Tag: Dana White

Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen: Is the Ultimate Fighter Dead If TUF 17 Fails?

If a highly-charged match-up, like UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen, can’t resurrect the long-running Ultimate Fighter television series, nothing will.The series has been running since 2005 and counting the currently airing i…

If a highly-charged match-up, like UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen, can’t resurrect the long-running Ultimate Fighter television series, nothing will.

The series has been running since 2005 and counting the currently airing incarnation of the show, has put on sixteen seasons. 

Now tell me what show, if any, has been able to sustain quality and viewer satisfaction over sixteen seasons?

Evidently, The Ultimate Fighter isn’t one of them. Just last week, it earned the lowest ratings in the history of the series; a paltry 624,000 viewers on average. What’s worse is that the previous week’s show did 1.1 million viewers.

Losing approximately 500,000 viewers over the course of one week is bad, no matter how UFC president Dana White spins the declining ratings. That many viewers not sticking around for the next episode indicates that the show has lost its ability to resonate with and captivate the casual fan/ vaunted 18-34-year-old male.

Furthermore, the trend of declining TUF ratings indicate that, in general, something is amiss—big time.

Much of the punditry is focused on the show’s Friday night time slot.  A slot that’s poor for any show, let alone one whose primary demographic is out drinking and partying that night instead of sitting home to watch what boils down to be the same exact antics and inconsequential, low-level fighters that have been on the countless other episodes and seasons.

The conventional wisdom from the MMA community also argues that the show changing channels from Spike TV to FX has caused some of the decline in viewership and that once fans learn of this change, they’ll come flocking back in droves. 

This hasn’t happened yet and judging by the continuously dismal ratings, isn’t going to happen at all.

Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen have been brought in to change this. 

Jones is the youngest (non-tournament) champion in UFC history, a solid draw (he drew an estimated 700,000 buys against Rashad Evans at UFC 145) and is the second most divisive figure in MMA right now. 

Of course, the man he’s second to in that category is his TUF 17 counterpart, Chael Sonnen.

Sonnen‘s lurid trash talk and professional wrestling-esque gimmicks divide fans but, more importantly, get them talking and get them watching and buying.

Sonnen is one of only a handful of men in UFC history to have been in the main event of a pay-per-view earning over 900,000 buys.  Needless to say, he is a lightning rod for attention.

Pairing these two—who have already gone back and forth a bit via Twitter—should, in theory, inject a much needed dose of interest and vitality into the show and therefore, increase its viewership. 

After all, how could putting big names on the show not get people watching, right?

Well…it’s not that simple. 

A similar strategy was employed by putting former WWE star Brock Lesnar on TUF‘s thirteenth season, but the effect on the ratings was dilatory, if it even had an effect at all. 

Thus, putting the biggest names you have available at the moment is not a panacea for The Ultimate Fighter television series.

If Jones-Sonnen fails to bring in the viewers, the show will need either serious retooling or outright deletion.

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Dana White Cancels Chael Sonnen vs Forrest Griffin, Sonnen Shelved Until April

With the recent news that Chael Sonnen would be coaching the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter opposite of Jon Jones, there was some speculation about what that meant for the proposed bout between Chael Sonnen and Forrest Griffin at UFC 155.The r…

With the recent news that Chael Sonnen would be coaching the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter opposite of Jon Jones, there was some speculation about what that meant for the proposed bout between Chael Sonnen and Forrest Griffin at UFC 155.

The reason for speculation was sound.

What would the UFC possibly do if Sonnen lost to Griffin at the UFC’s end-of-year event? Or worse, what would happen if the fight ended up being a total snoozer? Would they still go forward with their plans for The Ultimate Fighter?

Apparently Zuffa saw the risk and opted to remove Sonnen from UFC 155 entirely. In fact, he won’t be fighting until April at a yet-to-be-numbered UFC event.

Having Sonnen on the shelf is a risky move for the UFC. While a win over Griffin likely wouldn’t have appeased many detractors, it would have at least mildly justified Sonnen getting a shot at Jones. 

Instead, he’s getting fast-tracked to a title shot and jumping over the more deserving contenders such as Alexander Gustafsson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. 

That’s not to say that I don’t get it.

As far as marketability and promotion go, there are few better at building a fight than Sonnen, and since the UFC is a pay-per-view business, they need to maximize profits. I just don’t see how sacrificing the legitimacy of a title is a smart business decision. 

The likely reason is that the UFC felt they needed a proverbial “game changer” due to the declining TUF ratings, and Chael Sonnen was the obvious choice. He’ll provide weeks of entertainment and will hopefully draw eyeballs to a struggling television show. 

But him getting a title shot is a sham.

If the UFC wants to be accepted as a “major league” sport, they need to present themselves that way. Sonnen is getting the coaching gig and subsequent title shot because of his gift of gab. 

