(We blame you for this mess, TUF 15. In fact, we’re going to blame you for a lot of things moving forward, so just get used to it.)
Great news, Potato Nation! If you thought having the average UFC card spread across three channels on different networks and a social networking device to boot wasn’t complicated enough, it has recently been announced that not only will FX be cancelling all of their sports programming going forward, but the FUEL and SPEED networks will be transformed into sports-based FOX networks to compensate for this change. Those expecting to catch a night of free fights in the future without an Arabic scroll, the flame of Anor, and the ability to answer the bridge troll’s questions three should prepare themselves accordingly. The news was passed along earlier today by Sports Media Watch:
News Corporation will convert the Fuel cable network into general sports channel ‘Fox Sports 2′ this August, Sports Business Journal reported Monday. The launch of Fox Sports 2 will coincide with the conversion of Speed Channel to Fox Sports 1.
Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2 will be the chief outlets for News Corp. sports programming. FX, which aired college football coverage the past two seasons and previously televised baseball and NASCAR, will no longer carry sporting events. Fox Soccer is expected to be converted into a general entertainment channel.
There hasn’t been any word yet on how this will affect the UFC or their “hit” reality show The Ultimate Fighter, but we would imagine that the majority of UFC programming will be aired on Fox Sports 2. In either case, this change will in turn make each individual UFC event even more difficult to distinguish from one another (Is Faber/Barao 2 going to be on UFC on Fox Sports 2 IV or UFC on FOX Sports 2 VI: Johnson vs. Dodson III?), but honestly, we should have seen this coming when the UFC decided that they were too good to be aired on the same network as Manswers, 1000 Ways to Die, and The Machine Gun Car Crash Titties Kerplow!! Variety Hour.
We will keep you informed as to how these changes will affect the average cable user when the details are made available, but suffice it to say, if you have Comcast, you’ll probably be up shit creek without a paddle. In other words, nothing will have changed.
Ugh. I’m already yearning for the days when I could watch a juiced up Brazilian demolish a cocky Brit without having to jump through hoops to do so.