EliteXC Return of the King Review

This was a strong show with good pacing, much better than the CBS debut which seemed to drag. EliteXC has been criticized for too much one sided booking with its prospects, but I like the approach. The goal right now should be establishing its young stars and grooming them for matches that mean something.

Ideally, the rest of this year should be spent building stars through careful booking and establishing credible champions. Then in 2009, with the benefit of smart booking and network television exposure, ideally the company will be in a position to run pay-per-view which is the key to its financial success at this point. This was a fun, easy to watch, entertaining show, but most importantly it left me excited about several potential match-ups which is exactly what the product should do.

Rafael Feijao and Dave Herman both looked like stars and for my money I would have rather featured them the CBS broadcast that Brett Rogers and/or Joe Villasenor-Phil Baroni. KJ Noons was also very impressive. Hopefully, he'll be available for the third CBS show. Nick Diaz gave an underwhelming performance in the cage, but brought real heat to the build-up for a rematch with Noons.

My only complaint about the show was Bill Goldberg. I've never completely understood the idea of using Goldberg to start with, but previously he's seemed tolerantly ineffective. Last night he was an actual distraction to the broadcast. I'm not sure what his role should be, but it shouldn't be in the ring as an interviewer. That job is about putting the talent over and Goldberg, by his mannerism and sheer size, often trivializes the talent.

The biggest news of the night was the official announcement of a 7/26 return date on CBS. Robbie Lawler-Scott Smith II will headline, but what will be underneath is anyone's guess. All reports are that this is sooner than EXC wanted to come back, but everybody's gotta serve somebody and CBS is undoubtedly EXC's master (as principle financial backer and television partner) at this point in the game.

It's hard to imagine the second show putting up numbers in the same ballpark as the first thanks to a host of factors (less time to promote, novelty lessened, stars not available), but it could be a blessing. CBS should be willing to let them breath (i.e. not worry so much about the numbers) given those factors which would give EXC a chance to really promote the rumored third show in October.

That should start with announcing the date and featured bouts on the July broadcast. The early direction for October looks like Kimbo-Rogers and Carano fighting to establish a women's champion. I don't like Rogers as an opponent for Kimbo, but that genie may be out of the bottle at this point. KJ Noons v. Nick Diaz is the hottest match they have at this point coming off last night's pull apart and should be on CBS.

Written by admin on June 15th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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Undertones of MMA: The Flood Gates Are Not Open

When the IFL announced it was canceling its August show during a conference call last Tuesday, it really did come as a surprise. Sure, there have been rumblings that the league was in having financial troubles. But little more than a month ago, the struggling promotion held a conference call in which they announced their new fighting surface, “The Hex,” and that they were not only planning the August show in New Jersey, but were looking even further into the future and planned to do a show in Miami.

With the Jersey show dead on arrival, a show in sunny Miami seems to be implausible. So what happened in the course of that month, that the IFL could go from big announcements to big cancelations? It’s more a matter of what did not happen: The flood gates did not open.

Some well-informed speculation is that, financially, nothing changed for the IFL. Instead, IFL CEO Jay Larkin was hedging his bets that after EliteXC’s CBS debut all the competing networks would act on the “monkey-see, monkey-do” nature of network programming, and be compelled to add the IFL’s brand of mixed martial arts to its programming. But that didn’t happen.

According to Larkin, "We've had conversations with media companies, film studios, television networks, individuals, celebrities. Every time we have one of these conversations, the interest is very high, but they're all being very cautious," said Larkin.

As usual, the networks are playing it safe. They are waiting to see if the ratings from the EliteXC CBS show were a one-time fluke, with fans tuning in from morbid curiosity, or if the curious watchers became legit, car d-carrying MMA fans. On the bright side, negative reaction and backlash to the event seemed to be minimal. Of course, Billy O’Reilly and his minions had something to say about it. But even O’Reilly admitted he “didn’t hear any complaints from anybody about the show.”

But in order for the sport to grow the next live network show needs to be on the up-and-up:

1. MMA information is all over the net. All those new fans from the CBS EliteXC show who logged into read the MMA media’s account of the CBS broadcast now feel a little slighted by an overblown main event. Kimbo Slice has been thoroughly debunked by fans and writers across the web. Fans, both new and old, are going to be looking for a legit main event from EliteXC’s next network show, or they may go elsewhere.

2. Or, the UFC could land a network deal. Given the UFC’s deep roster of talent, a quality card is not an issue.

But the bottom line, is that for the sport to grow, for the IFL to stay alive and for fans to have affordable access on a regular basis, the floodgates need to open.