Ultimately though, the cancellation of Sonnen/Griffin is good for business. While I may disagree with the decision, they need something to save a dying TUF franchise. If Sonnen and Jones aren’t the answer, I’m not sure who on the roster could possibly compel fans to tune back in week after week.

Lost in all of this is what happens with Griffin. White was extremely critical of the former light heavyweight champion following UFC 148 and openly stated that it may be time for Griffin to consider hanging it up. 

Hopefully Joe Silva can find a new opponent for Griffin. It would be a shame for him to lose out on such a big fight this way. 

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Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen To Coach Ultimate Fighter 17, Title Fight in April

Heading into UFC 153, the news on everyone’s lips was that Jon Jones had finally seemed to come around to the idea of fighting Chael Sonnen. Now, it appears that fight will become a certainty.The light heavyweight champion and his loud-mouthed nemesis …

Heading into UFC 153, the news on everyone’s lips was that Jon Jones had finally seemed to come around to the idea of fighting Chael Sonnen. Now, it appears that fight will become a certainty.

The light heavyweight champion and his loud-mouthed nemesis will spend several weeks together coaching opposing teams on the long-running reality program, The Ultimate Fighter, according to a report from Lance Pugmire of LATimes.com.

After the show’s filming has concluded, the duo will square off at an unnamed event on April 27, 2013.

This is great news for The Ultimate Fighter, as ratings hit a new low with last week’s episode. Can you imagine the trash talk that Chael Sonnen will deliver over the course of a 12-week television program?

The 17th season of the show will begin filming later this month and will air beginning in January. It is notable that TUF has not started airing a season of the show in January since the inaugural season back in 2005.

To those living under a rock, the beef between Jones and Sonnen began in late August, when Sonnen’s Team Quest teammate Dan Henderson was forced out of a scheduled fight with the champion. Sonnen attempted to step in on short notice, but Jones refused to fight the former middleweight with only one week to prepare a game plan.

The move drew the ire of UFC President Dana White, who was forced to cancel UFC 151 due to the absence of a PPV-worthy main event.

In declining the replacement bout, Jones explained that he wasn’t fully comfortable risking the belt against the 35-year-old skilled wrestler with a relentless, attacking style that nearly allowed him to upset middleweight champion Anderson Silva in 2010.

How deep will Sonnen get under the skin of Jonny Bones while filming the show? Will this be the jolt that brings The Ultimate Fighter‘s ratings back to life? 

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Ronda Rousey vs. Cris Cyborg Is a Bad Move for Women’s MMA and the UFC

Dana White is already making the wrong moves with women’s MMA.For the last few weeks, the UFC president has been openly hinting that he’s close to making a superfight between Ronda Rousey and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos, arguably one of the biggest possi…

Dana White is already making the wrong moves with women’s MMA.

For the last few weeks, the UFC president has been openly hinting that he’s close to making a superfight between Ronda Rousey and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos, arguably one of the biggest possible bouts in mixed martial arts right now.

Even better, it could possibly headline a UFC card, according to statements made during a keynote speech at a recent television industry summit (relayed by publicist Amy Pfister):

While not committing to it, @danawhite just said @RondaRousey vs. Cris Cyborg could/should be a main event on UFC pay per view. #CTAM

But as attractive as a “champion vs. former champion” match between the world’s two best female fighters may look on paper, it’s the wrong one to make.

As Ronda Rousey herself stated in the aftermath of Cyborg’s positive test for anabolic steroids, the fairest way for this fight to take place is if it happens at the 135-pound bantamweight limit.

More than anything else, the idea is that Cyborg may have been using banned substances for most of her career, and the weight cut will force her to shed some of her advantageous muscle mass. Cyborg’s also had difficulty in the past just trimming down to 145 pounds, so a 135-pound cut may even bring her usual aggressiveness down a notch.

Either way, that fight shouldn’t be happening.

During her reign as the Strikeforce women’s featherweight champion, Cyborg destroyed her entire division in one-sided fights that made every opponent look utterly outclassed. As a result, the 145-pound women’s roster is a wasteland, with no marketable fights to be made outside of Invicta FC and small regional shows.

Considering how long Cyborg’s been suspected of doping, it’s not something that should be rewarded with a starring role in a high-profile UFC or Strikeforce main event.

Moreover, this is exactly the kind of shortsighted matchmaking that’s been plaguing the UFC for the last year. It’s little more than a quick “dream fight” cash-in that kills the luster of the losing fighter—and forgive me for saying so, but that fighter’s going to be Rousey.

Even with the weight cut, Cyborg is too strong, too fast and too aggressive to lose to “Rowdy” in a five-round fight.

Cyborg’s stand-up is light years beyond anything that Rousey has shown in any of her fights. That’s a problem right off the bat, and the former featherweight champion’s sheer strength won’t let her fall prey to an armbar as easily as Sarah Kaufman or many other women have. 

