Tag: News

Despite Large Audience Expectations, UFC on FOX Debut Will Be Money Loser for UFC

Filed under: UFC, News, UFC on FOXFor months, UFC president Dana White has said that it is the only thing he cares about. His concentration on the UFC on FOX debut has bordered on obsession. You can understand his focus, as the event will potentially p…

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For months, UFC president Dana White has said that it is the only thing he cares about. His concentration on the UFC on FOX debut has bordered on obsession. You can understand his focus, as the event will potentially put his product before the eyes of millions who have never seen it before. The Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos matchup might draw the largest television audience in UFC history, but that is simply a guess. One thing we know for sure is that it will be a money loser.

The quest to get the UFC on primetime network TV had been a long-held goal for years for White, and an idea that stemmed from his youth. White could remember becoming a boxing fan while watching ABC’s Wide World of Sports and realized that broad exposure was a logical route for expanding the UFC’s fan base. For now, though it will be a costly one.

That is because the UFC budgets each event as though it is a stand-alone business. It has its own marketing and advertising budget, and revenue expectations.

According to Sports Business Daily, the UFC forecasted that if it was on pay-per-view, a Velasquez vs. dos Santos heavyweight title fight would have brought in about 800,000 pay-per-view buys.

That would have made it a huge success and financial windfall. By those estimates, the event would have raked in about $40 million in revenue, money which is shared by cable and satellite pay-per-view distributors in splits which are not public record but believed to be near 50/50 with some variations. That would have meant around $18-20 million in revenue for the UFC. Even if the event did 400,000 buys — a number which SBD suggested was more likely given the results of recent similar fights — the promotion still would have earned something around $8-10 million in revenue.

The FOX deal is believed to pay the UFC an average of around $100 million annually, but some sources have indicated that the figure starts a bit lower than that average and increases each year over the length of the deal.

This show, however, is not part of that contract, negotiated independently and according to White, it is being written off as a loss-leader with an eye towards the future.

“It’s an investment in the company,” he recently said. “In no way, shape or form do we come anywhere close to making our money back. You don’t go on free television and make your money. That’s just not how it works. We’re going to get smashed on this fight, but it’s an investment in the future of the business.”

According to SBD, the UFC also reportedly had to dig into its pockets to pay Velasquez a bonus to offset the pay-per-view cut he lost when the company decided to feature him on free television.

It’s not all bad news though. In addition to arena gate and merchandising revenue for the historic show, the FOX deal is expected to bring in new advertising dollars. Though usual sponsors like Dodge and Bud Light are likely to be the more prominent ones for the premiere, FOX executives have indicated that new sponsors will be on board for the first event in 2012.

With FOX’s mainstream audience and ability to reach the target demographic of 18-34 year old males, the UFC sees the network as a driver for more explosive growth, the same way it helped push the rise of NASCAR. UFC chairman and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta told SBD that he believes the company could create 100,000 new pay-per-view buyers from the early exposure alone. So while the promotion expects the first event to be a short-term money-loser, they are banking on the belief that it will eventually increase the company’s bottom line.

It’s a strategic move that brings the product its widest exposure, with the hope that a fan-friendly platform turns into fan dollars.

“Our goal has always been to bring big, free fights back to network television,” White said. “Now that we have a network deal, we’re looking at it as, obviously we’re going to take a hit on the pay-per-view side for a big fight like this, but we’re thinking long-term for the future of the sport and making the sport bigger. That’s why we’re going to do it, and continue to do it.”

 

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With Patricio Pitbull Injured, Pat Curran to Face Joe Warren for Bellator 145-Pound Title

Filed under: Bellator, NewsA hand injury has forced Patricio “Pitbull” Freire to undergo surgery, scuttling plans for his Bellator featherweight title shot against Joe Warren. So instead, Bellator will go to plan B.

By virtue of his recent 2011 Summer…

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Pat CurranA hand injury has forced Patricio “Pitbull” Freire to undergo surgery, scuttling plans for his Bellator featherweight title shot against Joe Warren. So instead, Bellator will go to plan B.

By virtue of his recent 2011 Summer Series featherweight tournament win, Pat Curran was next in line after Freire, but now he’s been bumped ahead with Freire on the shelf, and Curran will face off with Warren at an early 2012 event.

The promotion confirmed the bout on Tuesday, but has not yet finalized an exact date for the title fight.

