Even though FUEL TV is still unavailable to most Americans, the UFC been a consistent draw for the channel. When FUEL TV aired the preliminary fights from UFC on FX 1, it set a company ratings record with an average of 148,000 viewers. This number was almost matched by the prelims for UFC on FOX 2, which averaged 144,000.
Even though FUEL TV is still unavailable to most Americans, the UFC been a consistent draw for the channel. When FUEL TV aired the preliminary fights from UFC on FX 1, it set a company ratings record with an average of 148,000 viewers. This number was almost matched by the prelims for UFC on FOX 2, which averaged 144,000.
Not bad for a channel that most of the people reading this don’t get.
Of course, the 217,000 viewers that UFC on FUEL brought in still amounts to roughly 1/3 of what the Diego Sanchez-themed episode of UFC Unleashed brought Spike TV (661,000 viewers). However, Spike TV is currently available in roughly sixty five million more homes in the United States than FUEL TV.
It can be said that FUEL TV’s viewers have been consistently supporting the UFC- fans with access to the channel have been showing up in record numbers, after all. However, the reality is still that while FUEL TV is expanding, most Americans still don’t have access to the channel, meaning most Americans simply can’t watch the UFC’s events on FUEL. It will be interesting to track the UFC’s ratings as the network expands.
If nothing else, at least the commentary will be much better for UFC on FOX 3 than the organization’s previous attempts on the network.
Those of you who tuned in for UFC on FUEL: Sanchez vs. Ellenberger more than likely left impressed by Brian Stann’s commentary throughout the evening. Already known for his ability to produce the most professional responses during interviews at will, Brian Stann seamlessly transitioned to the role of analyst. Stann was very confident while analyzing the fights, handling his first commentary gig like it was just another day at the office. Needless to say, the impressive showing granted him a role as an analyst for future UFC on FOX events.
The UFC’s attempts to give fighters active roles as commentators during UFC on FOX broadcasts have seen mixed results. The organization’s debut on FOX saw Brock Lesnar do a great job in both analyzing the fights and promoting his upcoming bout with Overeem. However, when Lesnar lost that fight and subsequently retired, the UFC could not continue to use him. It attempted to fill the void he left with UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture and Light-Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones.
If nothing else, at least the commentary will be much better for UFC on FOX 3 than the organization’s previous attempts on the network.
Those of you who tuned in for UFC on FUEL: Sanchez vs. Ellenberger more than likely left impressed by Brian Stann’s commentary throughout the evening. Already known for his ability to produce the most professional responses during interviews at will, Brian Stann seamlessly transitioned to the role of analyst. Stann was very confident while analyzing the fights, handling his first commentary gig like it was just another day at the office. Needless to say, the impressive showing granted him a role as an analyst for future UFC on FOX events.
The UFC’s attempts to give fighters active roles as commentators during UFC on FOX broadcasts have seen mixed results. The organization’s debut on FOX saw Brock Lesnar do a great job in both analyzing the fights and promoting his upcoming bout with Overeem. However, when Lesnar lost that fight and subsequently retired, the UFC could not continue to use him. It attempted to fill the void he left with UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture and Light-Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones.
The nagging rehabilitation of current welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre will put him out of action for approximately 18 months.By the time he steps back into the Octagon. UFC’s head honcho Dana White commented after last night’s UFC o…
The nagging rehabilitation of current welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre will put him out of action for approximately 18 months.
By the time he steps back into the Octagon. UFC’s head honcho Dana White commented after last night’s UFC on FUEL debut that he expects interim champion Carlos Condit to wait for GSP instead of having a rematch with the surging contender Jake Ellenberger.
With a six-fight win streak in the UFC and victories over two former contenders, a Condit/Ellenberger bout would have been the easy fight to make. Now that this bout is off the table (for now), let’s take a look at where the stars of last night should find themselves in their next bouts.
“UFC on FUEL TV 1” was a fun night of fights from the start of the show all the way to the main event. Now once again it’s time to ask: what’s next? What does the future hold after several dominant and heart-felt performances by…
“UFC on FUEL TV 1” was a fun night of fights from the start of the show all the way to the main event. Now once again it’s time to ask: what’s next? What does the future hold after several dominant and heart-felt performances by a variety of UFC talent? Here’s my answer to just that: a new edition of my “What’s Next for the Winners and Losers” series of articles, now featuring “UFC on FUEL TV 1.”
