It was the biggest night in the history of the UFC. A night where the fledgling sport was to obtain what it had sought since its inception eighteen years ago: legitimacy.
Long derided as ‘human cockfighting’ this was supposed to be the night where MMA became back page news. For now, however, the ‘fastest growing sport in the world’ will have to keep waiting.
It wasn’t an all out for 47 day. But they would have struggled to break 150. And I’m not shooting at the fighters. Junior Dos Santos proved not only how powerful these warriors are, but also how unpredictable the sport can be.
The target must be aimed at both the UFC and Fox for providing, commercially speaking, a horribly produced ‘special’ that would have struggled to impress hardened MMA addicts let alone the new fans they wanted to attract.
After all the fanfare surrounding the UFC and its multi-million dollar seven year deal with Fox, the whole experience was overwhelmingly deflating.
For those of us who have battled and argued with uninformed skeptics of the sport for years, we were left unimpressed. For those new to the world of MMA, there was no sense of just how far this sport has come since Gracie Jiu-Jitsu wowed us in 1993.
How about a video package highlighting the history of the UFC to begin? Or for new fans, even a quick run-down on how the rules work and are applied?
Think of the legions of boxing fans out there, disaffected with the lack of talent in their world right now. I’m sure they would have been startled when referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy didn’t give Cain a ten-count to get back to his feet.
The weaknesses in just showing one fight on television were also clearly demonstrated.
The Guida v Henderson battle was always going to be a classic. Two of the most entertaining fighters in the sport vying for a shot at Frankie Edgar’s Lightweight Title.
It therefore beggars belief why the fight was not shown live, but also presented with any kind of build up to give the fight any relevance. Again, for a new fan, there is no appreciation for who these guys are nor what they have accomplished and one of the fights of the year was only viewable on Facebook.
Dana White and the Fertitta brothers have accomplished so much in ten years and deserve rich praise. But for the first time yesterday, they seriously misstepped.
For long-time fans, it was a regular UFC event. For new-fans, it was likely a non-event.
UFC management have put on a happy PR face today. The ratings were solid, without being astounding at over five million in the US. Placing it somewhere between a college football game and an episode of NCIS.
And here in Australia, you can find an article on it buried deep in your state’s news websites if you have the time to look. Still well below the Pacquiao headlines and the Australian Open golf however.
The UFC is growing at an astounding rate. But for not at least, the search for legitimacy will continue for at least a little longer yet.
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