Issue 105
September 2013
How the UFC and its fighters have transformed Brazil’s stigmatized mixed martial arts scene into millions in mainstream money
When UFC featherweight champion José Aldo followed a knee to the face of Chad Mendes with an impromptu tour of the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, it symbolized the joy of more than just emphatic victory. It was a celebration, yes, but also an outpouring of relief and gratitude. The Brazilians, whether fighters or fans, reacted as one at
UFC 142 in January 2012, elated to be able to enjoy a moment such as that. And no amount of security or authority was going to stop them.
As an advert for Brazil, the spectacle worked on two fronts. Firstly, Aldo, the key component, won his fight in spectacular fashion and retained his UFC featherweight championship. But, secondly, the rush experienced in the arena was something exclusive to Brazil.
You can watch fights all around the world and never experience a moment like it. And so, Brazil triumphed. They did things differently, they straddled the boundary between insanity and safety, and it worked; the world wanted to go back for more. This was an unpredictable delicacy you couldn’t sample elsewhere.
It was also an improved recipe, coming nearly 15 years after Renzo Gracie and Eugenio Tadeu watched helplessly as Brazilian fans made their mark on a fight in Rio, crowding the cage and brawling among themselves until the event was stopped.
Back then the fans were unruly, passionate and violent. It cost Rio its helping of mixed martial arts for many years to come.
“Everybody in Brazil knew about vale tudo and MMA,” says Fernando Kallas, former UFC play-by-play commentator in Brazil and a correspondent for the BBC’s Portuguese service. “It wasn’t that it was underground and only a few hardcore fans knew about it. Everybody did. During the ‘80s it was broadcast on Globo television, the biggest channel in Brazil, and the fights Rickson Gracie had in Rio were big news. So much so, it spilled over on to the streets.
“People started fighting outside the ring and the gym, mainly in Rio, and that gave the sport a problem in the ‘90s. It was associated with thuggery and mindless violence. The jiu-jitsu and luta livre guys would clash on the streets. This then led to what happened at the infamous Renzo vs. Eugenio match in ‘97.”
It was a sign of progress, then, that more wasn’t made of Aldo’s Octagon vault-and-dash into the arms of thousands of pumped-up Brazilians. In a previous era, it could have proved disastrous. Mercifully, though, times have changed and mixed martial arts in Brazil, while always popular, now carries an air of professionalism it once lacked.
“The biggest problem Brazil faced was changing the image of MMA,” explains Kallas. “That’s why it’s good to now have role models like the Nogueiras, Anderson Silva and José Aldo, because they are cool, peaceful guys, great adverts for the sport. Now MMA is seen as a professional sport.
“It has separated itself from the reputation vale tudo had in the ‘90s. It is a regulated sport with anti-doping, a great deal of strategy, and top athletes rather than thugs.”
The UFC first returned to Brazil in August 2011, following an 11-and-a-half-year hiatus. The event, UFC 134, took place at the HSBC Arena in Rio and featured a victorious Anderson Silva in the main event. It was a carnival, but a controlled one, and there were Brazilian fighters competing in all but one of the night’s 12 bouts, a stat which shone a bright light on the depth of the talent pool and, indeed, the need to return to a country steeped in mixed martial arts folklore. After all, anyone who knows their history knows the UFC wouldn’t be the UFC without Brazil.
So the decision to return was both natural and inevitable, but also wise. Because unlike other selected territories – see Britain or Japan – Brazil is in the privileged position of actually having the necessary talent to warrant the attention and repeat visits. Meaning when shows are held in Brazil, the UFC can fill out the card with natives and pack up at the end of it all with more homegrown winners than losers. Brazilian mixed martial artists aren’t just good at what they do, some of them are great.
If in need of proof, check the UFC rankings. In the heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions alone Brazilians claim four of the top 10, and there are three in the top 10 at middleweight, one apiece at welterweight, lightweight and featherweight, two at bantamweight and one at flyweight. And then there’s Amanda Nunes, the bantamweight set to become the first Brazilian woman to fight in the UFC.
Those numbers not only show a great level of participation, they hint at dominance – at all levels. In among the pack are veteran champions and superstars – the likes of Anderson Silva, the Nogueiras, Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua, Vitor Belfort and Lyoto Machida – as well as future superstars – think José Aldo, Renan Barao and Glover Teixeira. Those are just the guys ranked in the top 10. Outside of that is a plethora of 20-somethings looking to make their mark and put Rio security on red alert.
Indeed, such is the extent of this talent pool, last year Brazil even hosted its own season of The Ultimate Fighter. And no foreigners were necessary. They filled out teams of featherweights and middleweights with their own, and the skill level on display put many other TUF seasons to shame.
The reason for this bottomless pit of arm-breaking Brazilians owes plenty to the impact of the fighting Gracies, jiu-jitsu as a whole, and also the attention fighting heroes receive in that part of the world. Because even when competing predominantly in America, the likes of Silva, Belfort and the Nogueiras were mainstream stars in their homeland and enjoyed the kind of stardom their American counterparts lack.
Subsequently, they are now bona fide crossover stars, unable to take a trip to the grocery store without being mobbed for a picture or an autograph. ‘Minotauro’ has appeared on Brazil’s version of Dancing With The Stars, Belfort is sponsored by Gillette, and Silva was named ‘Sportsman of the Year’ by GQ in 2011. Furthermore, so impressed was he by Silva’s earning potential, footballer Ronaldo, one of Brazil’s greatest ever sportsmen, even decided to sign the middleweight champion to his 9ine Sports Management agency, making him the fledgling company’s first client.