This will be Curran’s second shot at a Bellator championship. In 2010, he won a lightweight tournament and advanced to face reigning champ Eddie Alvarez, but lost a unanimous decision. Afterward, he dropped to featherweight and impressed during his three fights through the bracket, defeating Luis Palomino via submission, Ronnie Mann by decision, and then stopping pre-tournament favorite Marlon Sandro in a second-round knockout.

Curran is 16-4 overall.

Warren (7-2) recently attempted to become a two-division champion in Bellator, hoping to add a bantamweight belt to his collection, but in a first-round fight with Alexis Vila, he was knocked out in just 64 seconds. He previously won the 145-pound belt in September 2010 with a KO of Joe Soto. This will be his first title defense.

Freire (17-1), who won a season four featherweight tournament, will eventually take on the winner of Curran-Warren. The promotion confirmed that Freire’s surgery was expected to keep him out of the gym for three months.

 

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Thiago Tavares-Sam Stout, Edson Barboza-Terry Etim Slated for UFC 142

Filed under: UFC, NewsThiago Tavares and Edson Barboza will compete in their home country of Brazil when they face Sam Stout and Terry Etim, respectively, at UFC 142 on Jan. 14 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.

The UFC revealed the lightweight matc…

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Thiago Tavares and Edson Barboza will compete in their home country of Brazil when they face Sam Stout and Terry Etim, respectively, at UFC 142 on Jan. 14 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.

The UFC revealed the lightweight matchups on Tuesday via Twitter.

In 2011, Tavares (16-4-1) was brutally knocked out by Shane Roller in March and bounced back with a TKO over Spencer Fisher at UFC 134 in August. Canadian striker Stout (17-6-1) is on a two-fight win streak and was supposed to face Dennis Siver last month at UFC 137 but bowed out due to injury.

Much talked about for his devastating leg kicks, Barboza (9-0) has won all three of his UFC fights with his last two named Fight of the Nights. In August, he beat Ross Pearson in a split decision. Etim out of England is coming off a spectacular win this past Saturday at UFC 138 where he submitted Eddie Faaloloto with a guillotine choke in 17 seconds. UFC 142 will be Etim’s tenth UFC fight and his ninth outside of the U.S.

In the co-main events for the UFC 142 card, Jose Aldo will put his featherweight belt on the line against Chad Mendes and Vitor Belfort will meet Anthony Johnson in a middleweight showdown.

 

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Mark Munoz Wants to Be Champ Even if He Has to Face Friends, Teammates

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Mark Munoz‘s fast ascension to UFC title contention has been remarkable, but that same rapid progress could put him in a position where he has to face friend and former training partner Anderson Silva.

Munoz, who began fighting MMA professionally just over four years ago, previously trained with Silva with the understanding that they were unlikely to meet in the future.

“When we’ve had talks about it before, I don’t know if I talked to him directly or Ed [Soares], but they said he was going to be gone by the time I would be able to fight for a world championship.” Munoz said Monday on The MMA Hour.

In 2008, Silva said he would like to retire the following year. Soares then said Silva would retire at 35 instead. Silva turns 37 next April.

After his win over Chris Leben at UFC 138, Munoz took to the mic to call out Silva. And he did so in the most polite way possible — a complete 180 from Chael Sonnen’s abrasive approach at UFC 136.

“I pay my dues in this weight class and I think I deserve a title shot,” Munoz said last Saturday inside the cage. “Anderson Silva is by far the best pound-for-pound fighter. I give him all the respect and honor, but I think I deserve a title shot right now. I consider him a friend, but right now I’d love to get a title shot.”

During the UFC 138 meeting with the fighters after the weigh-ins, fighters were encouraged by UFC matchmaker Joe Silva and president Dana White to ask for a particular fight if such fight compels them. Munoz said the meeting “sparked” something in him to ask for the Silva fight.

Munoz explained his respectful callout, saying he didn’t want Silva to think he was calling him out even though that was what he was doing. Nothing personal, only personal aspirations.

“I’m here to be the best, I’m not here to be a mediocre fighter, [Silva] knows that,” Munoz said. “He knew that from the beginning. From me, I just wanted him to know I honor him as a friend, as a training partners, as a teacher — I told the media about my Bruce Lee moment with him — I give him all the respect but at the same time I’m here to be a world champion.”