Written by admin on June 15th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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Undertones of MMA: Sport or Lifestyle?

On its best nights, the recipe for great MMA was real simple: equal parts pro-wrestling and boxing. The pageantry of the former, combined with the legitimacy and unscripted nature of the latter were thought to make for an intoxicating night of fights.

However, Tuesday's dichotic announcements are an indication that since its assumed all MMA promotions are based in legitimate, unscripted competition, the pageantry associated with pro-wrestling is more important for attracting fans and drawing revenue.

But the bottom-line is that the UFC is the only promotion that has found the balance between too much and too little pomp in the circumstance of MMA.

After all, when EliteXC's CBS telecast juxtaposed MMA with grand entrances, brash hip-hop artists and MMA's version of the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders, it was not only rejected by fans, but by the MMA media as well.

Smaller promotions, like many that appear on HDNet, leave their production in the hands of the network, which does an adequate job, but does not devote the resources on a level equivalent to the UFC, or its cable television partner SpikeTV.

In fact, the UFC owes the majority of its financial success to SpikeTV. Outside of turning the promotion around after launching the Ultimate Fighter reality series, SpikeTV's pay per view previews give the UFC something no other promotion has: A platform on which to sell, not just the sport, but the lifestyle of mixed martial arts.

Early indicators from Afflication's pre-show production and promos are that it will be on par, and possibly exceed the UFC's presentation.

If they find a content partner that allows them to sell their brand and its fighters as a lifestyle, it will quickly become a force to be reckoned with, despite the fact that the initial pay per view is doomed to be a profitless endeavor.

The addition of Donald Trump as one of the organizations backers not only gives Affliction deep pockets, but connections to NBC and the king of reality TV producers, Mark Burnett, who cooked up Trump’s reality show, “The Apprentice.”

Given Affliction's dual role as an MMA promotion and clothing company, it already has created a context for a lifestyle. Finding that “lifestyle content” partner would drive consumers to its MMA product and clothing line at the same time.

Written by admin on June 14th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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The Way NOT To Market MMA

Mixed Martial Arts often has to fight wrong headed perceptions about the sport. At times this is because the public is ignorant of the sport, but just as often it is caused by folks you think would be more protective of the sports image: the promoters and merchandisers of MMA itself.

Too often, the first image someone sees in relation to MMA is negative and gives off the wrong connotations. Take for the example the debut of the IFL on MYNetworkTV: a company that up until that point had done a respectable job of presenting MMA as a sport dug themselves a hole they would never escape by portraying the sport as one based in blood lust, trumpeting the fact that "someone's going to the hospital."

Another example of MMA putting it's worst foot forward came in this recent article on a recent Caged Fury show getting pulled, ostensibly because of the way they were marketing themselves:

Scott and Hendrix president Dr. Timothy Cloyd both said they had expected an event similar in nature to the Taekwondo tournaments regularly held at the college. When it came to Hendrix's attention that some Bone Krusher advertising featured skull-and-crossbones imagery, bloody noses and scantily-clad young women, they said, the college had no choice but to pull the plug on Caged Fury.

"We had no way of knowing they were going to market it in such a raunchy fashion," he said; "a lot of the sponsors didn't know either. We were duped into thinking this was a family friendly event."

While the venue in question was religiously affiliated, that is a bit beside the point. Without regard to the venue, marketing yourself with those selling points isn't leaving the public with a positive image of the sport.

Merchandisers are often just as guilty of these negative connotations. Affliction often takes shots form the online MMA media, but nothing I've seen from them comes off as negative as something like this shirt and the message it sends:

While using these marketing tactics may aide the bottom line in the short term, they hamstring the sport in long term. Sometimes the worst wounds are self-inflicted.

Written by admin on June 13th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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A Tide on Which All Boats Rise?

With MMA and the UFC seeing unparalleled success recently, can it bring along some of it's component parts to greater awareness? Recent articles about Judo from USAToday and wrestling/Grappling from ESPN show how the mainstream media is seeking to link MMA with some of it's more critically embraced brethren. In reading the articles, it is clear that the popularity of the UFC might be the fulcrum by which these minor sports might leverage their way to a higher profile.

