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Tuesday, September 23, 2014

My View: Why The "Game Changing" WSOF Announcement Will Be Anything But

In case you hadn't heard, the World Series Of Fighting has announced its intention to stage pay-per-view events, expected to begin "in the second half of 2015."

It's been tried before, it'll be tried again, and in this case, I won't say it's not possible. After all, WSOF did manage to wrangle themselves a coveted timeslot on the NBC Sports network.

What I'd instead rather focus on is what amounts to the company's profit-sharing aspect of the plan. On the surface, paying fifty-percent of net revenue to fighters featured on the broadcasts sounds too good to be true. I think it is.

I'm all for better treatment of fighters, but does anyone at WSOF have any idea what costs are involved in running pay-per-views, or what happens to promotions who (in attempting to show up or compete on equal footing with the UFC) overspend?

Just the fact that WSOF thinks this will somehow prove to be a "game changer" leads me to believe that they haven't spent enough time thinking it through. To the UFC, this isn't a game - it's all business, and at the end of the day, they're wildly successful for many reasons, some of which boil down to the understanding that they're a fighter's employer, not a fighter's friend.

Instead of trying to stick it to the UFC, or whatever WSOF is trying to do, they should focus on the bottom line, which is turning a profit and giving us a reason to care about what they have to offer.

It's been proven, time and again, that while not necessarily the best way, the UFC's way is the only way, and no matter your take on WSOF's idea, the average mixed-martial-arts fan still has no desire to invest much of their time or money in UFC Lyte or UFC-Jr.

I'm not saying I have all the answers, but I do know, just from reading today's press release, what the WSOF probably shouldn't be doing ... Do they?

Game Changer: World Series Of Fighting To Revolutionize MMA Pay-Per-View Business With Unprecedented Fighter Revenue Sharing Model In 2015

LAS VEGAS, Sept. 23, 2014 -- In a radical move that could forever change the earning potential of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighters, World Series of Fighting (www.wsof.com) has announced that it will enter the pay-per-view business in the second half of 2015 with an unprecedented revenue sharing model that will pay 50 percent of all net revenue earned from live pay-per-view events it produces, to the fighters featured on the telecasts.

"This is a proud day for the sport of mixed martial arts and our organization and one that we hope will create a better opportunity for the fighters who put everything on the line every time they step inside the cage," said World Series of Fighting President, six-time world champion and two-time Hall of Famer Ray Sefo.

"Until now," continued Sefo, "one of the main things holding this sport back from becoming even bigger than it is today has been fighter compensation and the inability of the sport's top athletes to earn on par with top-level professional athletes in other sports.

"If fighters can't earn a fair share of the money at the top," said Sefo, "the fighters lose hope or become disenchanted with the sport, which impacts their commitment to training and preparing properly for title fights. That is about to change, thanks to this major step we are taking -- now fighters will train harder than ever to become a champion, giving the fans some epic championship bouts to enjoy. We want to thank NBC Sports and NBC for giving us such an amazing stage to grow World Series of Fighting since its debut."

Since it launched its live event series on Nov. 3, 2012 with a stellar six-bout fight card on NBC Sports Network that reaches over 80 million homes, World Series of Fighting has effectively been building its brand and on July 5, the promotion made its debut on broadcast television before a live NBC audience of nearly 1 million viewers.

World Series of Fighting has successfully expanded its footprint to over 80 countries and counting with its premier fight programming as part of a multi-year agreement with IMG, the world's leader in sports content distribution.

Additional details about World Series of Fighting's 2015 pay-per-view launch will be announced soon.

Source: World Series of Fighting

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Maybe The UFC Should Book Ronda Rousey For Its Chinese Return

After domestically taking in roughly $37-million, 'The Expendables 3' is poised to easily beat that number in China, according to 'The Hollywood Reporter,' with nearly $34-million in its opening week.

Next year's schedule seems to be quite open. Time to strike while the iron's hot.

Thursday, September 4, 2014

DYNAMIC DUO! WWE’S JIM ROSS AND CHAEL SONNEN TEAM UP TO CALL BATTLEGROUNDS MMA ONE NIGHT, EIGHT-MAN WELTERWEIGHT TOURNAMENT

LIVE ON PPV FROM TULSA, OKLA. ON OCT. 3

TULSA, OK (Sept. 4, 2014) – Two consummate performers in WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross and recently retired UFC superstar Chael Sonnen have teamed up to form what is bound to be one of the most memorable commentary teams in sports entertainment history, and will call the world-class Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) action on the LIVE pay-per-view telecast of BattleGrounds MMA: ‘O.N.E.’ from BOK Center in Tulsa, Oka. on Friday, October 3.

