Oversaturation. Lack of stars. Declining interest. Record-low numbers. An ephemeral casual fanbase. A hardcore fanbase that doesn’t care anymore. A resurgent competitor with a new, well-liked, adept president backed by a financial titan.
Those topics have all been under substantial discussion in the past few months–as they should be. Those are the very real, very pressing problems the UFC faces as we enter the second half of 2014.
But last night at UFC 175, the MMA world was able to forget all that–specifically because of the PPV’s main and co-main events.
The co-main event featured UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey taking on challenger Alexis Davis. As Rousey headed to the cage, I took to CagePotato’s Twitter and presciently stated Rousey-Davis would be the most one-sided fight we see all year. That’s exactly what it turned out to be. Rousey vs. Davis made Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie seem well-booked and competitive.
I know what you’re saying, “Why is the UFC-sponsored cash cow Ronda Rousey winning a squash match something to get pumped up about?”
(Two of the best fighters on earth about to enter unarmed combat. / Photo via Getty)
Oversaturation. Lack of stars. Declining interest. Record-low numbers. An ephemeral casual fanbase. A hardcore fanbase that doesn’t care anymore. A resurgent competitor with a new, well-liked, adept president backed by a financial titan.
Those topics have all been under substantial discussion in the past few months–as they should be. Those are the very real, very pressing problems the UFC faces as we enter the second half of 2014.
But last night at UFC 175, the MMA world was able to forget all that–specifically because of the PPV’s main and co-main events.
The co-main event featured UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey taking on challenger Alexis Davis. As Rousey headed to the cage, I took to CagePotato’s Twitter and presciently stated Rousey-Davis would be the most one-sided fight we see all year. That’s exactly what it turned out to be. Rousey vs. Davis made Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie seem well-booked and competitive.
I know what you’re saying, “Why is the UFC-sponsored cash cow Ronda Rousey winning a squash match something to get pumped up about?”
If you paid any attention to the NFL in the late 90s/early 2000s, you might remember “The Greatest Show on Turf.” That’s what everyone called the record-breaking offense for the St.Louis Rams. At the time, there was nothing like it. Watching their games, even the one-sided blowouts, was incredible because you had the sense that watching such artistry was a privilege. You didn’t care about the 48-3 score, you cared about witnessing the spectacle, the athleticism, and the talent.
If the St.Louis Rams were the Greatest Show on Turf, Ronda Rousey is the Greatest Show on Canvas (or the Greatest Show in a Cage or whatever gimmicky honorific you’d like to use). There is quite literally nothing in MMA like watching Ronda Rousey fight–the legendary scowl she sports while “Bad Reputation” blasts in the background, her in-cage dominance, her justifiably matter-of-fact air of superiority, and the deluge of discussions that pours over the MMA community after she wins a fight.
Ronda Rousey is…unique, gifted, special, or any other similar term you prefer to use. There is not a second Ronda Rousey in MMA right now in terms of the interest–whether due to adoration or loathing–she’s capable of generating. As long as the UFC has her, they have something the fans will care about, something that’ll make the promotion worth following.
There was more to UFC 175 than just Ronda Rousey.
UFC middleweight champ Chris Weidman defended his title against Lyoto Machida in the card’s main event. While Weidman dominated the first three rounds, the last two were ferociously contested. Machida almost pulled off a Gregor Clegane-level comeback as Weidman tired and opened himself up to numerous flurries. Just as it seemed Weidman might be running on empty, the Long Island native met Machida’s whirlwind of offense with his own.
The last two rounds of Weidman-Machida were everything an MMA competition should be–contested in several areas of fighting, dramatic, enjoyable, competitive, and fought between two highly skilled fighters who are among the elite of the elite. It’s this last bit that’s most important.
Any two fighters can throw their fists and dramatic have reversals of fortune. Too many fans are content with just that–random regional-level fighters closing their eyes, sticking their chins out, and throwing hooks from their waists–”banging.” While fans accept such a product because it’s branded “UFC,” it’s not something the UFC has a monopoly on. Any MMA promotion on the planet can offer that. However, top fighters like Chris Weidman and Lyoto Machida in a brutal struggle for the only title in the MMA world that matters is something unique to the UFC.
