News I say told you so when I told you so. But this is really about the UFC putting out a bad product

[RockyLockridge]

I always said when ESPN made that decision to foot the bill for ppvs for 300k buys, that Dana and co laughed their asses off knowing that today the average ppv does sub 300k. They probably tricked them by showing average ppv numbers from the previous 10 years, when illegal live streams were more difficult to access and internet speeds weren't universally geared towards high speed streaming, basically back in the blockbuster video era

Of course there are actually people posting on this internet forum RIGHT NOW, they are here among us at this very moment and they are foolish enough to believe ~60% of people who watch the UFC pay for ppvs, social media numbers suggest the MMA fan base is growing, all the media, all the followers point to growth, but ppv sales have only shrunk and people are still stupid enough to think a majority of fans purchase ppv. Boggles the mind. Some people think streaming sports illegally is like 3rd degree hacking, As if it isn't as easy as googling "MMA STREAM" and clicking the 1st link

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

I said that Fox was happy to end their relationship with the UFC because Fox was losing money. A great many on Sherdog called me unflattering names.
I said that Reebok was happy to end their relationship with the UFC because they didn't get anywhere near recouping the $70 mil they paid to the UFC for exclusive sponsorship. Sherdog once again flamed me.
I've been saying for over a year now that ESPN is not happy with the UFC because the UFC ppv aren't selling. ESPN guarantees the UFC 300,000 ppv buys for every event they put on. ESPN is the one holding the bag or reaping the benefits from actually selling ppvs. If it undersells then ESPN is fucked for that event. If it oversell then they reap the rewards. Sherdog said I didn't know what I was talking about.

I'm sitting at work early with about 20 minutes to kill and Google tells me that I'd be interesting in this article.

Another Twist Amid ESPN Contract Expiry as Dana White and UFC’s $1B Demand Gets Clear Message From Netflix CEO

As the ESPN deal is coming to an end, Dana White and Co. received a hint as to what Netflix thinks about acquiring UFC's broadcast rights.

www.essentiallysports.com

ESPN, on the other hand, wasn’t happy about the plummeting PPV numbers either, as opposed to what the promotion had assured its partner. “The UFC gets [paid] 300,000 pay-per-view buys as a ‘buy-in’ from ESPN. There’s no way that ESPN is getting 300,000 pay-per-view buys out of every pay-per-view, from what I was told…ESPN is frustrated because they’re not getting the pay-per-view buys that they had expected,” the New York Post’s Erich Richter had said.

Basically everything I've been saying and people have been calling me crazy (not everyone but the vast many) about I'm actually right about.

But this isn't about me. This is really about the shit product that the UFC puts on and the fact the consumers are punishing the UFC by not buying the product anymore. How can the UFC fix this issue?

Even in the late 00s the UFC could pull 300K ppv easy. In 2025 they struggle to make that number

Only shills and contrarians fail to admit or see how bad the product has become. It‘s only a matter of time before sponsorship deals start to go. What I wonder is if that will translate to losses.

 

[Pierced7681]

"Develop talent" is an interesting way of saying "overhyping cheap brawlers"

Overhyping cheap brawlers? Look at some of the prospects they’ve picked up from the contender series like Mauricio Ruffy and Bo Nickel. They’re both legit talents the ufc invested in early in their careers.

 

[Clark Rogers]

This all goes back to when they started expanding. More fighters, events, fights, so many were totally pumped for that when it started years back.

But, it's lead to the product being diluted, while fans are over saturated.

 

[Spath]

You guys stream the event anyway, stacked or not, so…

 

[Norcim]

I won't by a PPV at $80 but my wife and I will go to a bar to watch one and spend more than that on drinks and food. I'd much rather support a local business in that way than send it straight to the bald goof and his cronies.

 

[cws80us]

I think the UFC has done the bare minimum to fulfill their obligations to ESPN. They put out these bland, weekly Fight Night cards, many of which are at the Apex with little to no crowd. And the 300k buy in provides them no incentive to put out stacked PPV cards. They also do very little marketing or promotion for any of these cards. They don't have a big event feel. They don't try and build up any new stars, they just keep drawing from the tired TUF and Contender series pools. The product has become stale and boring for the most part. They have no true rivals or competition, so they have become complacent. Hopefully, this new contract will force them to get off they rear and start putting out a decent product again.

 

[Davey Grant]

I used to buy all of them, now maybe one a year if its stacked...most cards have one or two good fights the other three are meh...