Headlined by the first one-night, eight-man tournament in Tulsa since UFC 4 in 1994, BattleGrounds MMA: ‘O.N.E.’ will award its welterweight (170 pounds) winner a grand prize of $50,000.

BattleGrounds MMA ‘O.N.E.’ will be distributed at a price point of $19.95 in the United States and Canada by Integrated Sports Media for live viewing, beginning at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on October 3 on both cable and satellite pay-per-view carriers iN DEMAND, DirecTV, DISH and Avail-TVN in the United States and Bell TV in Canada. A pre-show will begin at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST.

“As a longtime fan of MMA, to be asked to call the fights for the BattleGrounds MMA event is amazingly exciting for me,” said Ross, a 2007 WWE Hall of Fame inductee. From commentator to referee to executive and even occasional wrestler, Ross has played a multitude of roles for the world’s leading professional wrestling league.

“I've broadcast NFL and XFL games,” continued Ross, “FOX Sports boxing and WWE action, but MMA is a new adventure and one that I'm enormously excited about contributing to. To launch this phase of my broadcasting career in my home state, and with Chael Sonnen at cageside makes it an ideal opportunity and a bucket list experience.

“This is going to be a TV event that any MMA fan won’t want to miss,” said Sonnen, who recently retired from the sport that he competed in as a professional since 1997. A three-time UFC championship challenger, Sonnen fought his last 11 career bouts inside The Octagon and enjoyed a stint as an analyst for FOX Sports Network. “I am thrilled to be working with a legend like Jim Ross and, together, we are going to make the BattleGrounds MMA event one of the most exciting extravaganzas in combat sports history.”

Slated for action in the single-elimination tournament is submission ace Cody “AK Kid” McKenzie (15-4) of Spokane, Wash.; two-time, one-night tournament winner Brock Larson (37-8) of Brainerd, Minn.; hard-hitting brawler Luigi “The Italian Tank” Fioravanti (24-11) of St. Louis, Mo.; Urijah Faber protégé David “Bulletproof” Mitchell (14-4) of Lower Lake, Calif.; Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expert Roan “Jucao” Carneiro (16-9) of Atlanta, Ga.; and Trey “That Just Happened?” Houston (11-2) of Bixby, Okla.

Dennis “Superman” Hallman and Chris Honeycutt, originally slated for action in the tournament, will be replaced by two competitors to be announced soon. Additional bouts for the telecast as well as a preliminary bout card will also be announced soon.

Tickets for the event, priced from $65, can be purchased online at www.bokcenter.com as well as at Arby’s Box Office at the BOK Center, all ticket outlets, or by calling 1-800-7-BOKCTR.

Doors at BOK Center open at 6 p.m. CST on Oct. 3. The first preliminary bout will begin at 7:15 p.m.

About BattleGrounds MMA

BattleGrounds MMA (www.battlegroundsone.com) is a world championship professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) promotion designed to place combative sports athletes on a major stage in the most challenging and exciting format possible: one-night, single-elimination tournaments that reveal the toughest competitors in their respective weight divisions. Launched by Olympic wrestling legend Kenny Monday and Bryan O’Rourke in 2012 as a regional organization in Tulsa, OK to unearth promising new talent in one of MMA’s biggest hotbeds, the promotion is quickly capturing the hearts of fans nationwide as it brings about an exciting new era in the world’s fastest growing sport.

About the BOK Center:

The BOK Center is Tulsa’s state-of-the-art sports and entertainment venue that opened in fall 2008. The 19,199-seat arena is home to the WNBA Tulsa Shock and the CHL Tulsa Oilers. The BOK Center was designed to host major concerts, family shows, ice shows, and other world class entertainment. Owned by the City Of Tulsa, the BOK Center is part of Vision 2025, a project to grow economic and community infrastructure for future generations. In 2011, the BOK Center won the prestigious International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) Venue Excellence Award.

About SMG

Founded in 1977, SMG provides management services to more than 230 public assembly facilities including convention and exhibition centers, arenas, stadiums, theatres, performing arts centers, equestrian facilities, science centers and a variety of other venues. With facilities across the globe, SMG manages more than 14.4 million square feet of exhibition space and over 1.75 million sports and entertainment seats. As the recognized global industry leader, SMG provides venue management, sales, marketing, event booking and programming, construction and design consulting, and pre-opening services for such landmark facilities as McCormick Place & Soldier Field in Chicago, Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, Houston’s Reliant Park and the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. SMG also offers food and beverage operations through its concessions, catering and special events division, SAVOR, currently servicing more than 100 accounts worldwide. For more information visit www.smgworld.com.

SOURCE: Witz End Communications, Inc.