Bellator, even with Scott Coker and Viacom’s apparent renewed interest, can’t create a card like UFC 175–nor a spectacle like Ronda Rousey, nor a fantastic fight where the MMA world hangs in the balance like Weidman-Machida. None of the UFC’s competitors can.
UFC 175 was an example of what makes the UFC special, what makes it the “Super Bowl of MMA.” The UFC would do well to remember that, lest it continues lowering its own standard and falls into ruin.
A week after being named the new president of Bellator MMA, Scott Cokerreleased an open letter to fans yesterday, laying out his vision for the promotion’s future in broad strokes. Check it out below, followed by some brief analysis…
Dear Bellator Nation*,
I wanted to take a moment and tell you all how excited I am to be a part of the Bellator family. I’ve been working closely with the incredible team here along with our partners at Spike to see how we are going to bring this great company to new heights.
My first order of business is to take a look at the Bellator roster and determine all the exciting possibilities that are in store for the future. Our goal is to make every Bellator event feel BIG and special** which is a huge win for fighters, advertisers, and of course — and most importantly — you, the fans. I’ve been on the phone with dozens of fighters and to hear the excitement in their voices has been incredibly encouraging.***
A week after being named the new president of Bellator MMA, Scott Cokerreleased an open letter to fans yesterday, laying out his vision for the promotion’s future in broad strokes. Check it out below, followed by some brief analysis…
Dear Bellator Nation*,
I wanted to take a moment and tell you all how excited I am to be a part of the Bellator family. I’ve been working closely with the incredible team here along with our partners at Spike to see how we are going to bring this great company to new heights.
My first order of business is to take a look at the Bellator roster and determine all the exciting possibilities that are in store for the future. Our goal is to make every Bellator event feel BIG and special** which is a huge win for fighters, advertisers, and of course — and most importantly — you, the fans. I’ve been on the phone with dozens of fighters and to hear the excitement in their voices has been incredibly encouraging.***
I know there are so many questions about what changes may be in store for Bellator. While we are still very early in the process of executing on our long term vision, the plan is simple. We want to put on the most entertaining events possible for YOU. We want Bellator to be a first-choice destination for the best fighters in the world and we want our events to showcase the fun side of the sport**** — the personality and showmanship that makes MMA so entertaining. This is the best sport in the world and we want our events to demonstrate that for all to see.
We’ve got a ton of work to do, and July 25th is right around the corner. We’ll have more updates in the coming weeks, and I can’t wait to see all of you on Spike TV and at Pechanga in July.
** This is the most important line of Coker’s letter. Promising that every Bellator event will feel “BIG and special” is both a response to Bellator’s previous regime — in which weekly events were methodically rolled out, often with very little star power at the top — and a subtle dig at the UFC, which now puts on so many events itself that each card is beginning to feel indistinguishable from the last one.
*** Keep in mind that the “excitement” Coker refers to mostly comes from the Bellator roster’s general hatred of Bjorn Rebney.
**** I am cautiously psyched about this. Is Tito Ortiz vs. Kimbo Slice a good fight? No. Would I rather watch Tito vs. Kimbo than, say, any of Bellator’s previous heavyweight title fights? Obviously. Considering that “the fun side of the sport” is CagePotato’s bread-and-butter, we look forward to all the stunt-fights, choreographed walkouts, and absurd fight-promos to come in the Coker era. Bring it on.
Amid reports that Bjorn Rebney had been forced out of his role with Bellator earlier today, the promotion has officially announced that, yes, former Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker will be taking over as head honcho. According to a press release sent out by Spike TV just an hour ago, the promotion will also be diverting from their classic tournament-based style and towards “bigger fights.” Said Kevin Kay:
We are excited to have Scott Coker lead us in a new direction as we evolve the league format from a tournament-based organization to a more traditional model with big fights.
(*crosses fingers*) Please let “big fights” mean freakshows, please let big fights mean freakshows…
Bellator is planning to hold a media conference call at 6 p.m. ET, and we will update you on any important details that emerge from it.
