Michael Pope from the NY Post has an interesting article about the possible demise of mixed martial arts on CBS after EliteXC’s dismal ratings for ‘Unfinished Business’ back on July 26.
I call the article interesting not because the UFC is ‘rumored’ to have renewed talks with the giant eyeball, but because Michael Pope still refers to mixed martial arts as “No Holds Barred” and “Savage”, as if the content of July’s broadcast had anything to do with the Doppler effect of viewership.
Savagery didn’t kill ‘Unfinished Business’, a main event featuring Scott Smith and Robbie Lawler did.
That’s no disrespect to either fighter, who fought with heart and determination that night. But let’s face it: Fighting is like fashion, you have to have a name to get noticed.
The debut of EliteXC’s ‘Saturday Night Fights’ on May 31, the first-ever mixed martial arts event to air on network television, was a ratings success thanks largely in part to the mainstream popularity of Kimbo Slice.
Love him or loathe him, the man is a draw.
Which is why October 4, when Slice faces UFC hall-of-famer Ken Shamrock, should be a smashing night (no pun intended).
I talked to a casual fan this afternoon who thinks Ken Shamrock is actually the world’s most dangerous man. The prospect of him facing the bearded menace inside a steel cage is like a poor man’s Couture vs Emelianenko.
The fact that Shamrock is collecting social security and Toto is pulling on Slice’s curtain is irrelevant. We might know better, but all that matters to the ignorant among us is that two of the most recognizable names in MMA are going head-to-head.
And as frightening as it may sound, we’re the exception and they are the rule.
So if there is any truth to Pope’s article, which conveniently lists no references or sourced information, what happens if October 4 is a ratings bonanza? Is July 26 forgiven?
CBS may very well be talking to the UFC, but like the situation with Randy Couture, what happened to all the stumbling blocks that prevented a partnership in the first place? What’s different this time around? Wouldn’t the failure of one promotion make it harder for the acceptance of a second?
EliteXC may be under the microscope on October 4, but from a ratings perspective they should do fine. If CBS wants out, then they want out regardless of the success of the next installment of Saturday Night Fights.
The question is, does the UFC still want in?
27 Comments »
Good article Jesse…Yours is better then Pope’s…But I do think EXC will be fine after Oct and UFC will not crack a deal with CBS…
I actually think Kimbo vs. Shammy was the good idea(for EXC), over giving Rogers the fight…Personally, as a “hardcore” MMa fan, I’m not so sure who would be the bigger test for Kimbo..While Rogers is very big, strong and young, Shammy still has him beat on experience, knowledge and skill..And the main thing Shammy has is exposer….Lets face it, with Kimbo/Shammy fight CBS’s rating are going to be through the roof..Shammy has probably more popularity then Kimbo himself…
It is a shame though..CBS should have signed UFC instead..But I do think they will break records with Kimbo/Shamrock as the headline fight..I don’t think CBS would get half the ratings with Rogers/Kimbo as they WILL get with the Sammy/Slice fight..
I am actually fine with the UFC just being on Spike. Spike devotes a ton of coverage to the UFC, and I don’t think a major network would have the amount of time open for as many airings as Spike does.
CBS might be a dead end at this point. People that watch CBS and know nothing about MMA are probably turned off of MMA because of the EliteXC. Then again, the UFC might be able to rectify what the EliteXC has made a joke out of.
Yeah, I think UFC should try for FOX or ABC. CBS is already tainted from having put out a questionable product.
RyanHobbs, you excited about the attention Alaska is getting in light of recent political events? Your Governor seems like one of the best kept secrets in U.S. politics.
hahahaha yeah. Everyone up here is talking about it. I don’t know very much about her. I remember when she defeated Frank Murkowski. I think that McCain was just pandering when he selected her but then again, who isn’t? She was a smart choice for McCain.
screw the networks and having to sit through commercials… missing fighter entrances, interviews, etc. they should just lower the PPV cost by 10$ or something
Yeah, next to being there live, PPV is the way to go.
This said about Lice above…..
“Love him or loathe him, the man is a draw.”
Yeah, and so was/is WWE “performers” such as (insert whoever)…..but they are not main event caliber mma fighters!! ANY AVERAGE caliber HW mma fighter could of accomplished what Slice has done…..beat up 2 fat, out of shape, old men and barely beat Thompson
Why not get a big scary guy and paint him green and call him the overhyped Jumbo Greens and feed him cans and old men?????? NO DIFFERENCE. He could be a draw, too
EliteXC is gonna turn the sport into a spectacle, not much different than the WWE …..if a draw is all that is important
Why not call up Hulk Hogan??? Hell, he got to be well into his 50’s, maybe even closer to 60. They could feed him absolutely horrible opponents and he could draw too!!
EliteXC is just horrible for the image of mma
I understand that Kimbo isn’t a great MMA fighter by any means. But I still watch his fights. I am interested to see what he can do. I remember watching his first fight on youtube against “Big D” I thought it was so insane what he did to him. Seeing that man have trouble with low level MMA talent really tells you how incredible these athletes really are.
The Elite XC - CBS connection will soon terminate. It’s only a question of the exact date.
I think you’re right. I really can’t see them doing much more to draw in fans. I just wonder where some of the fighters will go after the demise of the EliteXC because I think after the CBS deal falls through, the EliteXC will go down too. I would like see some of those fighters go to the WEC. I would also like the WEC to keep it’s upper weight classes for that purpose as well. Then the WEC would have good matches for Kimbo. Make or Break him.