MMA and jiu jitsu have always enjoyed a symbiotic relationship in the US, emanating from the Gracies's and their ties to the start-up and early success with the UFC. As the popularity of the UFC has grown and spread over the years, almost in lock step has been the growth in jiu jitsu instruction and dojo's. A closer relationship between the mixed martial arts and judo and grappling worlds would help both parties in that judo/grappling would see an increase in interest and the MMA would have a much wider talent pool to draw from. There is some bleed-over between the sports now (Judokas like Karo and Sokoudjou in MMA) but a more formalized and deeper relationship would be best for all concerned.

The UFC tends to vacillate whether it wants to be sport or merely combat entertainment. They should be able to maintain their box office appeal, but looking to further legitimize mixed martial arts shouldn't be seen as mutually exclusive to this idea. If they seek to increase their sporting credentials, what avenues could they take to do so? During it's time the IFL had a working agreement with FILA, the governing body of amateur wrestling. This may be something the UFC might want to look into.

Written by admin on June 13th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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The Handling of Kimbo Slice

Kimbo Slice’s debut on CBS did solid ratings for EliteXC, but it also exposed holes in Slice’s MMA game. Slice is still a relative amateur on the ground, and lacks high level conditioning. Because he won he is likely to retain most of his drawing power, but he is one bad loss away from taking a serious hit as a special attraction. It is in this environment that EliteXC needs to be very careful in choosing his next opponent.

Given Slice’s star power and fighting ability, there are two types of opponents who should be considered for Slice’s next fight. The first type is a safe opponent like Bo Cantrell who has a very limited chance of beating Slice. This sort of fight will be met with definite backlash, but Slice beating a nobody is much better than Slice losing to a nobody.

The second type of opponent is the fighter who may be able to beat Slice, but who would become a big star and drawing card for EliteXC in the process. Tito Ortiz is the perfect example. Slice is eventually going to lose, but the sting of the loss will be much less if EliteXC can transfer his star power to the man who beats him.

There are examples of this working and examples of it not working. Tito Ortiz was UFC’s poster boy for years, while Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture had not demonstrated any drawing power. However, when Couture and Liddell beat Ortiz, they became stars in their own right. By contrast, Ricardo Arona ended Wanderlei Silva’s six year run of domination in Pride’s middleweight division, but became no bigger of a star in the process.

EliteXC promoter Gary Shaw has said that Brett Rogers will be Slice’s next opponent. Unfortunately for EliteXC, Rogers fits into neither category of ideal opponent. Rogers is an undefeated prospect and has the potential to defeat Slice. However, he is neither an elite fighter nor a charismatic personality. If Rogers beats Slice, it is highly unlikely he will become a star in the process. As such, it’s a bad fight for the promotion.

You’ve got to give Rogers credit for being smart, though. He knew a win over Slice would be the fast track to better career opportunities. He proceeded to do all he could to push EliteXC into making the fight by trash talking Slice and manufacturing buzz for a potential fight between the two. Unfortunately for EliteXC, they appear to have taken the bait. Now they have to cross their fingers and hope they can dodge another bullet.

Written by admin on June 13th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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Donald Trump Makes His Move

When the Affliction clothing line announced its Affliction: Banned pay-per-view event, there was a great deal of skepticism. To be blunt, there is no way that the show will be able to make a profit.

Fedor Emelianenko, Tim Sylvia, Josh Barnett and Andrei Arlovski have big money contracts, and the ceiling for non-UFC MMA pay-per-views has been around 50,000 buys. That includes the Las Vegas Pride pay-per-views which had comparably star-studded cards, world-class production and a much stronger brand name. As a live event the Affliction show will take place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, which drew a $1.98 million gate for the last UFC show featuring Chuck Liddell.

The best case scenario for Affliction would be to beat every non-UFC MMA event in PPV history and to match the gate for UFC’s most recent live show at the same building. However, that best case scenario would make the company’s cut of PPV and the gate less than $3 million. That’s not enough to cover the $4 million to $6 million in rumored fighter salaries, let alone the countless other expenses that go with advertising and running a major event.

Promotions like Bodog Fight and the WFA ran major shows with the intention of challenging UFC, only to get cold feet when their first efforts ended up deep in the red. Without major backers, Affliction could have met the same fate, which led to great skepticism about the venture in knowledgeable circles.

That skepticism dissipated to a significant degree when Donald Trump announced last week he would become an equity partner in the Affliction MMA promotion. Trump brings some major positives to the table, and is a potential game changer. He has a brand that can attract attention to the promotion outside the hardcore MMA fanbase. He has business ties that could potentially line up a crucial television deal.

