Issue 109

December 2013

With the Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva and Ronda Rousey vs. Miesha Tate rematches, UFC president Dana White has said UFC 168 could be bigger than 2009’s UFC 100, which pulled in millions of viewers and plenty of media attention. BUT…

CAN UFC 168 PUSH MMA FURTHER INTO THE MAINSTREAM?

GREG JACKSON

Fighters Only Award-winning trainer and head coach to UFC champion Jon Jones

YES

I think so. In terms of the broader picture, the UFC has done a great job in getting mixed martial arts to as far as it’s gone and it seems like the sport is more popular than ever before. And certainly more people know, and more people are watching than ever, so I think the UFC is doing a great job of pushing it mainstream. UFC 168 will be big in Brazil as well. You’ve got to do it worldwide to make it a legitimate sport, and it needs to have the right kind of coverage and the right commentators who can walk the public through what’s happening if they’re not educated. There are a lot of cogs in the machine and if they’re all doing their job and running well there’s no reason MMA shouldn’t be a very powerful mainstream sport.

CHAEL SONNEN

UFC light heavyweight and Fox TV pundit, 28-13-1

NO

The UFC has already gone mainstream: we’re on Fox. Check the stock market – nobody does better than Fox’s parent companies NewsCorp and 21st Century Fox. And the UFC is partners with them and fills six hours a week of their primetime slots. The media tries to pull us down by comparing us to other mixed martial arts organizations, but we don’t compete with them. We compete with movie premieres, Brad Pitt and Will Smith. We compete with Major League Baseball and the National Football League, and we’ve been beating them. I don’t say that to brag, because they are great sports and I hope they continue to do well, but we are the leader right now. We’re competing with Lady Gaga.

WHAT YOU HAD TO SAY ON THE MATTER

 “Only marginally. It still needs a SuperBowl-esque event with superfights. While outside the US, more exposure is required.”

@JONATHANSHRAGER

“It’s already fairly mainstream over in USA, but until the papers here (UK) carry it, it will always seem niche and a spectacle.”

@FLAKTHIRTY8

“This could possibly end the reign of a true great. If anything this could destroy MMA.”

@DWARFENEGGER

“How much more mainstream can #MMA get. It’s on network TV #FOX. The last thing would be legalized in #NewYorkCity.”

@EDGRIFFIN101