Bloody Elbow

SOPA sucks

’Nuff said!

Mr. Socko - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

^This

Because a lot of people fail to grasp the idea that people that pirate events will not buy them the next day anyway

IRodC - January 2, 2012 reply

scratch that last part about

“the next day”

IRodC - January 2, 2012 reply

If SOPA passes the world will hate us for good

Our government cannot bitch about Chinese internet censorship and then turnaround and propose that ghastly thing.

This +1000.

Add

+1000 from me. Call your congressman, SOPA is a raw deal!

Mr. Socko - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

The funny thing is that even the political issues aside,

the technology behind the execution is going to be way behind what pirates will develop to get around it.

Hey Congress! We’re nerds and we’re good at what we do. You pay Geek Squad $125 to go into msconfig and stop a program from loading on startup. Good luck, guys.

pdl - January 2, 2012 reply

mine used to by Tyrone Honeybee.

but i was ruined by Colbert.

Wait, what? Really?

Aww, hell naw!!! We ridin tonight!!!

The American Ronin - January 2, 2012 reply

If SOPA passes the world will continue to hate us for good

Far from it

If people want to buy something they’ll buy it

They won’t start spending suddenly just because they can’t get it for free

People who pirate stuff probably won’t buy it if pirating was suddenly a lot more difficult to do.

Like Lorenzo had said before in that one interview, they had a lot of main events fall apart.

I’m sure it’ll be better but probably not as glorious as 2010.

I don't think so

Just so many events, and unless its special its not worth it to lay the money for a PPV. And what is this debt that is going to cause it to sell? Didn’t they just sign a deal approaching a billing dollars total? How could they not pay the debt off?

closetasfan - January 2, 2012 reply

they've got a massive loan coming due soon - I think around 1/2 billion

they’ve been paying just the interest and skimming the profits to pay the Fertittas and Dana from what I understand.

...and they'll almost certainly just re-finance it over into a new loan

That’s pretty much how all corporate debt works.

joker24 - January 2, 2012 reply

Yeah, like I was saying below, some companies want a lot of debt for tax purposes.

Bolshevik - January 2, 2012 reply

Two things that i think need to be mentioned.

Wrestlefuck and Pointbox: Fighting styles that have really put doubt into the minds of potential PPV buyers. Are you going to get an exciting fight or are you gonna get a nick lentz, volkmann style fight which kills any interest in the sport for casual fans

terzergoss - January 2, 2012 reply

And thats why GSP is still a bigger draw than alot of the balls to the wall fighters like Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit?

bigdmmafan - January 2, 2012 reply

lets be clear GSP does not fight like Volkmann or Lentz

terzergoss - January 2, 2012 reply

Then what fighters are you referring to, Lentz and Volkmann are never on main cards of even the free cards.

bigdmmafan - January 2, 2012 reply

But these are guys who are fighting that lead up the main card. Like ross pearson fight and the danny castillo fight just in the last card. They were snoozers to the casual audience

terzergoss - January 2, 2012 reply

If GSP was American GSP would not be a big draw (compared to other champions)

I love this explanation, if only for its gross oversimplification.

Canada has 1/10 the population of the United States – and yet, somehow, that 1/10 population accounts for all GSP’s popularity and endorsements (by American brands).

Yes because GSP PPVs get millions of buys...

slap yourself in the intellegence

GSP has broken one million buys once.

It is a silly and reductionist explanation, give it up. The ‘nationalist push’ accounts for a significant portion of GSP’s popularity, but that does not explain: a) his crossover appeal (see: you know, his endorsements), nor b) his global (yes, including the United States) popularity. Large brands like Gatorade or Under Armour would not invest that type of advertising in a fighter who is only popular in such a comparatively small market.

Beyond that, if GSP’s popularity could be wholly explained away by Canadians, than his non-Canadian gates would be skewed from Canadian gates – they are not.

I was being facetious

GSP would still be popular, he’s a UFC champion, he just wouldn’t get as many PPV buys as he does if he were not Canadian. Also look at any non-candian + non-LV gate, there’s a huge deviation there.

Non-Canadian. Can't into typing.

Canada is a disproportionately powerful market for MMA

the % of Canadians who buy UFC ppvs is way way higher than the % of US citizens who do the same.

I am Canadian.

Still doesn’t explain it entirely.