Most importantly, Trump’s resources allow the promotion to be patient. Affliction: Banned doesn’t need to be a financial success now. It can be used as a starting point for the future. Affliction can aim for the same path that UFC or pro wrestling company WCW followed: a billion dollar empire absorbs millions in early losses, seeking to create a foundation for future profits.

The two key targets for Affliction will now be Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture. Affliction has a host of talented and marketable fighters, but few are known by a large percentage of American MMA fans. What Affliction needs is a big star or two from the UFC that can bring in a larger audience and expose them to the Fedor Emelianenkos and Josh Barnetts of the world. Ortiz and Couture are the two fighters that can fit that bill.

With Trump in the fold and an impressive roster of fighters, Affliction has the building blocks for eventual success. The key question will be whether the promotion can stomach the early losses and keep the faith that bigger things are coming in the horizon.

Written by admin on June 12th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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What’s Wrong with The Ultimate Fighter?

The Ultimate Fighter has played a pivotal role in the popularity rise of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The television show has produced a host of major stars and big money fights in the past three and a half years. However, the current season of the show has produced a feeling of general malaise.

Ratings are the lowest for any season. CB Dollaway is the only fighter on the season who appears to have star potential. But the most confounding development is the limited buzz for the fight between charismatic coaches Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Forrest Griffin.

When the season began, the choice of Jackson and Griffin as coaches was widely praised. Both are high level fighters with larger-than-life personalities. The feeling was their presence would increase ratings and lead to a very high pay-per-view buy rate for their championship fight.

In fact, tickets for their fight have sold slower than for the most recent Las Vegas event featuring B.J. Penn vs. Sean Sherk. It seems highly unlikely Griffin vs. Jackson will do UFC’s highest buy rate of the year as was once predicted. The question is thus why that fight hasn’t sparked the interest that was almost universally expected?

The answer to that question comes in the one key miscalculation the UFC made: the relationship between the coaches. As much as some would like to pretend otherwise, boxing and MMA have always been built around feuds and always will be. This doesn’t mean that you need to have fighters pretending to hate each other for every major event. However, it is hard to build a fight when there isn’t at least a sense of tension between the fighters.

Jackson and Griffin on The Ultimate Fighter don’t appear to have even a competitive rivalry, let alone a grudge. The Ortiz-Shamrock, Hughes-Serra and Penn-Pulver seasons of the show featured coaches who wanted to best the other at everything. Fans were left thinking, “If these guys want to beat each other so badly at bowling or ping pong, imagine how seriously they are taking their fight.” Jackson and Griffin have had the exact opposite effect. By joking their way through the show, fans are left thinking they don’t care as much about their fight as they actually do.

With UFC promising the most shocking development in Ultimate Fighter history this week, there is still time for Jackson vs. Griffin to become a hotly anticipated fight. But as it stands, their good-natured personalities have backfired in achieving the ultimate goal of the show, which is to build a big money fight at the end.

Written by admin on June 11th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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The Million Dollar Question (or is it the *Billion* Dollar Question?)

Dana White turned the MMA industry on its ear last week when he told ESPN the Magazine:

You have no idea some of the stuff that we have planned. I'm going to make an announcement next week that is going to blow people's minds. That deal is done, but my employees don't even know yet. I'm renting out a place next Thursday and I'm going to tell them. Then we'll make the announcement later that day. It's an indicator of where this business is going over the next five years.

Since then speculation has been rampant, everything from the Floyd Mayweather to network television has been suggested as the subject of White's announcement. One possibility that isn't receiving much play in the press is receiving more than its fair share inside the industry: namely that old Zuffa sale rumor.

Inside the industry, the guessing game has advanced past *whether* the UFC's sale is Dana's big announcement and onto *who* such a sale might involve. Odds on favorites include FOX, Golden Boy, and WWE (NOTE: For the conspiracy theorist in all of us, WWE has an ambiguous press conference of its own scheduled for Thursday).

A change in ownership is one of the few things imaginable that would warrant White's hype and circumstance. Of course this wouldn't be the first time the UFC over promised and under delivered on an major announcement. And there's always the possibility, perhaps even likelihood, that whatever White has in store, no matter how grand it truly is, will be overshadowed by the speculation that has proceeded it. But this feels different.

Regardless of what Thursday brings, the grand speculation proceeding it is a testament to how far the MMA industry has come, from the brink of death to a world of endless possibilities.

Written by admin on June 9th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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Speculating On The UFC’s Big Announcement

Written by admin on June 9th, 2008 with comments disabled.
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