Even assuming that Cyborg hasn’t been on performance-enhancing drugs for most of her career, the insane muscle build that’s already etched into her frame hints at a mauling waiting to happen. If I were a betting man, I would put money on Rousey getting beaten worse than Gina Carano.

But none of that needs to happen.

Instead of a matchup between Rousey and Cyborg, Dana White should be thinking of the bigger picture. He should be trying to promote a more diverse stack of fights designed to set up a proper title mix for the female bantamweights.

Why not have Rousey rematch Miesha Tate, and set up another main card fight that same night with Sara McMann?

Rousey and Tate already have a huge rivalry that’s tailor-made for the UFC promotional wagon, and McMann’s status as an Olympic silver medalist practically markets itself.

Just sign Shayna Baszler to the same card, pack in the story of her close split-decision loss to McMann at Invicta FC 2 and you’ve got a deep, multi-angled storyline to set up for weeks with UFC Primetime and a “Countdown” show.

That’s the right way to bring women’s MMA into the spotlight and set up an immediate title contender for the bantamweight belt.

Dana White and the UFC have been playing fast and loose with their main event talent and already paid the ultimate price once for weighing entire cards on a single fight. Doing the same thing with Ronda Rousey’s future will be equally damaging for them and women’s MMA.

[McKinley Noble is an MMA conspiracy theorist and FightFans Radio writer. His work has appeared in GamePro, Macworld and PC World. Talk with him on Twitter.]

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Anderson Silva vs. Jon Jones: Can Dana White Make the Fight Happen?

Anderson Silva does not want to fight Jon Jones (listen to the “Spider” speak great English in his post-fight interview with Ariel Helwani).At least, that is what he tells the world anytime someone asks him about what would easily be the most anticipat…

Anderson Silva does not want to fight Jon Jones (listen to the “Spider” speak great English in his post-fight interview with Ariel Helwani).

At least, that is what he tells the world anytime someone asks him about what would easily be the most anticipated fight in MMA history.

After Silva’s one-sided waxing of Stephan Bonnar this past weekend at UFC 153, color commentator Joe Rogan asked the middleweight champ the obvious question: “Can we expect more fights from you at light heavyweight?”

Silva’s reply: “No. I am not going to fight at 205 again. I fought at 205 to save the event.” Silva stepped up when UFC 153 lost both its main and co-main events.

Silva not moving up to fight at 205 again would all but rule out a fight opposite Jon Jones, the current 205-pound champ.

For his part, Dana White, at the post-fight presser, had this to say in regard to the potential of a Silva vs. Jones superfight: “I know my man (Silva) says, ‘No, no, no,’ but for the amount of money that would be offered for that fight, I guarantee you I will make Anderson Silva say, ‘Yes, yes, yes.'”

While Dana was saying this, Silva was shaking his head and hammed up a facial expression of physical pain at the idea.

Later, in the post-fight media scrum—where a few hardcore MMA reporters gather around Dana in a more intimate setting—John Morgan of MMAJunkie.com asked Mr. White if he could pinpoint Silva’s reluctance to fight Jon Jones, and if he thought Silva was just negotiating with him.

Dana stated, “He’s playing games with me, that’s what he is doing. I know how he works, and I know how he thinks.”

White went on to say that Silva will want to prove, by the time he leaves, who the man is. Right now, Silva is clearly the man. But if Jones continues to rack up impressive wins while the meme that Silva is “ducking” Jones continues to proliferate…at what point do the fans start to waver on who they think numero uno is?

So if we are to believe Dana, all it will take to convince Silva to fight Jones is pressure and time, some game-playing and, ultimately, money—lots and lots of dinero. By no means Floyd Mayweather money, but for an MMA fighter, it would probably have to top whatever Brock Lesnar made for a fight.

However, at the post-fight presser, Silva stated that ever since he started training in martial arts, he has never thought about money. He concluded his line of reasoning as to why he is opposed to a fight with Jones by saying, “I’m old, guys…I’m getting old. I’m retired. I’m nearly there. I’ve only got another five years.”

Upon hearing that, Dana let out a delighted chuckle and said, “God, I hope he is right. Five more years would be awesome. I will fly down here, I’ll lock myself in a room with Jorge [Guimaraes], Ed Soares and him, and I’ll make this fight.”

At that, Silva once again shook his head while wagging both his index fingers, signaling “no.”

Silva revealed that he has two fights left on his current deal and that he expects one of them to be with current welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre.

“I think it’d be a great challenge for me,” Silva said. “I prefer him over Jon Jones. He’s smaller. It’ll be a little bit easier. I’ll be hit less.”

So is Silva simply holding out for the right amount of money? Is he, in fact, afraid to face Jon Jones—not keen at the idea of ending his career by potentially getting beaten up by a younger, larger champion?