Even being Canadian I have come to despise GSP, mostly due to watching UFC 129 live, but it is a bit of a silly argument. Blaming Canada holds good for many things – Celine Dion, Bryan Adams, etc – but this isn’t one of those occasions.

Is it a large part of his popularity? Of course. As large as people make it out to be? No, not at all.

'heaven' is a pretty bad-ass song.

the % of Canadians who buy UFC ppvs is way way higher than the % of US citizens who do the same.

You are also working with percentages, and not absolute numbers, Nate. Halifax is traditionally one of the strongest per-capita fight markets in North America in terms of PPV buyrates, but it is comprised by less than 400,000 people.

Canada has 1/10 the population of the United States, and even as a whole cannot solely account for GSP’s popularity. That is all I am saying.

sure

but it remains a big factor in GSP’s success. Just like BJ Penn coming from Hawaii, another area where MMA is disproportionately popular, helped BJ become a superstar.

don't forget Nickelback

the city of Detroit blames you

cletusvandam - January 2, 2012 reply

The auidiences for UFC PPV in Canada rival Hockey Night.

MattParker117 - January 2, 2012 reply

No.

No, they do not. HNIC usually pulls in around 2-3 million viewers on CBC. Unless only Canadians are buying every PPV, then it is not close.

HNIC stands for Hockey Night in Canada?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAhahahiojfdsjfsdfjaifsfafaa

I’m really glad I know that now

Don't be a cunny.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=HNIC

.

http://cuedigitalmedia.com/advertisers/our-sites/ufc/

Here's where I got that Statistic

Take it with a pinch of salt

MattParker117 - January 2, 2012 reply

GSP is a brand now

He became that when he was wrecking punk motherfuckers

We were just disussing this

I was just having this conversation with my MMA guru Double-A. I personally believe that the PPV model needs to go back to 6-10 per year. With the new Fox deal, if ratings maintain, the ad buys can only increase in value. But one fight per show can never happen again. It’s not fair to the advertisers. Just check the ratings drop-off after the Valasquez KO. The economy is only going to get worse unless the outsourcing of jobs ends, and I’ve been hearing grumblings from long time UFC fans for a while. Pay per views don’t have a special feeling anymore, even when the top guys are involved. Myself, I would go with only four BIG events a year, and use the networks to bring up the new talent. Either way, UFC will need to get much more aggressive in advertising to ‘outsider’ markets. Zuffa will have to remove the stick from their butt concerning Youtube, as well. If people can’t research a fighters past, and the only oppurtunity to see a fighter is to buy the UFC Channel or a PPV, they will never expand their market. Have A Nice Day!

Mr. Socko - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

one fight per show was just for that test run. Dana said it before the event and has been saying so since.

Thanks

For clearing that up…I just got on Emperor White’s Twitter feed, must’ve missed that. Next time just put a mandible claw on me when I speak out of ignorance hahahaaa! Have A Nice Day!

Mr. Socko - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

Shite. I don't like this...

Especially Zuffa selling a share of the UFC even further.

the sale thing is purely speculation

sure its from a very very smart guy who watches the sport closely but don’t make it more than it is.

My angry bowels make no distinction to speculation.

The American Ronin - January 2, 2012 reply

I agree with him.

NTF, you and I had a convo about this in early 2011 I believe. I said then and still think that they will get while the getting is still somewhat good.

Facebook already missed their ideal IPO window, and while it might still do alright, I expect it will be far, far less than the estimates that were thrown around a year or so ago. I also expect it to plummet shortly after any IPO…

In the same vein, the Fertitta’s are still somewhat in their window of opportunity, thanks to the Fox deal, but now is the time to be looking for the exits.

The numbers will be down slightly, but the sky won’t fall. There are going to be less PPVs, presumably no Brock, and losing some big names to Fox will hurt the numbers.

Phildo - January 2, 2012 reply

their biz is hugely profitable

even at much reduced PPV numbers.

I'm going to guess it will be up compared to 2011

because there will be more free cards (I think) on Fox, FX and Fuel.

Paying 110 dollars a month on ppvs sucks.

av1o3 - January 2, 2012 reply

I think they'll more or less equal 2011

The first year of the Fox deal will tell us a lot I think. Fox / FX offer up a fresh audience who may not necessarily have been a Spike TV audience, but none the less may provide a good percentage of new fans who get hooked to the sport. Plus, Fox is going to pimp UFC for all its worth and make sure it’s cross promoted with their other sports, something Spike TV could never have done.

