How To Bring UFC Numbers Back?

[Skeptic_Zero]

I'm prefacing this by saying I have no experience in business/promotion and thus these suggestions are probably meaningless, but hey everyone else is doing it so why not-

1) Move WMMA to a different league. Free on TV. Move only the best/most exciting fighters to the UFC, but never headline a UFC PPV with WMMA. Sorry, had your chance (UFC 224) and the people have spoken.

2) 6-8 PPVs a year. Price reduced to $49.99. 10 fights, cut the fat and fit the card into the length of time typical for other sports events - 2.5 hours or so is reasonable. Shouldn't have to spend 5 hours to see 8 fights. There's a lot of empty time in between fights. People don't give a **** about that. They want the fights.

3) Keep Fight Night as it is. It works.

4) Create a developmental league, put it on some other network, and merge Dana White's Contender Series into it. Event every weekend or so, give the fighters a short bio (~2 minutes) opportunity to introduce themselves to the fans, then fight. 8-10 fights per event. No fluff, no hype, just up and comers fighting. Pay them a livable salary so they can devote full-time to the sport. Every other sport has this. Don't complain about a lack of talent if you put so little effort into developing and paying fighters. I'm looking at you, Dana.

5) Use a ratings system that actually means something.

Anyone have any other suggestions?

 

[Cam Zink]

why?
what's the problem?

 

[Headkicktoleg]

Bring Conor back

 

[Fergelmince]

Get rid of USADA and incorporate an NFL-type PED policy

 

[Sansnom]

Bring Conor back

 

[Dont Frye]

Pay the fighters more money so you attract higher level athletes?

 

[Dogo1]

Now that the espn deal is done, I'd focus on selling more ppv's

 

[AngryPorto]

 

[epic1stpost]

Don't let Raquel Pennington headline ppvs

 

[Dirge]

Less PPV events, more free tv events.

Let's face it, we all watch free events even if the cards are shit, after all its still free MMA and there is a chance of a great fight.

Save the PPV events for the title fights and big main events.

Get rid of 125 mens, let them get folded into 135

Give WMMA back to Invicta in it's entirety. Without Rousey, the only WMMA fighter that has any drawing power is Cyborg and she comes with a whole set of issues.

Get back top fighters that left the UFC for money, etc.

Namely:

Rory
Mousasi
Bader
Davis

Steal top guys away from Bellator:

Michael Page
Lima
Chandler
Darrion Caldwell
Patricio Pitbull
Brent Primus
Rafael Carvahlo
Andrei Koreshkov
Bobby Lashley (I know, but he is a 15-2 heavyweight)
AJ McKee

Find a way to sign Vitaly Minakov (who is still under contract to Bellator and is fighting in Russia to avoid them)

Sign Ben Askren, the best WW other than Rory not in the UFC

 

[Echo_Bliss]

I'm prefacing this by saying I have no experience in business/promotion and thus these suggestions are probably meaningless, but hey everyone else is doing it so why not-

1) Move WMMA to a different league. Free on TV. Move only the best/most exciting fighters to the UFC, but never headline a UFC PPV with WMMA. Sorry, had your chance (UFC 224) and the people have spoken.

2) 6-8 PPVs a year. Price reduced to $49.99. 10 fights, cut the fat and fit the card into the length of time typical for other sports events - 2.5 hours or so is reasonable. Shouldn't have to spend 5 hours to see 8 fights. There's a lot of empty time in between fights. People don't give a **** about that. They want the fights.

3) Keep Fight Night as it is. It works.

4) Create a developmental league, put it on some other network, and merge Dana White's Contender Series into it. Event every weekend or so, give the fighters a short bio (~2 minutes) opportunity to introduce themselves to the fans, then fight. 8-10 fights per event. No fluff, no hype, just up and comers fighting. Pay them a livable salary so they can devote full-time to the sport. Every other sport has this. Don't complain about a lack of talent if you put so little effort into developing and paying fighters. I'm looking at you, Dana.

5) Use a ratings system that actually means something.

Anyone have any other suggestions?

Wrong.

1. WMMA is amazing and I would quit watching forever if they moved to segregation. Are you going to say next that you want fighters separated by ethnicity and religion, too?

2. I would say 6-8 PPV's a year is fine. Like WWE, they need 1-2 Hallmark PPV's that are always going to be stacked to the brim. Book all other cards around ensuring these two have the biggest fights.

