britbox said:
Thanks - I'll start checking them out.
On your other point, what's pissing you off about UFC in relation to your original points (business decisions, PR, match-making)?
I'll try to be brief because there is a lot to touch on.
The UFC culture flat out stinks. Each week there's a fighter saying something stupid on twitter (homophobic, sexist, etc...) and the UFC still does not know how to deal with these issues in the required professional manner. It doesn't help that the man sitting at the helm (Dana White), despite doing so much for the sport, is a piece of garbage, like all promoters. He can't control his emotions and has been known to throw his fighters under the bus for the most minor inconveniences, whether they too place inside and outside the cage.
Business wise, the real problem they have now out is that some of their top PPV draws are out. Brock Lesnar retired a couple of years ago, Anderson Silva's future is in doubt after his gruesome leg break, and their ultimate cash cow after Lesnar, Georges St-Pierre, took "an extended leave" (which many speculate is a subtle way to say "retirement") a couple of months ago. They're completely unable to properly market their other stars/champions, despite having some breathtaking talents at their disposal. As a result, some huge fights are not getting the attention they deserve due to the UFC sticking to their generic worn out formula of marketing the fights. Also, their FOX deal, while highly beneficial, has been slightly disappointing, and they've so far been unable to use such a big platform to its maximum potential.
The match-making issues were mainly last year. The UFC had a disappointing year on PPV in 2012 by their standards -- they still dominated the market mind you, with the exception of the biggest boxing fights (ie Mayweather, Manny...the UFC can't touch those), but the average buy-rates were down. So they panicked and threw together title fights with some undeserving challengers (Nick Diaz, Chael Sonnen) just to make a quick buck. It worked, as Diaz's fight with Georges St-Pierre did huge business and Sonnen did good numbers with Jones, but the reality is we all knew those fights wouldn't be remotely competitive and that both GSP and Jones would run through their respective challengers. Worse yet, both Diaz and Sonnen were coming off losses and had no momentum. As fans, we're generally treated to guys like GSP and Jones no more than twice per year, so I hate to see wasted fights on them with BS challengers.
This year, they went back to meritocracy. However, they're still putting on way too many shows per month, so the quality of some of the cards is a bit down.
He was an awesome fighter. Wonder can he recover from that and come back. Man :/