16 PPV’s is too much, drop it to 12 and have one once a month.

KJ Gould - January 2, 2012 reply

The first three PPVs of the year will do terrible numbers

UFC 142 has no draws and might not even break 200k buys, 143 could probably do about 350-400k, and 144 has a non-draw headlining with an opponent whose last fight was on Facebook.

So….down. No GSP, no Lesnar, it’s up to a Silva vs. Sonnen super-resubmission and Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans for the UFC to even have a chance at being up.

I'm hoping 143 breaks 500K

Nick Diaz is a draw.

nick diaz could be huge

but i doubt his current ability to draw

milk72 - January 2, 2012 reply

137 just did 280k

With Diaz headlining against one of the biggest names to ever grace the sport.

How will 143 fare any better? The biggest name on the card after those two is Josh Koscheck, who is fighting the barely-known Mike Pierce.

Primetime episodes will be on FX.

There has to be a significant crossover between Always Sunny and Nick Diaz fans.

pdl - January 2, 2012 reply

By beating Penn the way he did, Diaz may have been giving “the rub” and become more of a draw. Also, it is for some sort of Title (interim) which could potentially entice more MMA fans to order the PPV. I don’t know how much it factors in, but it is on SuperBowl weekend as well, and there is a UFC on Primetime for Diaz vs Condit. There are definitely factors here that could increase the PPV buyrate.

chrisbboy82 - January 2, 2012 reply

The Diaz brothers may be the most original, unique, charismatic characters in any sport today, and in any combat sport for sure.
Vegan diet following, triathlon competing, ganja smoking, don’t-give-a-fuck guys like these two need to be appreciated while they’re around.

sheikybaby - January 2, 2012 reply

veganism is gangsta.

Outside

Of the Vegan lifestyle, which I don’t know anything about, I wholeheartedly agree! Love me some Diaz Brothers! Nick vs Paul Daley made a fan outta me!

Mr. Socko - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

Here's MMA Payout's summary of S&P's latest credit report on Zuffa

- UFC’s seven year TV deal with Fox Sports Media Group, replacing Zuffa’s current deals with Spike TV and Versus, offers more stable and favorable economics over the term of the TV deal in hope of potentially reducing Zuffa’s dependency on the more-volatile event based revenue.
- Zuffa should be able to deliver more content and potentially expand it’s audience through the vast distribution FOX provides, thus exposing content to a higher potential viewership base.
- During the first half of 2011, revenue and EBITDA were down against the comparable period in 2010. Reasons given were one less PPV event, as well as significant fighter injuries which contributed to lower PPV buys.
-Despite a weak first half of 2011, the report expects Zuffa’s total debt to EBITDA and coverage measures to remain in line with the rating over the term.
-It is expected that Zuffa owners will continue to pursue moderate distributions over time as the company continues to grow, which will likely preclude any meaningful sustained improvement to Zuffa’s financial risk profile.
- Nearly 75% of Zuffa’s total revenue is event based. The majority is composed of PPV buys and ticket sales. Remaining 25% revenue is composed of live and taped television broadcasts, sponsorship, merchandising, licensing, and content distribution deals.
-Due to the FOX television deal, it is anticipated that TV broadcasting may become a larger source of revenue, as they see this revenue stream as less volatile than event based revenue.
-Zuffa has been successful in expanding sponsorships and merchandising, which improves stability and strengthens their business model.
-Zuffa’s expansion plans are seen as a positive due to the potential of growing revenue from a more diversified fan base and broadening the acceptance of MMA.
-UFC expansion into the UK several years ago was extremely volatile, and they have since taken a more cautious and measured approach in international expansion as of late.
-Interestingly enough, the report points out that Zuffa could face increased labor costs in the future if fighters organize (union) and seek a higher share of revenue, which is the case for most major sports in the U.S.
-The acquisition of Strikeforce (along with the WEC) is believed to have strengthened the UFCs already dominant market position, as it continues to increase the number of fighters and title fights under the promotion.
- Liquidity: Zuffa has adequate sources to cover its needs over the next 12 to 18 months. Sources include cash flow generated from strong operations and it’s revolving credit.
- Uses of liquidity include minimal capital spending needs, modest amortization, acquisitions, and distributions.
- Debt: Zuffa had only $1 million of availability under its $50 million revolving credit facility as of June 30, 2011, which expires in 2012. $425 million term loan due in 2015.
-Payments for taxes are primarily distributed directly to the owners and additional dividend payments are limited by a restricted payment basket under the credit facilities.
-The expectation is that owners will likely continue to pursue max allowable distributions under the credit agreement.

