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You have a 2022 account but please tell me more about how you were following Izzy's kicboxing fights in 2014.
Do you think the UFC is the best modern MMA promotion at creating stars?
- Thread starter wolffanghameha
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Touched a nerve?
Outlining the current promotional model like it can't possibly be improved only shows your immense lack of imagination/capacity for independent thought
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To answer YOUR question, I would say yes.
But here is another question for anyone that feels like answering:
Obviously STARS help bring new fans to the sport, but as existing fans of the sport, are stars really that important?
I know for myself, I've been watching since 2005 and will watch till the day I die.
But, I don't care one bit who has the most crossover fame, who has the most Instagram followers or who sells the most Pay-Per-Views. I don't care if the UFC has 8.1 billion viewers or if I'm the only one.. I literally only care about the sport itself and seeing who is the best at it.
Anyone else share this mindset?
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The UFC shoves cameras and microphones in these fighters faces for hundreds of hours worth of content every card. It's not their fault if 85% of the roster says nothing interesting during their opportunities to do so.Touched a nerve?
Outlining the current promotional model like it can't possibly be improved only shows your immense lack of imagination/capacity for independent thought
But please tell me more about how the UFC is supposed to promote harder "I love Jesus and my family, man I'm just happy to be here Joe and will fight whoever's next".
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"your account on Sherdog is a complete 1:1 representation of how long you have been into combat sports"
i first learned about Poatan back in about 2018. Glory held a big card in New York and i had a buddy who told me to check it out as we are both into combat sports. since im a native New Yorker i checked it out and watched him slump that Belgori (sp?) guy in the first round.
i learned about Jiri in late 2019 after i saw Nemkov fight in Bellator and defend his title. i checked out some of his fights on Youtube and boom, there's the Jiri fight.
got anything else witty to say, fucksock? or you just gonna ACKTSCHUALLY everyone's posts all the time like you usually do?
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ONE had $20M to offer Francis and PFL signed him to another multi million dollar contract for him and his opponent. 80% of you aren't going to watch because you'll have no idea who the competitor is or if you do it's going to be some past prime bum.
Money isn't the issue. The problem is they have no recognition or fan base so when they throw money around they end up going bankrupt.
Money isn't the issue. The problem is they have no recognition or fan base so when they throw money around they end up going bankrupt.
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Yeah lies work better with less details.
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oh now im lying. what a fucking cope hahahahahahahaha
yeah i definitely made all that shit up. 100%. because you know why? otherwise youd be wrong. and your ego cant have that! no sir! you have to be CORRECT on an MMA forum.
call the ambulance, we have an overdose on copium!
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Isn't the better question to ask here whether or not "creating stars" should be what combat sports orgs should be trying to do? It's a risky proposition in a sport where you're always one bad punch away from a loss. When I think of a "created" star in MMA, I think about a guy like Kimbo Slice (RIP), whom EliteXC did a good job of "creating" through giving him favorable matchups that hurt the overall reputation of the promotion, and even that blew up in embarrassing fashion when he got caught by Petruzelli.
There's a long list of guys who were/would have been great "stars" except for the fact they lost MMA fights -- Aaron Pico, anyone? In the UFC, Sage and Page come to mind -- great talents (especially Sage) with EXACTLY the right look to be stars, but they couldn't get it done in the cage. (Also, some of us are old enough to remember BROCKTOBER, which ended poorly.)
Other orgs did a great job making Ben Askren a "star," especially given his boring fight style -- the UFC had to put him up against top competition, and we saw how that went. Jake Shields was another example of that (and interestingly, Shields himself was the guy that foiled Strikeforce's attempt to make Dan Henderson a "star.")
Just for a quick example, take a look at Strikeforce. They Co-Promote with M-1 because they're banking on Fedor being their star -- if you can't bet on Fedor, who can you bet on? Oops, Triangle.
Even giving fighters that everyone understands needs "different" opponents hasn't worked out (e.g. CM Punk and Bobby Lashley), because MMA is a hard thing to do and professional fighters are usually pretty good at it. I guess Hershel Walker was a success?
For me, bottom line is that in a sport where you can get caught in an instant and it's incredibly hard to stay on top for any length of time, and even the most dominant champions can fall hard and fast (Hi Ronda!), I think that "making stars," while it can be great for the short-term, is never going to be a reliable way to go about things the way it is in boxing (where the fights are much more predictable) or Pro Wrestling (where the fights are scripted). It's good to cash in on incredibly exciting or charismatic figures when they come along, but ultimately the "star" you should be concentrated on making is your belt.