Amid reports that Bjorn Rebney had been forced out of his role with Bellator earlier today, the promotion has officially announced that, yes, former Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker will be taking over as head honcho. According to a press release sent out by Spike TV just an hour ago, the promotion will also be diverting from their classic tournament-based style and towards “bigger fights.” Said Kevin Kay:
We are excited to have Scott Coker lead us in a new direction as we evolve the league format from a tournament-based organization to a more traditional model with big fights.
(*crosses fingers*) Please let “big fights” mean freakshows, please let big fights mean freakshows…
Bellator is planning to hold a media conference call at 6 p.m. ET, and we will update you on any important details that emerge from it.
Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney — the man who built the MMA promotion from a scrappy underdog on ESPN Deportes to a major player on Spike TV and pay-per-view — has left the building. Viacom officially announced today that Rebney as well as Bellator president and Chief Operating Officer Tim Danaher have left the organization, effective immediately.
As MMAFighting reported last night, it wasn’t exactly an amicable split; Rebney was forced out due to his ongoing conflicts with Viacom regarding the direction of the promotion. [Ed. note:Whoever wanted to turn Bellator into a home of freak-show/throwback MMA and surreal promos, CagePotato is on your side.] Considering that Viacom bought a majority stake in Bellator back in October 2011, the media monolith certainly had the power to kick Bellator’s founder out of his own operation.
But it gets crazier: Rebney’s replacement is expected to be none other than Scott Coker, the former Strikeforce founder and CEO who has kept a very low profile since Zuffa bought his promotion in 2011. From MMAFighting: “Once Coker’s contract and non-compete clause with Zuffa…expired in March, the wheels were in motion to bring him on board.”
Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney — the man who built the MMA promotion from a scrappy underdog on ESPN Deportes to a major player on Spike TV and pay-per-view — has left the building. Viacom officially announced today that Rebney as well as Bellator president and Chief Operating Officer Tim Danaher have left the organization, effective immediately.
As MMAFighting reported last night, it wasn’t exactly an amicable split; Rebney was forced out due to his ongoing conflicts with Viacom regarding the direction of the promotion. [Ed. note:Whoever wanted to turn Bellator into a home of freak-show/throwback MMA and surreal promos, CagePotato is on your side.] Considering that Viacom bought a majority stake in Bellator back in October 2011, the media monolith certainly had the power to kick Bellator’s founder out of his own operation.
But it gets crazier: Rebney’s replacement is expected to be none other than Scott Coker, the former Strikeforce founder and CEO who has kept a very low profile since Zuffa bought his promotion in 2011. From MMAFighting: “Once Coker’s contract and non-compete clause with Zuffa…expired in March, the wheels were in motion to bring him on board.”
An official announcement on Coker’s hiring is expected to be made today or tomorrow, and we’ll update you when it happens. UPDATE: It’s official.
In the meantime, here’s Bjorn Rebney’s official statement on his departure, from the Viacom press release:
“It is with bittersweet emotions that I announce that I am leaving the company I founded,” Rebney stated in a press release issued by Viacom. “I have great pride in having turned my vision into reality, a thriving business with television distribution to over 140 countries around the world, a partnership with one of the world’s largest entertainment giants and wide array of sponsors, partners and strategic allies all over the globe. This has been a wonderful eight plus years of creation, development and success. I will miss the courageous, strong and dedicated fighters I have had the pleasure of promoting, and equally, I will miss the incredibly hard working, remarkable team that has become a family for me over the years.
“Viacom and Tim and I differed in our views of the right strategic direction for Bellator, but Tim and I both wish them well.”
I wonder how Dana White feels about doing battle with his old nemesis/homeboy again. I mean, obviously he doesn’t care, but this could change the dynamic. And that’s a good thing, because two competitive promotions trying to out-do each other is exactly what the sport needs right now.
(2014: The year that Dana White buys this dog. For Bjorn Rebney. Too soon?)
When former CagePotato.com contributor Jason Moles announced his retirement in 2013, it appeared that there wouldn’t be a “Crazy Enough to be True” predictions column for 2014. Rather than let the opportunity to make outlandish assumptions about the state of our favorite sport pass us up, we’ve decided to offer our wildest ideas in the form of a CagePotato Roundtable. Read on for our picks, share yours in the comments section, and please continue to send your ideas for future CagePotato Roundtable topics to[email protected].