As for that Loan Mark Cuban bought Zuffa bonds in 2009 and I assume that loan was replaced at least partially by bond debt. Although if Zuffa got the bond issue done at less than 10% it would be a miracle.

MattParker117 - January 2, 2012 reply

I think

The key term in there is “volatility”. The UFC can make solid predictions about how PPV events are going to perform, but all it takes is one training camp injury and suddenly they’re looking at half a million buys less than they were expecting (dos Santos-Carwin, for example). If the UFC wants to be a real sport, and it sounds like they do, then that means going to a more stable business model.

The American Ronin - January 3, 2012 reply

10%?

They are rated BB, no BB corporate bond is doing 10% yields.

joker24 - January 2, 2012 reply

$50 mil credit facility sounds reasonable

but what the hell is up with a $425 loan? What is that for possibly?

closetasfan - January 2, 2012 reply

but what the hell is up with a $425 loan? What is that for possibly?

That was not to fund operations, but almost entirely to make huge dividend payments to ownership. Part of my reasoning for thinking they will likely be cashing out sooner rather than later.

$75 million in refinacing and dividends
$325 million in expansion costs

Is how it breaks down

MattParker117 - January 3, 2012 reply

No Brock. No GSP. No BJ Penn. It doesn’t look good.

POW - January 2, 2012 reply

BJ Penn didnt even get 300k buys on either PPV he headlined this year. Brock and GSP hurt, Penn not anymore.

bigdmmafan - January 2, 2012 reply

BJ stopped being a draw two years ago

He’s still better than just about anybody else at 155.

POW - January 2, 2012 reply

yes

because there is no way to create new exciting stars.
let’s forget Jon Jones, Overeem, Nick Diaz and Junior Dos Santos.

How much did Brock v Cain sell?

Was he still a huge draw?

too soon to tell. the buyrate estimates haven’t come out yet, and the solid numbers take another while to be filtered.

im not trying to troll

or hate, but i couldnt give 2 shits about these two things:

thing 1)how many ppvs sold
thing 2)what new fans might think of mma

as far as thing 1, im surprised anyone buys an event for 55-65 dollars, especially in this jacked-up economy. i certainly cant afford to, and thank god for bars that offer the fights for free.

as far as thing 2, i can never comprehend why anyone cares what comes out of DFWs mouth, or what crap some idiot fighter tweeted, or anything having to do with mmas going ‘mainstream.’ i love mma but could give 2 fucks how popular it is.

Not caring about PPV's is about not caring about whether or not the boss of the premier MMA promotion is in bed with yakuzas or not.

Trust me: we should care.

Thank you for letting us know!

Horselover Fat - January 2, 2012 reply

anytime, man

Is this what Roy Nelson thinks God looks like?

Now that’s how I think god looks like!

i dont know

if you eat a burger, you kill a cow, wast like 100 gallons of water, kill some rainforest, brutalize soil and give a big middle finger to starving people around the world. but lots of people eat burgers anyway. should i really be that worried about yakuza?

Ever heard of PRIDE Fighting Championships?

of course.

And how do you think they went down?

bob sapp and wanderlei silva vs. japanese guys off the street?

More like allegations of ties to organized crime made their TV sponsor drop their asses.

They weren’t doing that bad until suddenly shit started tanking and they sold the org.

true, yet let’s not forget that the Yakuza have since then permeated virtually all forms of business in Japan. that was a sad scenario largely due to the fact that certain fighters were strong-armed into taking fights, among other things.

sorry u, dont mean to be a dick.

you got me curios now.

No need to apologize. Look above.----^

whats that got to do w/ppvs?

or burgers?

if you like watching the UFC

the success or failure of their biz model is of concern. No PPV buys = no UFCs.

Mr. gay. This is serious bussiness!!

ill go hide in my cave then

That shit gives me nightmares...