“Right now Anderson Silva is the second biggest sports star in Brazil, second only to Neymar, the soccer player,” confirms Kallas. “You’ll never beat soccer in Brazil, but even second place is something to be proud of, and that is a position MMA now holds in Brazil. Compare that to America, where we’re still behind football, basketball and baseball, and it says a lot.”
Suffice to say, when the time came for the UFC to return to Brazil, the locals didn’t require much persuading. Instead, 15,000 tickets were sold in just two hours for UFC 134 and a live television audience of over 30 million signaled the start of something massive. It confirmed suspicions, it opened the floodgates. It inspired Belfort to say: “I do believe the UFC will surpass soccer as the number-one sport in Brazil. It has everything in place – the stars, the athletes – to become the biggest sport in the world. I think it will overtake every sport in the world. People deny that, but I think it is already happening. The Junior Dos Santos fight with Cain Velasquez in November had more Brazilian television viewers than the Brazil vs. Argentina soccer match.”
Ironically, it was probably Silva’s front kick on Belfort, in a fight that took place in Las Vegas in February 2011, which triggered the Brazilian explosion that reverberates today. After all, the championship bout paired two Brazilian natives, unquestionably the Big Two, and asked a nation to pick sides. Better than that, though, the fight ended with a highlight-reel knockout shown all over the world – over and over again. It worked on so many levels and, after flooding the Mandalay Bay Events Center in their droves, Brazilian media and fans stuck with it. Kallas describes it as “the fight that changed everything.”
Shortly after, the sport returned to Rede Globo. Brazil’s biggest television network signed a deal to start televising UFC events. It was announced at roughly the same time Fox caused ripples in America with a similar agreement, yet one could argue the partnership with Rede Globo was just as important, if not more so. It meant tens of millions of Brazilians could watch UFC programming on a channel akin to the BBC in Great Britain. Total mainstream exposure.
Unsurprisingly, two years after the return, Brazil has become a pivotal part of the UFC jigsaw. In total, seven events have been held in Brazil under the new ownership and there will be many more added to that number before the year is out. The showpiece of the summer is the featherweight title battle between Aldo and Chan Sung Jung, which is potentially a Fight of the Year contender.
To keep the market busy we’re seeing a mixture of events land in Brazil, some high-profile, some less so. What started as a once-a-year pay-per-view adventure has now developed into something more. Numbered events still show up in Brazil, one of which is Aldo vs. ‘The Korean Zombie,’ but these have been interspersed with UFC on FX and UFC on Fuel events.
This means shows headlined by fights such as Vitor Belfort against Michael Bisping and Luke Rockhold and, most recently, Minotauro Nogueira versus Fabricio Werdum. Not necessarily pay-per-view big-hitters, but interesting upper-level guys, viable championship contenders. It all adds up to more of a good thing, and is a policy that could result in a total of six events occurring in Brazil this year.
“Brazil is far and away the most vibrant market in every one of the developments – tickets, TV ratings, merchandising, digital, even mobile business – and it is one of our fastest growing social media markets in the world,” confirms Marshall Zelaznik, managing director of international development for the UFC.
“Brazil has more UFC fans than any other country. We have over 20 million people watching a televised event at midnight. Companies are interested and they realize there is big consumer demand. I can tell you there is not a meeting that goes by here at the UFC where Brazil is not discussed.”
The importance of Brazil will only increase as its economy continues to grow (currently the world’s sixth largest) and it becomes the home of sporting excellence in the next few years. First up is soccer’s World Cup in 2014 and then comes the Olympics in 2016. Simply, it doesn’t get any bigger. And, consequently, the future of Brazil couldn’t be brighter.
“The UFC is being clever,” says Kallas. “The first UFC event in Brazil was a huge deal, it sold out in hours and was a great card, but they struggled after that to find an identity and a market plan for their next two events. They couldn’t sell-out and the public wasn’t happy with the cards.
“Since then, though, they have found the perfect plan; forget Rio, Sao Paulo and the big cities, unless you are bringing a huge event. There are a million things to do in Rio and Sao Paulo and if the people don’t get offered a huge event, they won’t show up, simple as that. But if you go to Jaraguá do Sul or Fortaleza, as they have recently done, they will be better received. Those small towns aren’t used to UFC events, so it is a huge deal for the local market. Then, when the time comes to do a mega-fight, they can go to Rio or Sao Paulo and maybe even a soccer stadium. Because if the fight is right, they could easily do 100,000 tickets.”
If given the chance to spend an evening with 100,000 mixed martial arts fans in one arena on one given night, you’d want them to be Brazilian.
- UFC 134 was a carnival, but a controlled one, and there were Brazilian fighters competing in all but one of the night’s 12 bouts, a stat which shone a bright light on the depth of the talent pool and, indeed, the need to return to a country steeped in mixed martial arts folklore
- To keep the market busy we’re seeing a mixture of events land in Brazil, some high-profile, some less so. What started as a once-a-year pay-per-view adventure has now developed into something more. Numbered events still show up in Brazil, one of which is Aldo vs. ‘the korean zombie,’ but these have been interspersed with UFC on FX and UFC on Fuel events
- 15,000 tickets were sold in just two hours for UFC 134 with a live TV audience of over 30 million
