC be mainstream when UFC on FOX events regularly beat NFL games in ratings?
Will the UFC be mainstream when guys like Quinton “Rampage” Jackson get in trouble for their questionable antics?
Will the UFC be mainstream when it finally gets a lot of coverage on ESPN?
The truth is, none of these questions can really determine mainstream acceptance.
When the UFC is “mainstream” we won’t have to ask if it is; it’ll be in the hearts and minds of the majority of the population, who will truly understand what it is. At that point, the “mainstream” label will be a superfluous relic of the mid-to-late 2000s and early 2010s.
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