I've been saying the ufc is gonna get prided sing the rainbow came outta da closet

liptondrift - January 2, 2012 reply

nothing you say makes sense to me.

is that a you thing, or a me thing?

it's an us thing ;)

liptondrift - January 2, 2012 reply

No wonder I don't get it either.

Your land is a strange, exotic place.

waste

Additional reasons for PPV dropoff

The novelty has worn off. Casual fans probably made up a huge portion of the PPV audience for a while, but they probably recognized that there is little to distinguish a paid card from a free card.
The free fights on Fox network channels will dilute consumer demand for paid events. There’s a limit to what the non-hardcore base really wants or needs.
Facebook streams and free prelims on cable mean that would-be viewers can get their fight fix and save the money they would have spent on the PPV.
After-effect of disappointing PPV cards. It’s the burn me once, shame on you scenario. When you pay a significant amount for something that fails to meet expectations, how likely are you to pay again to risk similar disappointment?
Plenty of alternatives out there, with Bellator, HD Net, and others providing quality fights at no cost other than perhaps a small increase in monthly cable costs.
Tons of “illegal” streams available for watching PPVs. (I realize we’re supposed to pretend no one watches online streams, sacrificing quality in terms of high def for economy in terms of money that could be put to rent, food, clothes, other forms of entertainment, etc.)

I agree with the other comments about PPV buy rates not being a measure of success for Zuffa. They have adequate other sources of revenue, particularly the Fox deal and international broadcast rights income, to more than offset any dropoff in their PPV gravy train.

( . Y . ) - January 2, 2012 reply

You forgot to factor the fact that the economy is on the fucking shitter, in there.

The economy was shit during the PPV buy rate peak years.

( . Y . ) - January 2, 2012 reply

But now it is in worse shit-shape than in the previous shit-state.

It's actually in much better shape

MS_Dos_Santos - January 2, 2012 reply

The economy?

Um…I don’t think it is.

it’s not that simple. certain sectors have improved, it’s just not really being felt by most common folk like you and i.

MS_Dos_Santos’ point was that the economy has recovered somewhat in a general sense, that doesn’t mean we’re out of the shitter. it was too broad a statement.

This

2008 and 2009 brought great PPV numbers despite the economy heading towards a depression. The effects of that were felt throughout 2009 and 2010, at the end of which the economy has started to recover, but is still weak.

I suppose it’s debatable whether it’s in better shape now than then, depending on which indicators you want to use. I’m no economist though, just a guy who likes to see people fight each other.

MS_Dos_Santos - January 2, 2012 reply

you sir have the best name

liptondrift - January 2, 2012 reply

Reminds me of 'The Artist Formerly Known as Prince'

his reminds me of this:

which reminds me!

i finally met gsp!

shit.

Dude waaaat??

Fuck, should have looked down

I can't believe this is real

Does this mean I made out with Richard Simmons?

Bolshevik - January 2, 2012 reply

lets try this again

dammit! fail! i suck!

You are starting to worry me...

here we go.

That someone photoshopped that thing only makes it creepier...

i only glanced at it briefly the first time and thought it looked pretty legit.
it would be cool if it were real.

The PPV model is dying

I think it was nottheface who made the point that the UFC is just trying to squeeze every last penny out of PPVs before they go the way of the dodo bird. I buy that completely; in a couple of years, I hope we’re only seeing 6-8 PPV cards per year for the really, really big fights (Jones-Rashad, Silva-Sonnen, etc.). They can’t seriously expect fans to shell out between fifty and sixty bucks to see trash like Rampage-Hammill or Rashad-Tito.

hope youre right.

dont think its necessarily such a bad thing if ppvs die a horrible death.

Oh yeah

I don’t mind ponying up a few times a year, but if I’m going to be putting that much of my disposable income out there I want it to feel like a big, meaningful fight, the kind I’m going to build a party or something around.

Agreed

I think i’ll be like boxing. Of course Mayweather and Pacquiao are going to be on PPV, but the lesser names are going to be on television.

That’s a really apt comparison.

Will that really make sense though? Right now they do an average of what? 250k buys per event? If the only do 8 instead of 16, will these 8 have an average of 500k? Sure, they might make more profit from the same revenue but the live-events have also been a marketing-tool for the UFC. White has stated that many times. Especially when going to new markets. IMO drastically reducing the # of events is not in the cards anytime soon.

