Dana White-We Don't Need CBS or HBO

by Kelvin Hunt on Oct 16, 2008 10:46 AM EDT

MMAWeekly has made a post documenting the top 20 MOST watched fights in the U.S. history. I must make this clear, as this pertains ONLY to the U.S., and not Japan or any other foreign markets. Also, the article does a good job of communicating how they came up with those ratings. Many of you read a post I made the other day with Dana White going on one of his classic rants. In the interview he said that they haven't signed a deal with network television because the deal wasn't right. Dana also went on record saying that the UFC didn't need to be on network television ala CBS, ABC, or NBC. He said that Spike TV was the home of the UFC and they were happy with that relationship.

So I'm looking at this piece that MMAWeekly put up and I was kind of surprised actually. Keep in mind that CBS is broadcasted in about 20-30 million more homes than Spike TV. However, the most watched fight ever is:

1. EliteXC on CBS (5/31/2008): Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson--- 7.281 million viewers (Aired from 11:27 PM to 11:40 PM)

The second most watched fight is:

2. UFC on Spike TV (10/10/2006): Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock--- 6.524 million viewers (Aired from 9:42 PM to 9:45 PM)

That's a very small difference considering the hype and anticipation of EliteXC's debut on CBS, and the mis-match of Ortiz vs. Shamrock 3. I know you have to take into account of the great year that the UFC enjoyed in 2006. You also have to take into account that the entire Ortiz/Shamrock fight lasted 3 minutes, whereas the entire Slice vs. Thompson fight lasted almost 15 minutes. What numbers would Ortiz vs. Shamrock have pulled if it had lasted that long? The UFC holds 11 of the 20 spots on the list with the lowest rating being a 3.847 million viewers for the Brandon Vera vs. Reese Andy fight.

So just looking at these numbers do you agree with White's assessment?

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well, obviously the ufc does’nt NEED cbs or hbo, that’s been proven, but it would be nice to see them on network tv like fox or abc sometime in the near future. it just has to be the right deal for them as dana has eluded to, not the crappy deal that elite got with cbs. i dont know why the networks or hbo wants creative contol so much over the ufc, when they have already proven to have top notch production and quality shows. no need to change anything. maybee the gladiator intro is getting old and a few minor tweaks, but nothing big and not having joe and goldie as the announcers is blasphemy. ive read were strikrforce is in negotiations with nbc to air live fights on primetime. that sounds very interesting to me. i think it’s kinda sad that kimbo is the most watched mma fighter ever. shame on elite xc.

by brent on Oct 16, 2008 12:16 PM EDT reply actions

I should have asked…does MMA need the UFC on primetime TV to reach the next level…

by Kelvin on Oct 16, 2008 1:15 PM EDT reply actions

If you look at that entire list of the top 10 most watched fights, you’ll see how ridiculous this whole thing is.

The 18-34 male demographic usually buy the PPV. I hardly ever watch reruns of UFC events for example. But I’ve watched almost every PPV for the last 3 years now.

And Spike is a good place for the UFC. You have the Ultimate fighter, the countdown shows, All access and the reruns… its like having a UFC channel. Most people who care enough get the channel anyway.

http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=7362&zoneid=13

Look at the top 10. Makes you wanna throw up.

by Flyingknees on Oct 16, 2008 1:25 PM EDT reply actions

haha…I feel u FK.

by Kelvin on Oct 16, 2008 1:40 PM EDT reply actions

The entire history of pro wrestling and boxing since the 1980s say that if you’re running a PPV centered promotion that you instantly retard your ability to gain further audiences. There’s hundreds of TV channels now, 20 screen cineplexes, the internet, etc; No one absolutely needs to pay for entertainment and there’s a huge subset of the American people who aren’t going to pay for any sporting event when most of the major ones are on TV they don’t have to pay to watch. Simple as that. The additional choices available to them only magnify that fact.

What’s good for the UFC isn’t necessarily good for the fight fan. In other news, the sky is blue.

by D.Capitated on Oct 16, 2008 11:08 PM EDT reply actions