I was actually going to end my “one man boycott” and watch the next CBS show, but then I heard Carano wasn’t going to be fighting that cyborg girl, and what ulimately put the nail in the coffin for me was Kimbo fighting Shamrock. I thought I would give it (Elite XC) a chance since Gary ‘Grimace’ Shaw had left, but it obvious that his son, Jared “Brian Austin-Green” Shaw doesn’t fall far from the tree. Asides from Sheilds and Daley, why would I want to watch the rest of these crappy match ups and be considered part of the casual fan draw, when I in fact know that this isn’t real MMA? I’ll catch Sheilds and Daley, the true main event, the next day on the internet. I couldn’t really sit through another laughable “blockbuster” and “mainstream” Elite XC event with the so called “new faces of MMA” and still consider myself a true fan of MMA.
I think it would be awesome for someone to start a boycott on Elite and their circus match up. They need ratings so they create someone to feed old men to him.
If I remember right, and there’s no guarantee I do, CBS pursued UFC first but the deal fell through when UFC refused to give up control of the production. After that initial CBS show that looked like it was staged by a mid-level strip club I have to say UFC made a wise decision.
Also, I think NBC or Fox would make more sense as network partners for UFC. NBC has a history of taking chances on various athletic competitions (American Gladiators, XFL, Saturday Night’s Main Event) and Fox needs good non-animated programming, and it caters to younger viewers who tend to love UFC.
The UFC is a pay per view business model, they make plenty of money that way, no way they plan on losing that.
Now what they should do, as soon as they can, is move WEC from VS to network TV, it will be the “Sport” vs EliteXC’s “Entertainment” model.
Especially once they drop the heavier weights…..
Could you imagine tuning into Fox for a night of 5 Banta, Feather, and Light weight fights….
anyone else think that this turnaround might be influenced by the UFC’s new “international driven” chairman?
That’s not necessarily true. If what anything this guy writes is true, then you have to believe that CBS still wants to prove that MMA is a legit sport worth showcasing in primetime. It’s why they pursued UFC in the first place and then settled for Elite. They want to give the sport a real chance and they, like everyone else, realize that they are only showcasing what amounts to the minor leagues of the sport.
I don’t think it’s a matter of CBS wanting out of MMA altogether. It’s a matter of them wanting to do this thing right and get the viewership that it deserves and that, they as a broadcast company, deserve. The UFC will bring them that but they obviously need to go to the UFC with a deal that allows them to keep the integrity of their broadcasts. That means Rogan and Goldberg and not the CBS team. It means a bunch of other things too I’m sure that I’m not even aware of. So we’ll see.
the only way that elite xc will ever draw good rating on cbs is if they have kimbo on the card and they need to keep kimbo looking like a monster and that means matching him up with bums and over the hill fighters. Kimbo is the only big draw that elite xc has and once he loses his heir of inviciblilty he stock is going to drop by a huge amount. The ufc is filled with talent and superstars, also many fans dont even know what mma is but the know what the ufc is they think that mma is called ultimate fighting because of the ultimate fighting championship the ufc would consitenlty pull in numbers unlike xc who has one guy who is marketable
Slice vs Shamrock may draw viewers; it is a highly promotable fight but given that it is unlikely to have any entertainment value at all you are left with a lot of disappointed viewers who walk away saying “Gee, there really is nothing to that MMA crap after all.” Why the big surprise at low ratings for the second show?
Say what you will about the UFC but they book (mostly) quality fights between legitimate athletes. Taking the freakshow approach to try to get ratings for the CBS broadcasts is a strategy that can only fail and likely sooner than later. Bunch a donks.
EliteXC and UFC business models couldn’t be more different and it shows in the end result.
Take Elite’s main event for example. Most hardcore fans think its funny and some are outraged. Fact is that the hardcorefans are NOT the targeted audience. Some think they are, and thats why they are confused. Shamrock and Kimbo both have names that are recognizeable to people who don’t watch mma. CBS is obviously trying to grab the attention of random people flipping through the channels with a headliner like that.
Elite justifys the main event with the “growing the sport” argument. However, it disappoints serious fans of mma by having sketchy judging, refereeing, questionable integrity of fights. Even the commentating is a sales gimmick. Look at Strikeforce. They are also a child company of ProElite, but their commentating is much more knowledgable and their shows don’t come with any of this baggage.
Bottom line is EliteXC is catering to the market who don’t watch mma even though the shows might have the same look and feel as the UFC. I’ll watch the Diaz and Shields fight online the next day. Hey, I love mma like I love rap music, but I’m not going to bump the song on the McDonalds commercial, if you know what I mean. I don’t see what CBS will bring to the table for UFC. I like UFC on Spike just fine and I’m looking forward to UFC89 which will be free. OH BOY!
poor mans couture vs emelianenko? more like ignorant fans couture vs emelianenko.
This is way premature, but I am interested to know if Dana or any of the guys at the UFC, have discussed the possibility of a “saturday night fight” type program that might run during a fight season. Maybe during the summer when there is nothing on but baseball (ZZZzzz). This would be a great format for the WEC. Maybe a two hour program that focuses on up and coming figters.
Did anyone else find it funny that the caption under Kimbo in the article read “UFC fighter Kimbo Slice”?