Last night, the UFC presented its first officially-numbered “UFC on FUEL TV” event. Featuring an interesting blend of mid-level talent and rising stars, it was an event that reached beyond its network shortcomings.Even though FUEL TV is the…
Last night, the UFC presented its first officially-numbered “UFC on FUEL TV” event. Featuring an interesting blend of mid-level talent and rising stars, it was an event that reached beyond its network shortcomings.
Even though FUEL TV is the lowest on the totem pole of networks the UFC is now affiliated with, this event was still a lot of fun and mostly lived up to my prediction that it would be a “sleeper hit.” Here are the full results, as well as my early commentary for “UFC on FUEL TV 1”.
Jake Ellenberger defeats Diego Sanchez by Unanimous Decision.
Stefan Struve defeats Dave Herman by TKO (Strikes) at 3:52 of Round 2.
Ronny Markes defeats Aaron Simpson by Split Decision.
Stipe Miocic defeats Phil De Fries by TKO (Strikes) at 0:43 of Round 1.
T.J. Dillashaw defeats Walel Watson by Unanimous Decision.
Ivan Menjivar defeats John Albert by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) 3:45 of Round 1.
Jonathan Brookins defeats Vagner Rocha by KO (Punches) at 1:32 of Round 1.
Justin Salas defeats Anton Kuivanen by Unanimous Decision.
Tim Means defeats Bernardo Magalhaes by Unanimous Decision.
As I expected, the prelims delivered some fun action, a few hard-hitting wars and one big “OMG” moment. From this point forward, expect me to stop harping on how good these prelims are. Instead, I’m simply going to accept it as fact that these free fights are always worth watching and that more people should be checking them out.
With that said, I was very impressed by Jonathan Brookins. He seems to be advancing his skills at a very fast rate, and his KO victory over Vagner Rocha was one of the biggest highlight-reel moments of the night.
Speaking of highlight-reel moments, both Ivan Menjivar and Stipe Miocic looked great in their come-from-behind victories. But the best “against the odds” victory had to go to Ronny Markes, who came back from the absolute brink to take a close Split Decision against the always-tough Aaron Simpson.
One of my favorite moments of the night occurred when Stefan Struve dropped and stopped Dave Herman. Like I said in a previous post, amazing moments tend to happen around Stefan Struve. With this aura of unpredictability and excitement once again proving true, Stefan Struve is quickly becoming a “dark horse favorite” of mine.
And in the main event, Jake Ellenberger beat a very game, very tough Diego Sanchez. Diego put it all on the line in this fight—it’s very unfortunate that this main event wasn’t a five-round fight because it looked like Sanchez was making quite the comeback near the end of the third round.
But I won’t take anything from Ellenberger—for two rounds he had the perfect game plan to not only neutralize Diego Sanchez, but to also punish and hurt Diego Sanchez. While I still am a fan of Sanchez, Ellenberger proved that all the newfound hype around him is justified, and I can’t wait to see where he goes from here.
In the end, I think this show should be considered a big success. I was impressed by the quality of fights on this card, and I definitely liked all the exciting finishes I got to see. “UFC on FUEL” is off to a good start and I look forward to seeing if this series of live events will become the home of the UFC’s “sleeper hits.”
Oliver Saenz, also known as PdW2kX, is a freelance journalist, opinion columnist, hardcore MMA fan, and lifelong video game nerd. For more news, views, previews, and reviews on all things Mixed Martial Arts as well as video games, be sure to visit FightGamesBlog.net.
Although Stipe Miocic‘s quick knockout of previously undefeated heavyweight Philip De Fries may have netted him the $50,000 Knockout of the Night bonus, our pick for sweetest KO went to Jonathan Brookins, who proved that not every Brazilian has the femur mangling leglock ability of Rousimar Palhares when he ground-and-pounded Vagner Rocha into oblivion inside the first two minutes of their preliminary card match-up. Not many of us knew what to make of Brookins after he dropped a UD to Eric Koch back in September of 2011. The fight proved that Brookins’ wrestling could in fact be thwarted, and that his striking had not made the leaps and bounds it needed to in order to balance things out. Last night’s fight was made to be a test of both.