Standing in Munoz’s way of a title shot though, is the likelihood of Sonnen receiving a title shot first. Munoz listed off his four-fight win streak and valuable wins over Demian Maia and Leben, while Sonnen only won one fight since his return as the reasons why Munoz should be the No. 1 contender.

“I feel that I have a valid argument to fight for the title. I feel that it’s my time,” Munoz said. “I haven’t talked to Anderson, I haven’t seen him. There’s no disrespect to him, I still consider him a friend, but at the same time I want to be a world champ too.”

Munoz says he can be friends with someone and still fight them. He’s fought close friend Aaron Simpson already in the UFC and says he would be willing to fight current teammate Jason “Mayhem” Miller if need be. A fight against Miller could be the first instance of UFC Primetime where the two competitors are training inside the same gym, Munoz joked.

Although Munoz wants to be Silva’s next opponent, he also understands that the UFC makes fights people want to see most.

“Chael is lobbying very well and he’s garnering a lot of interest for that fight,” he said. “I know there’s a lot of [people that want to watch that fight] and that there’s a lot of coin attached to that fight.”

He’ll be fine to wait in line as long as he stays on track fighting people that will continue to prove he’s ready for a title shot.

“Whoever they want to put in front of me I’m going to look to mow down on the way to a world title.”

 

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Mark Munoz‘s fast ascension to UFC title contention has been remarkable, but that same rapid progress could put him in a position where he has to face friend and former training partner Anderson Silva.

Munoz, who began fighting MMA professionally just over four years ago, previously trained with Silva with the understanding that they were unlikely to meet in the future.

“When we’ve had talks about it before, I don’t know if I talked to him directly or Ed [Soares], but they said he was going to be gone by the time I would be able to fight for a world championship.” Munoz said Monday on The MMA Hour.

In 2008, Silva said he would like to retire the following year. Soares then said Silva would retire at 35 instead. Silva turns 37 next April.


After his win over Chris Leben at UFC 138, Munoz took to the mic to call out Silva. And he did so in the most polite way possible — a complete 180 from Chael Sonnen’s abrasive approach at UFC 136.

“I pay my dues in this weight class and I think I deserve a title shot,” Munoz said last Saturday inside the cage. “Anderson Silva is by far the best pound-for-pound fighter. I give him all the respect and honor, but I think I deserve a title shot right now. I consider him a friend, but right now I’d love to get a title shot.”

During the UFC 138 meeting with the fighters after the weigh-ins, fighters were encouraged by UFC matchmaker Joe Silva and president Dana White to ask for a particular fight if such fight compels them. Munoz said the meeting “sparked” something in him to ask for the Silva fight.

Munoz explained his respectful callout, saying he didn’t want Silva to think he was calling him out even though that was what he was doing. Nothing personal, only personal aspirations.

“I’m here to be the best, I’m not here to be a mediocre fighter, [Silva] knows that,” Munoz said. “He knew that from the beginning. From me, I just wanted him to know I honor him as a friend, as a training partners, as a teacher — I told the media about my Bruce Lee moment with him — I give him all the respect but at the same time I’m here to be a world champion.”

Standing in Munoz’s way of a title shot though, is the likelihood of Sonnen receiving a title shot first. Munoz listed off his four-fight win streak and valuable wins over Demian Maia and Leben, while Sonnen only won one fight since his return as the reasons why Munoz should be the No. 1 contender.

“I feel that I have a valid argument to fight for the title. I feel that it’s my time,” Munoz said. “I haven’t talked to Anderson, I haven’t seen him. There’s no disrespect to him, I still consider him a friend, but at the same time I want to be a world champ too.”

Munoz says he can be friends with someone and still fight them. He’s fought close friend Aaron Simpson already in the UFC and says he would be willing to fight current teammate Jason “Mayhem” Miller if need be. A fight against Miller could be the first instance of UFC Primetime where the two competitors are training inside the same gym, Munoz joked.

Although Munoz wants to be Silva’s next opponent, he also understands that the UFC makes fights people want to see most.

“Chael is lobbying very well and he’s garnering a lot of interest for that fight,” he said. “I know there’s a lot of [people that want to watch that fight] and that there’s a lot of coin attached to that fight.”

He’ll be fine to wait in line as long as he stays on track fighting people that will continue to prove he’s ready for a title shot.