I'm not talking about reducing the number of events

I agree completely, they’re locked into drastically increasing their presence. I just don’t think that putting unmarketable fights on PPV helps them at all, and that they’d be better served by using PPVs for that “big fight” feel.

Same # of events and less PPV means they’d have to expand their TV deal further though. They can’t go anywhere else now that they’re exclusive to FOX I’d wager and not sure if FOX will want additional programming before seeing how things turn out.

Yes. Give buyers a chance to get some paychecks in between PPVs.

There are too many PPV's...

and not enough “stars.” Developing stars is pretty challenging. I think being able to monetize your product through network television (i.e. the Fox deal) is a good step.

All the non-PPV events probably do dilute the overall product. In my mind, the total number of PPV events is a bigger deal. A UFC event doesn’t scream, “I’m an exclusive, must have product,” when there are 15 others coming down the pipeline in the next 12 months. You can understand why someone doesn’t pay for every one. Let’s be honest; if you happen to miss an event, it’s not the end of the world. When events aren’t perceived to be important then you’re more likely to see people save their $45.

It’s hard to be in both “free TV” and the PPV business. The UFC has to find a balance or pick one or the other. My inclination would be to cut back the number of PPV’s if possible. I’d like to see them put one or two big cards a year, like a quality numbered UFC, on Fox just to give people a taste of what they’re missing. But I think you’ve got to rein in the number PPV’s. Fans and their pocket books are weary.

Cannon Jacques - January 2, 2012 reply

I would take guys who have had great to good success on PPV (GSP, Silva, Jones), and put with other champions who aren’t huge stars (Edgar, Aldo, Cruz, and JDS). You’ll have the hardcore be more willing to buy because of the importance of the card, and GSP, Silva, and Jones can add to the casual appeal because quite frankly they do well on PPV.

Also put more title fights on free television. If Maynard vs. Edgar were on Fox both Maynard and Edgar would have been much bigger than they are now. It doesn’t hurt the UFC, because Edgar isn’t at this point a big PPV star (neither is Maynard). Guys like Edgar and Aldo will do well on television and be an added bonus when they’re fighting on PPV. Alternating them between these rolls will not only bolster existing PPVs and television ratings, but they have an opportunity to become stars in their own right.

And fortunately for the UFC, their reputation for putting on good, relevant cards isn’t going to lower the value on a guy who fought on free television and is fighting on PPV.

Also, putting contenders who have a strong possibility of getting a title shot on TV helps anyway. They can get people to invest in a challenger the way that boxing seemingly fails to do.

so true.

if either of the two fights Maynard and Edgar had in 2011 were on free TV, i think it would boost the division in it’s entirety. Frankie Edgar could be close to being a household name if that had happened.

The sad truth is, Edgar is a little guy who is respectful and looks nothing like a killing machine. You could have Frankie Edgar marathons on Fox for a week and people still will not care for him as much as for Overeem. IMO the UFC is doing the right thing, trying to put the fighters in the spotlight that have a real shot at becoming stars like Rashad, Sonnen, Overeem or people that have the potential to capture the interest of new demographics such as Munoz or Velasquez.

i dunno.

i see your point, yet wouldn’t that be a bonus? why not show off a guy that is a consummate professional, well educated and a sharp dresser? the same could be said for Rashad, although since he’s a bigger guy and has a certain level of swagger looks more like what the average American considers a pro athlete to look like. showing a quiet humble little dude shows a level of depth and diversity in the roster, and putting him on a larger scale in either one of those monstrous comeback fights could only be good for him and the UFC. Edgar could very well be a star, and that vicious end of the third Maynard fight would shine a light on the lower weight classes that would convert a lot of casual fans and outsiders.

For me, personally, I totally agree. For the masses, I think it would be very hard to build up Edgar. Remember that in order to become a star he has to win people over who have never seen his fights or just short clips of them when they see him in talk-shows and other PR ops. If they throw themselves behind Edgar, could they move his populatrity up? Sure. But why spent your money on him when building a star with more promising “material” is hard enough? Why handicap yourself with a LW like Edgar who doesn’t even represent a desirable demographic?

i guess that depends what you call a ‘desirable demographic’. if you’re referring to African-Americans and Hispanics, that’s a different story and it goes beyond having Jones or Velasquez holding a belt. it starts with making inroads with these communities, advertising on networks and websites that cater specifically to these demographics [TVOne, Univision], etc. just put Edgar everywhere; Tonight Show, CNN morning shows, ESPN, all that shit. a brand is built with exposure. show the highlights of his gutsy performances and ask that he elevate the sport and his division. it can be done with time and patience.

