Are Lower weight classes less marketable?

[kwd1253]

So every other thread on here says they don't fight enough and here you say they fight too much.... How many champions currently in the UFC fight more than 2 times a year on average? Not many.

The UFC should have been promoting that fight for 3 previous events? Or for 3 previous fights for each fighter?

Because Dillashaw lost in October 2013 and then fought for the championship in May 2014.... In 7 months he went from losing a fight to fighting for the title.

And besides Dillashaw was a replacement. It was supposed to be Barao vs Raphael Assuncao.

True the Dillashaw part, I didn't think that would of went down like that or 90% of fans thought lol. But if they gave Dillashaw one or two fights more they could really promoted that way better. But you never hear bitch about camp only fighting twice a year. most fighter do fight 2xs or more if there not injured.

 

[Codpiece]

I absolutely cannot agree with this premise. You can't say it's a matter of "looking sharper" when Jose Aldo and Mighty Mouse regularly do something as simple as pivoting on their lead foot, which is an extremely important aspect of striking, and one that Cain Velasquez, JDS, etc. simply do not display, because they are technically inferior combatants.

Now, does being technically inferior mean you would lose a fight? Absolutely not, because this whole dispute stems from people's insecurity at hearing their cherished man-mountains be referred to as "technically inferior". Personally, I have no qualms in admitting that Cain would beat on Aldo really badly if they were to fight right now, because I understand that size matters, but I also understand that size does not equal skill.. because it doesn't.Of course. I don't disagree with either assertion. People probably think I don't watch heavier weights, which really isn't true. It's just not my preference.

You've actually said almost this exact thing to me once before, and I agree with what you're saying regarding pivoting lead foot...but that's not really what I'm referring too by saying smaller fighters 'look sharper'. Aldo is a technical marvel, he'd be amazing at any weight. What I mean is more that smaller technique fades later due to lower O2 requirements, their punches are quicker/more pecise due to moving less mass and so on.

I don't mind what you (or anyone else) watches. I don't think fans of only higher weightclasses are lesser fans, or that a guy needs to love a 4 minute grappling stalemate due to its technical brilliance to be a 'pure' fan or anything like that. It's all personal taste. I mean, some dudes dig really skinny women. I don't get it, I love a girl with nice big natural boobs and a bit of booty....just down to personal preference. Neither of our preferences would make us a better clam burglar by default. Same goes for MMA.

 

[Meathead Jock]

Boxing sells Mayweather and Manny as "the best boxers in the world". The UFC sells their fighters as "the baddest man on the planet" instead of "The best mixed martial artist in the world", and when you sell the baddest man on the planet as your form of marketing it's going to be tough to sell the light weights. It's largely a marketing issue.

 

[DatSamboKid]

For now yes, but in the future no.

The lighter weight classes is whats keeping boxing alive today.
It might be the same thing for the UFC one day.

Its as simple as this, take a very small person(5'2),who weights 125 on fight day, good looking even tho he's small, talks a lot of shit or has a very marketable personality, destroys every single one of his opponents, has a 35-0 unbeaten record, boom, you have a huge draw for the sport.

The problem lies in actually finding a person with all these attributes, once we founded him, trust me, a 125er can become a huge draw, same thing with 135,145 and 155

 

[Agnawedbone]

Yes, they are less marketable, but only due to ignorance and prejudice unbacked by reason. It's unfortunate.

 

[Oenomaus]

Light figters are less marketable the HWs, and thats the point of the subject.

I did not say they are not marketable at all.


In fact, when you look at weight divisions, as you go up, fighters became more and more marketable

I'd have to disagree, GSP consistently dominated in PPV buys and he fought at 170. With the exception of Brock at HW and Silva at MW I don't recall him being outdrawn. Not to mention Brock's biggest card also featured GSP (UFC). Name a fighter at LHW or HW that would outdraw GSP.

 

[aus101]

Weidman/Machida will outdraw Mighty Mouse/Benavidez. Casuals really don't care to watch two guys about the size of junior high school students throw down.

Who in the UFC is the size of junior high students? The lower weight classes have some really short guys but they've all filled out their frames and are shredded.

Most of the flys are at least 140 at sub 10 percent body fat. The average American male, if you subtracted all the fat and got them under 10 percent, would likely be even lighter.

 

[georgejjr]

In general, in MMA, heavier outsells lighter.

On the other hand, middle of the road (like GSP and Penn) outsold a lot of heavier guys - in fact the only heavier fighter who out sold GSP (WW) was Lesnar (HW). So its obviously not just size that sells.

Think about it - WW is neither heavy nor light - its middle of the road, and it has had some of the biggest PPV draws in MMA. GSP would be average size for a high school senior, (and even quite a few high school juniors would be bigger than him), yet he still sold 700K+ PPV's regularly, more than any HW but Brock.

 

[Codpiece]

I'd have to disagree, GSP consistently dominated in PPV buys and he fought at 170. With the exception of Brock at HW and Silva at MW I don't recall him being outdrawn. Not to mention Brock's biggest card also featured GSP (UFC). Name a fighter at LHW or HW that would outdraw GSP.

