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With the latest round of fighter cuts it seems that it's been reported by some that WME wants to decrease the amount of events next year to around 30 (Keep in mind this isn't confirmed, but it seems likely given the closing of regional offices).
This is in contrast to some rumors earlier this summer that posited WME would leave the amount the same or even increase to try to have a weekly or monthly TV presence (with TUF being on the way out). It seems like instead we might get a reality show about Ring Girls? Which I'm still not sure what the point of it is, it'll likely draw eyes but I can't see many people buying PPVs or tuning into Fox Shows just because they saw some hot chick drama on a reality show (I don't even notice ring girls anymore, particularly not when Mike Perry is fighting).
WME is clearly looking to save some bucks now that they have to pay off the remaining balance on their sale, and we could be back to the days (around 2012) where we get just about half the prelim card losers being cut. This will likely result in more stacked, but fewer cards, but one has to wonder if this is a temporary strategy or the soon to be status-quo of the sport.
Also with the lay-offs in various offices around the world, including at headquarters, WME will look to bring in some of their own executives and I'm intrigued at what the product is going to look like. There was some talk, for example, of "Face the Pain" finally being killed off with the Fox Deal but it stuck around under the assumption that it was familiar to long term fans. I'm guessing that WME will be betting hard on the UFC name and will invest quite a bit into starmaking meaning we might see some familiar parts of the production eventually change (I'm looking at you Goldie).
Also, with more and more fighters showing an awareness into their own personality stability both financial and from the health side, the slow death of "anybody anytime" mentality and WME needed names to push we might see more and more "Money Fights" as WME looks to bring as many eyes to the sport in a short amount of time as possible. If Conor wins against Alvarez, and is indeed sticking around in 2017 the UFC might be his playground.
I for one welcome our new WME overlords.
#platinumbless
Source
This is in contrast to some rumors earlier this summer that posited WME would leave the amount the same or even increase to try to have a weekly or monthly TV presence (with TUF being on the way out). It seems like instead we might get a reality show about Ring Girls? Which I'm still not sure what the point of it is, it'll likely draw eyes but I can't see many people buying PPVs or tuning into Fox Shows just because they saw some hot chick drama on a reality show (I don't even notice ring girls anymore, particularly not when Mike Perry is fighting).
WME is clearly looking to save some bucks now that they have to pay off the remaining balance on their sale, and we could be back to the days (around 2012) where we get just about half the prelim card losers being cut. This will likely result in more stacked, but fewer cards, but one has to wonder if this is a temporary strategy or the soon to be status-quo of the sport.
Also with the lay-offs in various offices around the world, including at headquarters, WME will look to bring in some of their own executives and I'm intrigued at what the product is going to look like. There was some talk, for example, of "Face the Pain" finally being killed off with the Fox Deal but it stuck around under the assumption that it was familiar to long term fans. I'm guessing that WME will be betting hard on the UFC name and will invest quite a bit into starmaking meaning we might see some familiar parts of the production eventually change (I'm looking at you Goldie).
Also, with more and more fighters showing an awareness into their own personality stability both financial and from the health side, the slow death of "anybody anytime" mentality and WME needed names to push we might see more and more "Money Fights" as WME looks to bring as many eyes to the sport in a short amount of time as possible. If Conor wins against Alvarez, and is indeed sticking around in 2017 the UFC might be his playground.
I for one welcome our new WME overlords.
#platinumbless
Source