Just throwing this out there.

Edgar might not have the most staying power. Here we’ve got a guy, undersized in a ridiculously stacked division, and he got fucked up at the start of his last two fights.

Promoting Jones practically guarantees a return on the investment.

Bolshevik - January 3, 2012 reply

Those are two fights, and the rest of his career he has taken very little punishment.

And quite frankly, Edgar probably has the best chance of being the next two division champ in the UFC.

discoandherpes - January 3, 2012 reply

Again: Why not put that money into people who are easier to market in the first place? “Because Edgar deserves it” will not raise many eyebrows in the marketing-meeting.

KGNLuc - January 3, 2012 reply

I think Frankie could be a huge star

The Kid from the Jersey Shore. Who happens to be a good guy and a great fighter.

Just show anyone the Gray Maynard fights. If they aren’t impressed by Edgar, shoot them, because they don’t have pulses and are zombies. Zombies are bad, m’kay?

16 PPVs a year and 12 of them have one good fight on them.

It’s not rocket science.

exsanguinator - January 2, 2012 reply

Everyone needs to stop acting like the sky is falling

PPV is a limited model. What’s on PPV? Only the biggest of the boxing fights, some wrestling, and 90% of it is porn.

What we’re going to see is the same thing that boxing is doing if the UFC is smart. Use television to build up stars, but guys on co-main events with big superstars, and have only the biggest fights be on PPV. The buyrates will go up if they’re less PPVs and the quality of the PPV increases. Now that they have a huge platform like Fox to expose themselves to a new audience, I think the UFC will be fine.

Even though PPV is historically the barometer for success regarding the UFC, that is going to be less and less the case. We live in a new generation where entertainment is essentially free on the internet, and sports is becoming biggest commodity in live television. PPV meaning less can only help the fans. It means that we’ll probably get more good fights on free television, and ultimately get more stacked PPVs.

Even in an atmosphere with subpar UFC PPV cards, average UFC PPVs are far superior to boxing PPVs. Think about how many great UFC events there were this year.

Also I typed that out very quickly, so there are tons of grammar and spelling mistakes.

My bad.

well, you got porn right. we can live with any other errors in there.

Dead on

Especially as far as PPV buys as the barometer of success. It’ll be live TV deals, and not just in the US — the deal with Rede Globo in Brazil is huge, but it hasn’t received a whole lot of attention in terms of thinking about what the UFC’s done over the last year.

Yeah. In other parts of the world where PPV isn’t viable, network television deals are going to be a big source of business.

Also growing MMA in these countries is only going to get more athletes into the sport.

How many. We

Tim Bernier - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

God damn.

Tim Bernier - January 2, 2012 via mobile reply

Gold

They're always talking about worldwide expansion..

..yet they’ll never expand worldwide relying on a PPV model.

Outside of the US, PPV is mostly unheard of. Yet sports still manage to be profitable.

They know that PPV doesn’t work in places like Brazil.

The UFC won’t sink with reduced PPV, they know they need alternative revenue streams. Zuffa seems to find ways to adapt, and the presumption that they’re extremely rigid is odd and doesn’t seem to be based on anything we’ve seen in the past.

UncleMax - January 2, 2012 reply

sponsorship $ will be key in the future business of the UFC

more shows could be free, which sounds good to me

dajulzta - January 2, 2012 via Android app reply

I agree with

Nate. There will be an emergence of new stars but long term I think the UFC will go public.

Coeman - January 2, 2012 reply

Give us a megafight. Any Megafight and numbers will be amazing. As Luke said in his video if there's gonna be one it has to happen this year

Desmoglein - January 2, 2012 reply

one including Anderson Silva that is

Desmoglein - January 2, 2012 reply

Also agree that Nick Diaz and Alistair Overeem could be major stars. They're already my 2 favorite MMA fighters/personalities

Desmoglein - January 2, 2012 reply

Both Diaz brothers actually have the potential to be stars.