 

[TriangleMonkey]

To borrow a James Krause term, they're debt-maxing. They're focused on acquisitions, pumping up contracts, and anything else solely to increase the company valuation and leverage that for further (and bigger) investments and financing. They're deficit spending in the hopes of getting future loans to pay off their current ones. It's a common strategy that many startups use so they can coast on Other People's Money and not worry about profits/losses or other things like that.

LMFAO

Krause hacked the game so hard the feds came in and shut it down





I can’t believe he won any of the fights he did. I basically counted him out of every single matchup as I watched the kid come up locally. We use to battle our gym vs the gym he came up in all the time in that area back in the day

 

[R.N.J.]

Yep, the UFC has been milking espn with subpar ppvs for years and screwing the fans.

 

[Kwic]

I'm in a weird position of being a hardcore UFC fan (for years) and not watching any other MMA promotions apart from occasional events AND YET I say fuck the UFC and I hope they go bankrupt for the way the treat the majority of the fighters and their scummy tactics and shoving the shitty product down our throats over thr past few years (cards filled with regional level fighters).

I wish some of these rising Japanese promotions would swallow the UFC but I know it's not happening.

 

[dog y]

I watched the first on VHS. A lot of PRIDE, UFC, all of Affliction, lots of strike force and Bellator. Nowadays I hardly ever watch. I'm 40 now, had 3 major surgeries, and dont train any MA anymore. Coming back from another shoulder surgery, haven't even been to the gym. That obviously makes a difference.
I also never liked wmma.
Going against the latest xenforo nearly ended me. I gave it my all and nearly got it done for all of you, mostly undeserving little fucks.
Dogout.

 

[Bobby00]

Your right but you care wayy too much about being right.

 

[bobafett]

The double paywall thing is insanity. Out of all the people I know who used to watch ppvs none of them watch anymore for that exact reason.

 

[JohnMandick]

I said all that before it was cool.

 

[SamuraiBro]

We are officially in the ‘Slop Era’ of the UFC.

 

[SpamuraiSensei]

Cards used to be stacked, not anymore. Nobody has the star power that Conor did. Only mildly interesting dude is Paddy.

 

[r-harper-1]

Yeah, viewing parties are a ton of fun. The only thing that changed is the sport we watched because the UFC is just hot garbage. Our viewing parties are doing this thing where everyone kind of hosts a different viewing party. One dude gets us together for pro wrestling, a girl gets us together for awards ceremonies, I've sat everyone down for ONE PPVs and a few Bellator vs. Rizin cards (watching at a sensible time lol). We've done Fight Circus, Ngannou's boxing bouts, Jake Paul boxing bullshit, hockey, soccer, the Olympics, Cirque Du Soleil, reruns of The Jerry Springer Show and Judge Judy... most of aren't even interested in the thing we're watching, we're just there for the socializing, but no one has any interest in hosting a UFC party.

Don’t act like Jake Paul and shit Bellator are better than the UFC lol ….UFC struggling with stars a bit right now , but it isnt that fucking bad

 

[Bend NvR Break]

I always said when ESPN made that decision to foot the bill for ppvs for 300k buys, that Dana and co laughed their asses off knowing that today the average ppv does sub 300k. They probably tricked them by showing average ppv numbers from the previous 10 years, when illegal live streams were more difficult to access and internet speeds weren't universally geared towards high stream streaming, basically back in the blockbuster video era

Of course there are actually people posting on this internet forum RIGHT NOW, they are here among us at this very moment and they are foolish enough to believe ~60% of people who watch the UFC pay for ppvs, social media numbers suggest the MMA fan base is growing, all the media, all the followers point to growth, but ppv sales have only shrunk and people are still stupid enough to think a majority of fans purchase ppv. Boggles the mind. Some people think streaming sports illegally is like 3rd degree hacking, As if it isn't as easy as googling "MMA STREAM" and clicking the 1st link

Yep. I call it the Sean O'Malley effect. Sean O'Malley has millions of followers across his social media accounts. The UFC and shillers want to assert that that means the sport is growing and popularity is increasing which should mean an increase in viewership and ultimately $$$$$.

BUT Sean O'Malley can't even get 10% of his followers to buy a ppv he's headlining let's forget about him fighting on the undercard.

So what's the point of pointing and using indicators like that for growth and popularity increase when people actually spending money on the product is at an abysmal number to the point ESPN (just like Fox) don't even really want to do business with the UFC anymore.

 

[Stoic1]

Haven't bought one since the 90's. But I have enjoyed listening to people say they are too expensive for over 20 years.