Zuffa Overhauls PPV

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

The Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view sports programming, that began as an ‘over the top’, no holds barred spectacle ten years ago, is overhauling its production.

 

The on-air presentation will better reflect the significant changes Zuffa, LLC has made to this evolving sport as well as a newly acquired legitimacy and respect in the sports world.

 

“We listened to sports media experts, the analysts and handicappers who were telling us some of the over-the-top spectacle was preventing us from being taken seriously. Often the mainstream press didn’t understand who we were and the seriousness of the sport of Mixed Martial Arts,” said Dana White, Zuffa's president.

 

“The production values of the past got us attention and put us on the map with fight fans from all walks of life. But, the larger audiences of football, hockey and even boxing fans were a bit confused by it and told us they found it somewhat distracting. They weren’t used to the pyrotechnics and the elaborate entrances. They said it reminded them of pro wrestling, which is not at all what we’re about. MMA under the UFC brand is an intense, aggressive, real combat sport that is the most thrilling and entertaining sport you can watch. However, we realized the entertainment value comes from the raw power and real skill within the Octagon, not the theatrics outside it.”

 

The Ultimate Fighting Championship, nearing the three-year mark under new ownership, cited a tradition of high production values that will remain unchanged. Specific changes will also be implemented to enhance the on-air graphics presentation as well. (These will be updated variations of broadcast sports programming elements currently in use such as logo animations, elevators, wipes and dynamic roll-ins all of which are contemporary elements in use today by other sanctioned sports.)

 

“These changes will enhance the viewers’ overall experience and better satiate their growing appetite for extreme, edgy, high-risk sports by providing an undiluted presentation of the action as well as a better understanding of the fighters, complexities

of the disciplines and the historical roots of this extraordinary combat sport,” said Steve Tornabene, vice president of production for UFC’s televised and home video/DVD products. “The new look will make the seriousness of the sport more evident by stripping away some of the spectacle of the past. HBO boxing is a gold standard of combat sports programming and has provided some of the inspiration for these changes,” he added.

The new look will debut live on pay-per-view at UFC 44: Undisputed live from Las Vegas at 10 p.m. EDT on Friday, September 26. That bout features an historical main event between two light heavy weight champions, Tito “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Ortiz and Randy “The Natural” Couture. The fight, billed as “Champion versus Champion,” will be a first in UFC history, pitting two concurrent titleholders to determine who will be the undisputed champion in that weight class.

 

The UFC’s next live PPV event will be UFC 44: Undisputed at 10 p.m. EDT on Friday, September 26, from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nev.

 

http://www.sherdog.com/viewnews.cfm?newsid...lVuVpFkMNNqubSc

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

I REALLY hope they don't go back to the "every fighter gets generic UFC music" and "Just Flags" decor to their events. Sure, they don't need elaborate entrances for their fighters (cept maybe Tito, cause it fits Tito), but I don't see anything wrong with some of the more theatrical elements. Pride does it and they do it better than the WWE and it doesn't take away from their in-ring action.

 

I don't see the point in putting a lot of effort to attract the boxing audience either. As far as I can tell, the boxing audience isn't a cross-over one and are stuck in one mode of thinking. Besides, the last heavyweight title fight didn't even sell out. Meanwhile, the WWE -dispite all their faults- still dominate PPV and video.

[Guest Army Eye]

I've heard somewhere.. wish I could remember where... that cable companies have reported that there's more overlap between boxing PPV buyers and MMA buyers, than wrestling and MMA.

 

But, I don't see how UFC's current presntation is any more flashy/pro-wrestling-style than boxing, in general.

[Guest Dave Dymond]

Hey Army Eye and Ravishing Rick Rudo!

 

Could you please shoot me an email at [email protected] when you get a chance? I need to talk to you guys, and if you see Lei Tong around, maybe you could tell him the same thing?