And where is Jon Jones in all of this? He has reiterated that he does not want to fight Silva, but perhaps after a few more one-sided wins, he will drop the “I respect him too much to fight him” line and actually starting calling Silva out.

Only time will tell if “the greatest of all time” decides to bow to the increasing peer pressure from both Dana White and the fans and subsequently bow to Jon Jones as he stands across from him in the Octagon.

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Anderson Silva: Why a Potential Fight with Jon Jones Doesn’t Need to Happen

Anderson Silva extended his UFC record unbeaten streak to 16 consecutive victories when he defeated Stephan Bonnar on Saturday night.  Silva stepped up to face Bonnar to save the UFC 153 fight card, taking the fight on short notice and fighting at…

Anderson Silva extended his UFC record unbeaten streak to 16 consecutive victories when he defeated Stephan Bonnar on Saturday night.  Silva stepped up to face Bonnar to save the UFC 153 fight card, taking the fight on short notice and fighting at light heavyweight in the process.  Immediately following the fight and perhaps even before the fight, the question for Anderson Silva was: Well, what’s next?

There are three fights that fans are clamoring for Silva to take in the very near future. In Silva’s  weight division, you have the fast-rising and undefeated Chris Weidman. Weidman, who extended his unbeaten record to 9-0 by knocking out Mark Munoz in July, has been campaigning for the fight against Silva, but those requests have been falling on deaf ears.

Silva addressed the Weidman issue during the UFC 153 post-fight press conference:

“Let me tell you this. I think all athletes in this division will get their opportunity of going for the title. I don’t have any intention of fighting with him. I think he still has a lot to do in the UFC. I’m in a comfortable position and I’m no longer a child, I’m 37 years old. He’s a kid, he’s starting and obviously this might happen, but I have two fights on my contract and I think one of them will be with (Georges) St-Pierre and I don’t really have an intention of fighting him because I’m not a fool, I’m already an oldie, you know?”

Which brings us to fight No. 2, UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. Ah, the proverbial superfight between two of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the history of the sport. As Silva indicated, he’s eager to face St-Pierre, but what about the welterweight champion? What’s his take?  

St-Pierre recently spoke to MMAWeekly’s Damon Martin about a possible Silva fight, and he stepped around the question:

“I’m not focusing on that, I’m not speculating, I’m thinking about (Carlos) Condit right now, that’s what I should do.”

St-Pierre will face interim UFC welterweight champion Condit in the main event at UFC 154, which will take place on November 17 from the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

While the Silva vs. St-Pierre fight sounds great on paper, if St-Pierre defeats Condit and unifies the welterweight titles, the fight with Silva will almost be impossible to make.  At this point, there are just too many talented fighters in that division looking for a shot at gold to deny them that opportunity.

To put together a fight between Silva and St-Pierre and deny those fighters a title-shot opportunity would be silly and short-sighted. The division is stacked with Martin Kampmann, Johny Hendricks, Nick Diaz, Demain Maia, a resurgent Jon Fitch and even perhaps Rory MacDonald.  

However, if St-Pierre loses to Condit and is title-less on the night of  November 17, the Silva fight becomes almost a no-brainer. That is unless the UFC and the fans still want to see St-Pierre face the man that briefly became his arch-enemy, the currently suspended Nick Diaz.

That brings us to fight No. 3, the one that would probably break records for UFC attendance, gate, pay-per-view and fighter purses—the superfight against UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

Neither fighter seems interested in this fight at all, but one person who is interested is UFC president Dana White, who said after the fight, “I know my man says ‘No, no, no.’ But the amount of money that would be offered for that fight, I guarantee you I will make Anderson Silva say, ‘Yes, yes, yes.’”  

Addressing the money issue, Silva said, “Since I started training martial arts, I never thought about the money. I think everything I was able to get was because I did it with pleasure and love. When I started, there was no money in this and I didn’t fight for money. Obviously, the money is important. We all need money, but I don’t fight for the money.”

The implication there is that no amount of money would sway Silva. That may be true, or it may be a ploy to raise his asking price. Only Silva knows that, but big picture perhaps the aging SIlva is looking at his legacy. To go down in UFC history as the greatest fighter to ever step into the Octagon would be a point of pride, and a fight against Jones would be a huge risk for Silva.  

As a fan, the fights between St-Pierre and Jones are obviously the most interesting, but the reality is that they are mostly curiosities, there to satisfy our desire to see two of the best ever face off inside the Octagon. Would they sate our hunger or leave us wanting more?  

Would I watch theses superfights? No doubt about it. But they don’t need to happen. In fact, I would say they shouldn’t happen, because sometimes it’s better to leave things out there in the realm of “what if.” It leaves us with endless debate, and it prevents us from being let down if our expectations about how these fights will look are left unrealized.

Silva versus Jones is our white whale—I say leave it that way.

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