The problem is, none of these upcoming markets have the talent pool available to produce a world champion in the foreseeable future. Or a top contender. Or a fighter who could credibly compete anywhere on a pay-per-view main card. That’s why I’m predicting that 2014 will see the unveiling of individual UFC titles for countries/continents. I mean, Vitor Belfort is already the middleweight champion of Brazil, right? They might as well give him a belt and make it official.
(2014: The year that Dana White buys this dog. For Bjorn Rebney. Too soon?)
When former CagePotato.com contributor Jason Moles announced his retirement in 2013, it appeared that there wouldn’t be a “Crazy Enough to be True” predictions column for 2014. Rather than let the opportunity to make outlandish assumptions about the state of our favorite sport pass us up, we’ve decided to offer our wildest ideas in the form of a CagePotato Roundtable. Read on for our picks, share yours in the comments section, and please continue to send your ideas for future CagePotato Roundtable topics to[email protected].
The problem is, none of these upcoming markets have the talent pool available to produce a world champion in the foreseeable future. Or a top contender. Or a fighter who could credibly compete anywhere on a pay-per-view main card. That’s why I’m predicting that 2014 will see the unveiling of individual UFC titles for countries/continents. I mean, Vitor Belfort is already the middleweight champion of Brazil, right? They might as well give him a belt and make it official.
Case in point: TUF Chinadebuted last month. Coached by a UFC near-washout and a guy you’ve never heard of, the season will produce a completely irrelevant winner, who’s only fit to beat up other irrelevant curtain-jerkers from countries that aren’t the U.S., Brazil, Canada, or England. While the novelty of seeing native Chinese fighters (or Turkish fighters, or Polish fighters, etc.) will get local fans tuning in, eventually the UFC will have to throw these people a bone to keep them happy, because watching your home country’s fighters get smashed as soon as they face legitimate competition isn’t fun.
And so, the UFC will do the smart thing and have these guys/gals fight exclusively within their own borders for secondary titles. And maybe, if one of these regional champs goes on a long win streak, he/she will be called up to the prelims of a UFC on FOX Sports 1 card, where you might actually get to see them compete. Until then, us North Americans will only be able to watch the UFC’s new regional superstars on that digital subscription service thingy they’re selling, and if you think we’re coughing up any more money to the UFC for that bullshit, you are out of your got-damn mind.
It is well known that UFC President Dana White is a loose cannon when he is in front of a camera or a microphone. The “Baldfather” has no filter and basically shoots from the hip no matter the topic, the fighter, or the reporter in his crosshairs. He has taken some heat for profanity-laced rants in the past, but there has never been any real punishment from the Fertitta brothers (at least not publicly).
After Georges St. Pierre’s somewhat cryptic and confusing comments with Joe Rogan following his UFC 167 victory, Dana White launched into a diatribe at the post-fight press conference saying that GSP owed the UFC something more. Fast forward a day or two and Lorenzo Fertitta backtracked on White’s words by basically apologizing (even though he never actually said “Sorry”). In the past, Fertitta has never come to cover White but after the amount of flack being thrown because of White’s comments, it was evident that some things needed to be clarified.
Though White’s obscenity-filled tirades have been far and few between as of late, it is only a matter of time before Mount Dana erupts. When he does — because of falling ratings, a network deal that has not produced as expected or a slew of other factors — I believe that the Fertittas will in fact publicly chastise White. Whether it is a fine or a suspension or just a good old fashioned public tongue lashing, White will finally be the one on the other end of a heated lecture (and he will have earned it after the years of insensitive comments he has made).
Between 2010 and 2011, Matt Brown went 1-4 in the octagon, with all of those losses coming via second round submission. Although not one member of the MMA media dared say it to his face, they had all but written him off as just another slightly above-average TUF alum who couldn’t hack it in the big leagues. “Get out of here!”they’d shout once he had turned his back, “Why can’t you just go back to where you came from?
I don’t know if Brown wished upon a shooting star or sold his soul to the SKOAL Gods in return for Jax fists, but something amazing happened when he reemerged in 2012. Something…supernatural. Come to think of it, it was probably voodoo.