3. Agreed.

4. Agreed.

5. Ali Act style - independently sanctioned ratings and titles, let ONLY the best fight for belts and build stars out of winning fighters. You can't teach fighting to a charismatic type - but you can teach Charisma to a great fighter and build a superstar.

6. Fire 2/3 of the roster and make the UFC about "Only the best of the elite" again. I do favor an occasional CM Punk or James Toney or whatever - but too many mediocre fighters are stinking up the cards with lousy records. Let them go to Bellator or something.

7. End the Reebok deal, it's terrible.

8. Let fighters have individuality and personal identity. No standard uniforms, this isn't Baseball. Let them have an option of tights, trunks, shorts, and let them have the designs of their choice.

 

[Echo_Bliss]

Sign Lashley and Brock to fight each other - it would be a spectacular freakshow that would draw a lot of money.

I bank on Lashley to take him. He's younger, more talented at grappling, and knows how to work on the feet.

Lashley isn't elite, but in the current UFC HW, he could be Top 10 easy, though probably not Top 5.

 

[doughy rig]

You can't reduce the amount of PPVs and also reduce the price of them.

 

[EGarrett]

Wrong.

1. WMMA is amazing and I would quit watching forever if they moved to segregation. Are you going to say next that you want fighters separated by ethnicity and religion, too?

No, separated by average expected interest-level in their fights. It's very irresponsible for you to try to mix that up with racism or religious bigotry.

 

[WinZip]

You can't reduce the amount of PPVs and also reduce the price of them.

You can if you increase revenue from other sources (i.e. ads on free TV)

Or do you think the NFL gets all their money from church collection boxes, what with all zero PPVs they have?

 

[acannxr]

I'm prefacing this by saying I have no experience in business/promotion and thus these suggestions are probably meaningless, but hey everyone else is doing it so why not-

1) Move WMMA to a different league. Free on TV. Move only the best/most exciting fighters to the UFC, but never headline a UFC PPV with WMMA. Sorry, had your chance (UFC 224) and the people have spoken.

2) 6-8 PPVs a year. Price reduced to $49.99. 10 fights, cut the fat and fit the card into the length of time typical for other sports events - 2.5 hours or so is reasonable. Shouldn't have to spend 5 hours to see 8 fights. There's a lot of empty time in between fights. People don't give a **** about that. They want the fights.

3) Keep Fight Night as it is. It works.

4) Create a developmental league, put it on some other network, and merge Dana White's Contender Series into it. Event every weekend or so, give the fighters a short bio (~2 minutes) opportunity to introduce themselves to the fans, then fight. 8-10 fights per event. No fluff, no hype, just up and comers fighting. Pay them a livable salary so they can devote full-time to the sport. Every other sport has this. Don't complain about a lack of talent if you put so little effort into developing and paying fighters. I'm looking at you, Dana.

5) Use a ratings system that actually means something.

Anyone have any other suggestions?

1) Moving WMMA to another league isn't necessary, just don't book fighters who aren't up to what the UFC standards should be. And the fact of the matter is, a female champion that female fans can get behind would boost their numbers; ignoring that demographic goes against the purpose of these suggestions.

2 & 3) Limit total number of events per year to 24; 12 PPVs ($50) and 12 TV cards, 10 fights per card. This will increase fans' anticipation for events, automatically cap the roster, and allow promotion and advertising to actually mean something.

4) No. There are plenty of MMA promotions out there already and creating a developmental league with sub-par fighters will only downgrade the product since the UFC-brand would be attached to it.

5) Rankings that mean something would require that it be handled by a neutral third party (i.e. Not the gullible media that's swayed by hype and Dana White), based on some kind of formula that determines who is placed where and by how much after every fight.

6) Placement on the card should be based almost entirely on rankings; popularity should be the deciding factor on card placement only when the two bouts are similarly ranked.

 

[Marc A]

Make fights relevent
Scrap womens mma
Less ppv but increase the cost
Punish streamers hard

 

[Skeptic_Zero]

why?
what's the problem?

PPV buys and live audiences are declining.

Punish streamers hard

Don't think the UFC has the capacity to do this. Just to give you an idea how incredibly difficult something like this is - Piratebay.com has been around for 15 years despite every major government, music streaming service, and every major media organization in the world spending millions of dollars trying to shut it down.

 

[Cam Zink]

PPV buys and live audiences are declining.

good

 

[doughy rig]

You can if you increase revenue from other sources (i.e. ads on free TV)

Or do you think the NFL gets all their money from church collection boxes, what with all zero PPVs they have?

From fight nights?

which you arent changing, audience wont change if product doesn't