“Whoever they want to put in front of me I’m going to look to mow down on the way to a world title.”

 

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Video: Alistair Overeem Joins Xtreme Couture and Details Reasons for Split With Golden Glory on ‘The Reem’ Ep. 07

Alistair Overeem was on MMAFighting.com’s The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani Monday afternoon and the former Strikeforce heavyweight fighter, who many speculated would be joining King’s MMA in Huntington Beach, Calif. after splitting with Golden Glory in the summer, revealed that he has instead decided to relocate to Las Vegas, Nev. where he will train at Xtreme Couture.

Although he wouldn’t reveal too much about the change in camps on the show, “The Demolition Man” gave more details of his decision to train stateside and what was behind his split with Bas Boon and company in the following episode of The Reem documentary, which was released minutes ago.

Check it out after the jump.

Alistair Overeem was on MMAFighting.com’s The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani Monday afternoon and the former Strikeforce heavyweight fighter, who many speculated would be joining King’s MMA in Huntington Beach, Calif. after splitting with Golden Glory in the summer, revealed that he has instead decided to relocate to Las Vegas, Nev. where he will train at Xtreme Couture.

Although he wouldn’t reveal too much about the change in camps on the show, “The Demolition Man” gave more details of his decision to train stateside and what was behind his split with Bas Boon and company in the following episode of The Reem documentary, which was released minutes ago.


(Video courtesy of Vimeo/TheReem)

It’s curious that Alistair would choose Xtreme Couture when the camp has an obvious deficiency in top-tier heavyweight training partners for him to work with save for Ray Sefo and sometimes heavyweight Randy Couture. XC is known for its wrestling pedigree, which Overeem has stated he would like to focus more intently on, so in that sense, the choice makes sense.

If you’ve watched the video, it’s an unfortunate situation that saw Alistair break ties with his management and trainers, but business is business and sometimes doing what’s best for one’s career isn’t what’s best for one’s friendships.

It will be interesting to see what changes to his game he displays in his upcoming UFC 141 fight with Brock Lesnar. Considering Randy has both trained with and fought Brock, he should be able to offer some first-hand insight on him.

Oregon-Based 10th Planet-Trained MMA Fighters Foil Hotel Robbery

(Video courtesy of YouTube/Hollywood2NY)

A would-be thief picked the wrong hotel to rob last week.

According to the LA Times, 31-year-old Luis Rosales walked into a hotel in Los Angeles’ Koreatown around midnight on Wednesday and pointed a gun at the night manager, telling him to fill his duffle bag with cash. When he attempted to flee the scene, the manager grabbed the suspect in a bear hug and managed to keep him from grabbing the gun he had put back in the bag and yelled for help from a pair of guests who had exited the elevator in the hotel lobby.

The men, who happened to be competitors in last weekend’s World Jiu-Jitsue No-Gi Championship in Long Beach, quickly sprang into action.


(Video courtesy of YouTube/Hollywood2NY)

A would-be thief picked the wrong hotel to rob last week.

According to the LA Times, 31-year-old Luis Rosales walked into a hotel in Los Angeles’ Koreatown around midnight on Wednesday and pointed a gun at the night manager, telling him to fill his duffle bag with cash. When he attempted to flee the scene, the manager grabbed the suspect in a bear hug and managed to keep him from grabbing the gun he had put back in the bag and yelled for help from a pair of guests who had exited the elevator in the hotel lobby.

The men, who happened to be competitors in last weekend’s World Jiu-Jitsue No-Gi Championship in Long Beach, quickly sprang into action.


(Video courtesy LAPDOnline)

Brent Alvarez, 33, who owns Twisted Web MMA, a 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu affiliate in Eugene, Oregon and Billy Denney, 28, who is one of his students, subdued the struggling assailant and Alvarez used a body lock and rear naked choke to hold the man until police arrived. Apparently he thought a Twister would be too flashy.

Throughout the incident, the pair tried to reassure the thief, who was begging them to let him go so he could see his young daughter who he claimed was the motivating factor in the robbery, that he had simply made a bad decision that will do his family more harm than good.

“He wasn’t trying to punch us; he just seemed like someone who had run out of options,” Alvarez said Friday evening. “I think back now and wonder what the hell was I doing? I should have hit him and knocked him out.”

We predict an influx of hotel workers from around the country will start smoking weed and training without the gi in the coming weeks.