Needs to let them show old fights on youtube. I should be able to easily show my mates a guy like JDS knocking people out and get them excited for an event. Scurla hit the nail on the head about over saturation, it grew too quickly it isn't sustainable not sure if its getting smaller but its stagnating maybe this FOX deal is going to change that
The UFC don't like that. Now they're big cheese they sue aggressively for their IP rights. Slightly ironic that those same clips that used to be available on random skater sites like Sherdog and Youtube in the early days were the same clips that made it famous. Zuffa likes to think they're big leagues. They're not up there with the NFL's, NBA etc. MMA is a fringe sport and not a fraction as big as fans would have you believe. Personally i'm not expecting much from the FOX deal. With my cynical hat on id say it will only make matters worse as the format blows but FOX will be expecting solid results.
Boxing is dead and has been so for many years. The bottom line is they have no new fan base and as older fans pass away no one it there to replace them. Boxing needs to become a real sport if it wants to survive, I don't see that happening anytime soon.
Interesting points.....especially the over saturation thing. Here in Brazil what I notice is that reached a peak as the second sport in only 3 years....but now, funnily enough things are a bit quiet.....and this next UFC in Belo Horizonte probably won´t make new fans since the card is not very attractive.... I expected more of the TUF Brasil.....few people are watching, at least I didn´t hear people talking about it too much tbh......
No boxing is not dead. Not even close mate. Thats just the oft trotted out line by UFC drama queens. Haye Chisora sold 20,000 tickets in 3 weeks at West Ham football stadium. Does that sound like a dead sport to you? Boxing is part of the UK's social culture. People talk about it in pubs, clubs socially etc. Guys in my gym today were talking about Pac Bradley. Same way they were talking about Hayes scrap with Chisora. Very rarely do you ever hear anything about the UFC or MMA apart from a few hardcore or wannabe MMA nubs. Bottom line is boxing is far bigger here in the UK than MMA can ever dream of. That much is a fact. It's more than likely the same for most Western nations. So i don't understand why so many repeat this same bollocks about boxing being dead.
There is an important detail also.....as soon as other nations have more relevant MMA fighters....the sport will be popular there too.... UK haven´t a good amount of known fighters in MMA and have a lot in Boxing...... US have it in both......Brazil only have in MMA (our national boxing is dead)....
We have good MMA fighters. But boxing is just more popular. In the clubs amateur or professional boxing is the clear favourite. Its really not close.
I know....there are many good brits in MMA.....but you guys never had a UFC champion, or a guy really famous like Joe Calzaghe or Ricky Hatton were in Boxing in recent times..... This is a big difference I think.....I don´t expect MMA becomes huge in UK or surpasses boxing, I believe that this will never happen....but I think with a few MMA champions, top fighters P4P , more popular fighters etc, things will be a bit different.....
We really dont have a big grappling culture here like the American Collegiate Wrestling System or the multiple different arts in Japan or the hotbed of BJJ in Brazil obviously. It's starting to change slowly but the majority of these guys just want the kudos of saying ''I train UFC'' I think Boxing will always be a step ahead in terms of guys training in it here in the UK. A good punch up is part of our culture as opposed to learning multiple disciplines. I did see a drunk dickhead shoot for a TD during an argument at a local MMA event though
To be honest i'm not sure that would make much difference. Bisping gets a lot of coverage here. I saw him at the Expo last week. But to be fair despite his fame here and in the US its only among the hardcore. Casual fans just don't care. Boxing is just something this nation gets behind. Hence Hatton, Lewis and Nas who had huge success in the USA.
Indeed. If Bisping fought Anderson Silva it'd barely cause a ripple amongst casuals. If Khan fought Mayweather it would be a massive, widely covered event.