There's a long list of guys who were/would have been great "stars" except for the fact they lost MMA fights -- Aaron Pico, anyone? In the UFC, Sage and Page come to mind -- great talents (especially Sage) with EXACTLY the right look to be stars, but they couldn't get it done in the cage. (Also, some of us are old enough to remember BROCKTOBER, which ended poorly.)
Other orgs did a great job making Ben Askren a "star," especially given his boring fight style -- the UFC had to put him up against top competition, and we saw how that went. Jake Shields was another example of that (and interestingly, Shields himself was the guy that foiled Strikeforce's attempt to make Dan Henderson a "star.")
Just for a quick example, take a look at Strikeforce. They Co-Promote with M-1 because they're banking on Fedor being their star -- if you can't bet on Fedor, who can you bet on? Oops, Triangle.
Even giving fighters that everyone understands needs "different" opponents hasn't worked out (e.g. CM Punk and Bobby Lashley), because MMA is a hard thing to do and professional fighters are usually pretty good at it. I guess Hershel Walker was a success?
For me, bottom line is that in a sport where you can get caught in an instant and it's incredibly hard to stay on top for any length of time, and even the most dominant champions can fall hard and fast (Hi Ronda!), I think that "making stars," while it can be great for the short-term, is never going to be a reliable way to go about things the way it is in boxing (where the fights are much more predictable) or Pro Wrestling (where the fights are scripted). It's good to cash in on incredibly exciting or charismatic figures when they come along, but ultimately the "star" you should be concentrated on making is your belt.
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To be honest, I have no interest in what any of them say. If no one said anything, that would suit me fine.
But I at least expect to know what's on in the next few weeks. I don't remember the last time I didn't watch prelims on Fight Pass and see the same junk over and over, and (get this) empty screens during 'advert breaks' I don't even see.
Any footage promoting next week's prelim opener?
Nah, of course not.
Honestly, it could not be easier to do better. We could all reel off ideas endlessly that really wouldn't cost a dime...
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Yeah and ask casual fans to name 1 fighter from any of those promotions. Even better, ask them to name one who wasn’t in the UFC before.
Hardcore fans know of and watch other organizations but as far as mainstream popularity goes, it’s UFC or nothing in 99% of cases. The UFC knows this and tries to cite it as an example of why they pay next to nothing. They frame it as “legacy vs income”. I hate them and the fact that they do that but they’re not wrong.
How many millions of dollars is Kayla Harrison worth now and I bet most casuals have no idea who she is.
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I wouldnt say they are the best, the others have no real chance at it, having said that, Bellator created Michael Chandler who went straight to the top when joined the UFC.
They are not great at creating stars to be honest, for the most part they get lucky when signing one.
They are not great at creating stars to be honest, for the most part they get lucky when signing one.
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Ask a casual MMA fan and they don't know what most of those are.
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The UFC doesn't promote or create stars, they promote their brand and some fighters happen to become stars either due to their style of fighting or their personality and self-promotion. Other organizations IMO are much better at creating MMA stars since their brand isn't big enough to make that the focal point of promoting like it is with the UFC.
Yeah. The UFC kind of suck at it themselves if we are being honest, but name somebody from another promotion that can compare to Conor or Ronda in terms of mainstream recognition.
Hell, name somebody from another organisation that can even compare to Paddy or Sean O'Malley for that matter.
Hell, name somebody from another organisation that can even compare to Paddy or Sean O'Malley for that matter.
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UFC or any org really doesn't produce stars. We'd have 20 Conor's if they could. WWE proves this all the time and in that world they control everything and they can't create super stars at a snap of finger.
Orgs can push certain fighters that the crowd gets behind and let them really shine on their platform. By that measure no doubt the UFC is by far the best at doing it.
Stars are really made by the individual. They have to get fans to love or hate him or both preferably. Just being a great fighter in the cage today will only get you so far and the UFC can only do so much for you. These stars all have an "it" factor built in them and you can't just create it. To a much lesser degree I'm sure many of us have a certain friend that for whatever reason no matter what the situation is they seem to shine in the room every single time.
Orgs can push certain fighters that the crowd gets behind and let them really shine on their platform. By that measure no doubt the UFC is by far the best at doing it.
Stars are really made by the individual. They have to get fans to love or hate him or both preferably. Just being a great fighter in the cage today will only get you so far and the UFC can only do so much for you. These stars all have an "it" factor built in them and you can't just create it. To a much lesser degree I'm sure many of us have a certain friend that for whatever reason no matter what the situation is they seem to shine in the room every single time.
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I’d like to see some of these/your ideas, my friend.
