White On The UFC’s Streaming Model, Demetrious Johnson’s New Challenge And Adesanya’s Fighting Talk
Dana White has spoken on the decision of the UFC to move away from pay-per-view to streaming following their move from FOX Sports to ESPN in 2019.
According to reports, the UFC puts on around 40 events per year in an attempt to give fans more value for money. And now White has expanded on the reasons for the decision, which was to keep the company at the top of its game.
The current deal with ESPN will last until 2025, which at that point will require the organization to plan out its next steps. Prior to that, the UFC had been working with DirecTV, Dish Network and inDemand on a pay-per-view basis.
With that being said, White had this to say about the change in direction.
White On The UFC’s Model
“We’ve always been big risk-takers. Obviously, back in the Fertitta days and now with the Ari [Emanuel] and WME days, too. Because when you think about it, at the time when we did the deal with ESPN+, we were butting heads really badly with DirecTV and the cable systems out there.
“And, they basically pushed us to the point [where] Ari and I had talked and we said, ‘You know what, let’s just go ESPN streaming. You know, we were going on a streaming platform, which was incredibly risky at the time, even though you were doing it with Disney and ESPN. Massive risk, these guys were launching this thing, basically we helped them launch ESPN+. But were so tired of the cable side and the satellite side being basically pigs,” White said
The UFC is clearly going through some major changes, as they attempt to deal with the growing competition being provided by other MMA organizations.
The recent merger between the WWE and the UFC demonstrated this as they combined to form ‘TKO Group Holdings.’
This will give fans more opportunities to see crossover events, as wrestlers and MMA stars could have crossover fights. And that will only benefit the sport in that the fan base will grow bigger. And there is no getting away from that.
Demetrious Johnson’s New Challenge
The current ONE Flyweight World Champion Demetrious Johnson has confirmed that he will join the IBJJF Masters World Championships and compete in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in 2023.
Reports indicate that the tournament will take place on August 31st, 2023, until September 2nd in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Johnson will compete in the Master 2 featherweight division. This follows on the back end of his title defense at ONE Fight Night 10 when he beat Adriano Moraes via a unanimous decision.
In addition to this, Johnson has also accepted to take on a bodybuilder in the form of Bradley Martyn. The latter has called out several MMA stars, but it is Johnson who is ready to take on the challenge.
“It’s funny, you know. He’s 265 pounds, he’s a bodybuilder, so obviously he has got the weight advantage. But at the end of the day, that’s the beautiful thing about grappling. It’s not about weight, it’s about technique, and we’re going to try to grapple,” Johnson said
Adesanya On Punishing Strickland
Israel Adesanya has vowed to make Sean Strickland suffer as the pair get ready to face each other on September 9th, 2023, at UFC 293 from Sydney, Australia.
The pair do have a history of trash talking, as they infamously exchanged verbals during their respective fights on the UFC 276 card.
Adesanya was facing Jared Cannonier, but during the presser, Strickland managed to get under the middleweight champion’s skin. And now Adesanya has talked up the fight as the build up begins.
“Just some loudmouth talking over and louder than you to try and seem like he’s got something to say. He has nothing to say really, he just wants to – I know the guy. I’ve seen him. I’ve pressed him before. It’s for show, so I just know what it is.
“That’s why most people are excited about the press conference because that’s his spot to shine, I guess. But I can rap, too. I just decide when I use my mouth and when I don’t. … If he’s talking to me, he’s going to get his jaw broken because when you’re talking, you’re not focused on the task at hand. Look at (Paulo) Costa,”
“I’m not overestimating him. I want to make this look easy. I’m going to make this look easy because of the work that we’re doing right now,” Adesanya
The UFC is currently in a great position as the organization continues to garner attention.
And unlike the sport of boxing, White has managed to do something that boxing has been accused of failing to do: that is to get the best fighters fighting the best.
And as long as that happens, then the UFC will remain in a good place. You can stay up-to-date with the latest happenings in the world of boxing and MMA by visiting boxingblitz right here.
