Issue 057
December 2009
Chuck Liddell has some big balls. While the mixed martial arts world was betting on whether Dana White had convinced Chuck to retire or if ‘The Iceman’ would take one last fight, the UFC announced the face of their organization would appear on Dancing With The Stars. Fan boys of the world wept at the idea of their talisman wearing Latin heels. Commentators noted Chuck’s gusto to step aside from his air of machismo and do something many would ridicule. Those willing to second guess the UFC’s strategy were quietly applauding. But why? Because Chuck Liddell’s appearance on Dancing With The Stars could be a new turning point in the history of mixed martial arts.
The initial season of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) is eternally credited as being the first step in the rise of mixed martial arts in the US, and by extension the West. Specifically, the fabled Griffin / Bonnar fight is always labeled as the exact event that perked the interest of millions. A great fight can certainly turn a casual onlooker into a full fan, but to credit the brawl entirely is only partially accurate.
What that show really did was change perceptions. By watching The Ultimate Fighter, the public not only got to see exciting MMA fights and addictive manufactured drama every week; they became familiar with the fighters. En route they realized these men weren’t thugs, nor were they mentally or emotionally unstable. These ‘ultimate fighters’ were people. Just like the viewers, their families and their friends. This is where MMA really gained its fan-base jump. It was no longer seen to be dangerous and shady, a spectacle or guilty pleasure. It was a sport, and it was really, really good.
By coming to realize fighters were normal guys, viewers’ inhibitions about the sport were suddenly dropped. It’s an outcome that continues to this day with each season of TUF. But, as the ratings breakdown will tell you, the intrigued eyes that are drawn to TUF belong predominantly to the 18–35 bracket, and of that, men make the larger number.
Conversely, Dancing With The Stars appeals to an entirely different demographic. Not only does it top ratings charts every week, it draws well in the 18–35 bracket in both women and men, plus it is regularly the most watched program in age groups way above the UFC’s catchment. The season with Chuck’s inclusion began with a huge 17.5 million viewers. In contrast the most watched UFC event ever was UFC 75, with 5.6 million viewers.
TUF’s highest drawing show until then (the Kimbo-boasting season ten) attracted 4.1 million viewers. Impressive, but an anomaly by TUF’s usual standards, which hovers somewhere around 1.5 million viewers per episode. The idea of anywhere near 17 million people watching Chuck Liddell dance every week is staggering. That those watching will be people who never normally follow MMA is equally as interesting. Just as with TUF, those hordes of viewers get a chance to know Chuck and learn that despite the imposing hairstyle, he’s not an unhinged criminal – he’s a likeable guy and a legitimate athlete.
Granted, it’s hard to envisage millions of 50-year-old parents buying tickets to a UFC event just because they “like that Liddell fella”, but realizing MMA fighters are normal people might soften that demographic’s stance on the sport and open doors that would be otherwise closed. The heads of big business aren’t part of the 18-35’s; they’re 40-plus and it is they who hold the keys to sponsorships, television and politics, the areas MMA wants to conquer most.
It’s these people that tune in and watch celebrities dance the tango, and it is they who block MMA the most. Indeed, some of the main culprits in the dousing of MMA’s conflagration (such as controversial boxing promoter Bob Arum and New York Assemblyman Bob Reilly, currently lobbying against MMA gaining legality in the state) are aged far closer to the audience of Dancing With The Stars than that of TUF.
When you consider the ripple effect of acceptance The Ultimate Fighter’s premier season had, then extrapolate that to Dancing With The Stars and its huge grip on Middle America, the possibilities are monumental. The UFC are more than aware of that, and if this move has the desired results it could well be a masterstroke.
If Chuck Liddell (a UFC Hall of Famer and former light heavyweight champion) has the balls to perform the foxtrot in front of millions, then the ‘hardcore’ MMA fans shouldn’t object. If he wears sequins in effort to push for acceptance for MMA, then so what? At worst he has improved his footwork and agility. Just let Chuck dance.