In the past two years, Matt Brown has gone 6-0 in the octagon with 5 TKOs. Five. Brown has fought like a man possessed (by voodoo), scoring wins over young guns (Jordan Mein), crafty veterans (Mike Swick), and previously undefeated hype machines (Stephen Thompson) alike. His last performance against Mike Pyle was, by definition, a flawless victory. Of all the career comebacks we witnessed in 2013, Brown’s was far-and-away the most impressive, if only because of the utter mediocrity that preceded it. In fact, of the nominees we listed in our “Most Unexpected Career Comebacks” roundtable last March, only Brown and Cub Swanson have managed to remain undefeated to this day. No, GSP *doesn’t* count, because he was defeated by both Johny Hendricks and old age.
What is the point of all this hyperbolic, redundant, and mostly fabricated backstory? Only that Brown has entered the prime of his career and is destroying whoever is placed before him with a combination of Zen-like tranquility and Pedro Lopez-like brutality. The dude is untouchable, “Immortal” you might even say (*crickets*). Like Bernie in Weekend at Bernie’s 2 when conga music is playing (which again, voodoo). And now that GSP has decided to step away from the sport, the UFC’s welterweight division has transformed from a grappler’s purgatory into a brawler’s paradise. Lawler vs. Hendricks will most likely be a slugfest for the ages, and when title fights are suddenly being decided by who can stand and trade leather the longest, Brown is as good a candidate as any to get that gold.
Believe it or not, things are actually much worse for TNA Impact! Wrestling than they were merely two months ago when I first wrote about their sad state of affairs. As in, “holding shows in high school gymnasiums” worse. I firmly believe that 2014 will be the year that this company finally kicks the bucket, to the apathy of nearly every wrestling fan on the planet. And the wrestlers proudly featured in the company’s final pay-per-view main event when this happens? Don’t hold your breath waiting for one of them to be AJ Styles. Same goes with Jeff Jarrett. Ditto Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels, Abyss, and anyone else whose name was once synonymous with the company.
No, Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz will be the ones headlining TNA Impact! Wrestling’s final pay-per-view.
Yeah, I know how everyone this side of Parts Unknown rolled their eyes at Rampage and Tito’s appearances in TNA last year, but the company is losing so much money and has so few wrestlers left that I think Viacom sends these two once-strong pay-per-view draws back to TNA Impact! Wrestling as a last-ditch effort to find people willing to buy a TNA pay-per-view. Sure, even the most brain-dead among us *looks directly at Jared…who is holding up a mirror. Well played.* can see the holes in this logic, but desperate times call for desperate measures; this is especially true when you consider that Viacom brought in Rampage and Tito to headline a pay-per-view in the first place. This will obviously end badly — even for a company that considers 50,000 buys a smashing success — leading TNA Impact! to close its doors shortly afterwards.
Sure, the idea of Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz headlining the final TNA Impact! Wrestling pay-per-view is completely ludicrous, but if you expect anything different from Dixie Carter, you’ve clearly never actually watched one of her company’s shows. Oh how I envy your ignorance.
Frustrated by dwindling PPV buys, Dana White starts hinting at “big fucking changes, like, huge” coming to Fox. Speculation abounds.
Zuffa announces that it is resurrecting Strikeforce for a new weekly primetime show on FS1. In a stunning move, Scott Coker returns to captain the ship, and “Wednesday Night Strikeforce” is born. His decision to include occasional kickboxing bouts in the broadcasts is hailed as visionary, as “WNS” quickly outstrips viewership numbers from the TUF lead-in. Meanwhile, UFC PPV cards are cut back to eight per year, and buy rates promptly skyrocket.
Coker leads the fight for better pay of fighters, proposing a tiered salary system that guarantees a minimum $48K to fighters under the Strikeforce banner. He suggests a format change to the now-ubiquitous Ultimate Fighter program, which now sports no less than eight spinoffs across the world. His idea, a weekly interview and highlight show recounting the various incarnations of TUF worldwide, is embraced by the blogosphere, but roundly rejected by White, as is the salary gambit.
Tensions between Coker and White continue to mount for the remainder of 2014. In December, Dana White and Scott Coker both start hinting at “big fucking changes, like, huge” coming to Zuffa. Speculation abounds.
Have your own “crazy enough to be true” predictions for 2014? You know what to do.