Well, if anyone is still doubting the power in Brookins’ hands, they should probably shut right the hell up. Brookins did what Donald Cerrone, or any of Rocha’s previous opponents for that matter, couldn’t, and shut off his light switch with a series of increasingly punishing strikes before the ref managed to step in. To be honest, it was kind of scary to see that someone as docile and plain daffy as Brookins had the capacity for such brutality. And just as Brookins resembles the missing evolutionary link between man and ape, he was able to evolve in his own right, to connect one of the missing links in his game, and should be applauded for it. Not only did his knockout save a Facebook card that was luke warm at best to begin with, it made up for the fact that the Loeffler/Roberts match was cancelled after Loeffler rolled his ankle in the pre-fight warm up. Talk about shit luck.
Although Stipe Miocic‘s quick knockout of previously undefeated heavyweight Philip De Fries may have netted him the $50,000 Knockout of the Night bonus, our pick for sweetest KO went to Jonathan Brookins, who proved that not every Brazilian has the femur mangling leglock ability of Rousimar Palhares when he ground-and-pounded Vagner Rocha into oblivion inside the first two minutes of their preliminary card match-up. Not many of us knew what to make of Brookins after he dropped a UD to Eric Koch back in September of 2011. The fight proved that Brookins’ wrestling could in fact be thwarted, and that his striking had not made the leaps and bounds it needed to in order to balance things out. Last night’s fight was made to be a test of both.
Well, if anyone is still doubting the power in Brookins’ hands, they should probably shut right the hell up. Brookins did what Donald Cerrone, or any of Rocha’s previous opponents for that matter, couldn’t, and shut off his light switch with a series of increasingly punishing strikes before the ref managed to step in. To be honest, it was kind of scary to see that someone as docile and plain daffy as Brookins had the capacity for such brutality. And just as Brookins resembles the missing evolutionary link between man and ape, he was able to evolve in his own right, to connect one of the missing links in his game, and should be applauded for it. Not only did his knockout save a Facebook card that was luke warm at best to begin with, it made up for the fact that the Loeffler/Roberts match was cancelled after Loeffler rolled his ankle in the pre-fight warm up. Talk about shit luck.
Ivan Menjivar and TUF 14′sJohn Albert kicked off the main card by engaging in one of the wildest back and forth rounds that you will see this year, trading punches, kicks, knees, and submissions at an astonishing rate. A tip of the hat is also due to Albert for having the gusto to attack Menjivar in the fashion he did, going for omaplatas, heel hooks, and triangle/armbar variations on the more experienced grappler at every opportunity. That said, it appears his submission defense is not quite up to par with that of his offense. Albert had Menjivar on the defensive following a left hook/head kick combo, and looked like he would finish “The Pride of El Salvador” with a barrage of knees, one of which was blatantly illegal. But he made a huge mistake when he went for that guillotine, which gave Menjivar all the space he needed to flip the script and put Albert on his back, a shift in momentum that would lead to the the fight ending rear-naked choke, and a $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus for Menjivar. We would call it a rookie mistake by Albert, but even the most seasoned of veterans have made it.
I see I forgot to mention in the first aftermath piece that Sanchez/Ellenberger took FOTN. Fifty large could buy Diego that Coronado’s cross he’s always wanted, if only it didn’t BELONG IN A MUSEUM!!
Following the Menjivar/Albert match, TUF 14 bantamweight runner-up T.J. Dillashaw used his superior grappling prowess to grind out a unanimous decision over the lengthy Walel Watson. From the opening bell, it was pretty evident that Dillashaw wanted nothing to do with Watson’s striking game, and considering the manner in which he lost to John Dodson, this seemed understandable. Threatening with a rear-naked choke on several occasions throughout the first round, Dillashaw continued to take Watson down at will over the next two, utterly dominating him and walking away with a 30-25, 30-25, 30-26 unanimous decision.
Speaking of numbers, one thing we would like to compliment the UFC on was their usage of the strike counting graphic that would pop out of the clock every so often. It gives you something to consider when personally judging each fight, and in our opinion, will help casual fans gain an appreciation for one aspect of the ground game. So touche, UFC. Touche.
Oh yeah, and Ronny Markes had a successful middleweight debut, managing to overcome being nearly finished in the first round to out grapple Aaron Simpson and snag a split decision victory. With the win, Markes improves to 2-0 in the octagon and is now the biggest middleweight since Anthony Johnson.
Last night, the UFC presented its first officially-numbered “UFC on FUEL TV” event. Featuring an interesting blend of mid-level talent and rising stars, it was an event that reached beyond its network shortcomings.