GSP and Penn were great lighter draws, but they were the exception, certainly not the rule.

 

[aus101]

I'd have to disagree, GSP consistently dominated in PPV buys and he fought at 170. With the exception of Brock at HW and Silva at MW I don't recall him being outdrawn. Not to mention Brock's biggest card also featured GSP (UFC). Name a fighter at LHW or HW that would outdraw GSP.

GSP isn't really "small", his height is average and his muscle mass way above average, he's actually much larger than the average guy.

Marvel has him play a master assassin whose an expert in hand to hand combat in one of their superhero films for Christ sakes, he fits the image of what the media and thus public thinks a badass martial artist should look like to a T.

 

[tsully]

For instance do you think more people would buy a PPV if it's mighty mouse vs Benavides or like a Weidman vs machida? If so why?

hey captain obvious, why don't you take a look at your own sig for the answer to your question.

 

[jayBMX]

no, am not trolling, i am making fun of statments like LW=more skill

Lightweight is a fuckton deeper than heavyweight

I would make a long drawn out statement but people in this thread have covered it pretty well.

 

[peanustndimes]

The most annoying thing to me is the commentary not being able to keep up with the action. They need a little dude crew who can generally talk and speak faster than the usual combos of Rogan/Goldsies, Kenpack/Fancy Suit and Tom Hardy/That One Guy. This would help to stay up with the current action. Goldberg is talkin about a fuckin kimura from ten seconds ago, and Rogan's ramblin about Rubber Ducks and shit and then they are runnin around again kickin and shit.

 

[kwd1253]

I'd have to disagree, GSP consistently dominated in PPV buys and he fought at 170. With the exception of Brock at HW and Silva at MW I don't recall him being outdrawn. Not to mention Brock's biggest card also featured GSP (UFC). Name a fighter at LHW or HW that would outdraw GSP.

Not many, but you could have some really close one off fights to draw it. If jones vs Gus 2 done right I could hit 800k ppv buy.

Weidman if he can make it through machida and belfort runs through Chael. To make weidman vs belfort but don't think it go over 850k buys.

Aldo vs pettis would have really good buys champ vs champ.But you still going have some really sick co main and undercards.

If weidman makes through his death row he could get to gsp and anderson sells. Aldo could to if he went up in weight class and what he does 145. Well at worst he would double his buys to 500k+ not in 250-300k buys. But weidman and Aldo do get injured a lot don't know if that would hurt them or not.

Jones just doesn't have that same ore and mystic like gsp and anderson has with the fans.

 

[gavetz]

If people liked watching hamsters fight, they would just go to the pet shop and buy a dozen of them.

I kid, I kid.

But seriously, I would say it has something to do with the display of strength, at least MMA wise.

 

[HELVETE]

Most people would rather pay to watch this:

Than this:

 

[Yolandabecool**]

HW is where its at


Low weight classes are like watching 2 mosquitoes buzzing and plinking at each other for 15 mins.


Now...
To save low weight clases we need to give them some weapons, not bladed of course, but stuff like sticks, tonfas, police bats, etc, even make it so like every fighter has its own preferred weapon and style

No. They are just as marketable. Celebrities are interesting, characters are interesting, personalities are interesting. The HW division in boxing is dead. The 145-150lb division is keeping the sport afloat.

People buy characters. A boring blanket fighter will always outsell an exciting finisher if he is marketed properly - Can't stand that type of fighting but it is what it is.

 

[Gawain]

Who in the UFC is the size of junior high students? The lower weight classes have some really short guys but they've all filled out their frames and are shredded.

Most of the flys are at least 140 at sub 10 percent body fat. The average American male, if you subtracted all the fat and got them under 10 percent, would likely be even lighter.

http://www.ufc.com/fighter/Weight_Class/Flyweight?offset=0&max=20&sort=lastName&order=asc
Louis Smolka, Will Campuzano, alone out of the UFC flyweight division are anywhere near the average height for males. The average height for males in the united states if 5ft10. The Flyweights as a whole are well under this average.

I have tried and tried to get into the Fly's but I can't. I hope some one beats MM, and I can finally get into the division.... I don't have my hopes up.

 

[Oenomaus]

GSP isn't really "small", his height is average and his muscle mass way above average, he's actually much larger than the average guy.

Marvel has him play a master assassin whose an expert in hand to hand combat in one of their superhero films for Christ sakes, he fits the image of what the media and thus public thinks a badass martial artist should look like to a T.

He's certainly not small, but the purpose of referencing him was to display how you don't have to be a MW, LHW, or HW to be the PPV king. Take for instance BJ Penn, he is about 5'9 and spent a great deal of portion at LW, yet he still managed to draw big numbers in his heyday.

 

[grecobjj]

So the UFC is purposely not spending money on the smaller divisions because they don't want people to buy those ppv events.... makes sense.

Is that what you got?...........ill simplify
When you market the brand at the expense of individual fighters.....the onus falls on THE BRAND to SELL PPV'S.....not the individual fighter

If mm/ali does poorly ppv wise.....it coincides with the amount of ADVERTISING FOR THE EVENT(which has been lacking)