Star Power of Top Fighters is Pushing MMA into the Spotlight
(SPONSORED CONTENT) -- Like any other athletic contest, the
Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) depends on a handful of
charismatic personalities to create excitement and put fans in
their seats.
Combat sports have been a part of our society since ancient times, with boxing, wrestling and other forms of organized fighting present throughout human history. Still, these violent battles of will, skill and stamina are often criticized for their brutality and possibility for serious injury to competitors. No sport has been more controversial than mixed martial arts, a unique combination of multiple fighting disciplines with very permissive rules, but that didn’t prevent its most prominent promotion -- Ultimate Fighting Championships -- from attaining global popularity and securing huge sponsorship deals. In fact, the UFC brand was sold to new owners in 2016 for a jaw-dropping price of $US 4 billion, which goes to illustrate how far this innovative sports has moved in just a few short decades since it was invented.
Since its humble beginnings in the early 1990’s, UFC has
relied on the pay-per-view model to broadcast its matches to
international audiences. That’s hardly exceptional, since major
boxing bouts are usually restricted to this channel as well,
helping to turn viewer’s interest into direct revenues. However,
mixed martial arts is a discipline where anything goes, even more
dynamic and unpredictable than other fighting competitions, which
makes it tailor-made for on-demand television. All the viewers
subscribing to a match know what to expect and they are eagerly
waiting to witness the bloody battles in the ring that often mark
UFC events. The wide variety of fighting styles is another key
box-office draw, since the sport features many supremely talented
fighters capable of winning with their hands or legs, depending on
the situation.
In recent years, MMA has shed the aura of obscurity and grown into a premium entertainment product. This would never be possible without larger-than-life figures at the top of the sport, fierce warriors who are fascinating to watch inside the ring and often in the news for their behavior outside of it. Athletes such as Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor are fantastic competitors who earned championship belts in their respective weight classes, but they are also media celebrities on par with the tennis stars or Formula 1 drivers. Thanks to their visibility and name recognition, MMA has leapfrogged less visually attractive full contact sports such as grappling or judo and joined the elite group of professional athletic competitions that bask in the limelight -- and create tons of money for everyone involved.
Since UFC events draw millions of viewers from around the world, there is a significant amount of betting action of top matches. If you are regularly checking the odds at William Hill and other major bookmakers, you already know that every UFC event is represented and usually prominently positioned on the site. Since placing a bet on an individual fighter is easier than predicting a performance of a whole team, an army of interested bettors are lining up to pick the winner and collect some easy cash every time two top-tier fighters collide. There may be a positive feedback loop between these two aspects of MMA fandom -- dedicated viewers might be tempted to place a bet on the bout they intend to watch anyway, while people who mostly bet on other sports could be motivated to follow UFC fighters more closely if they have a financial stake in their success.
While the long-term prognosis for UFC looks very optimistic, we shouldn’t forget this sport has only been around for a short time and still doesn’t have Olympic status. In the eyes of many purists, mixed martial arts is just a quirky combination of more fundamental fighting disciplines, and it will take some time before it gains universal acceptance. New generation of stars is breaking important barriers in this respect, winning over fans and motivating youngsters to start practicing mixed martial arts and potentially join the professional circuit one day. Without a doubt, this exciting sport is here to stay and it will likely continue its stellar growth in the coming years, while its storied champions can count on even more lucrative business opportunities and mainstream popularity that knows no geographic limits.
Combat sports have been a part of our society since ancient times, with boxing, wrestling and other forms of organized fighting present throughout human history. Still, these violent battles of will, skill and stamina are often criticized for their brutality and possibility for serious injury to competitors. No sport has been more controversial than mixed martial arts, a unique combination of multiple fighting disciplines with very permissive rules, but that didn’t prevent its most prominent promotion -- Ultimate Fighting Championships -- from attaining global popularity and securing huge sponsorship deals. In fact, the UFC brand was sold to new owners in 2016 for a jaw-dropping price of $US 4 billion, which goes to illustrate how far this innovative sports has moved in just a few short decades since it was invented.
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In recent years, MMA has shed the aura of obscurity and grown into a premium entertainment product. This would never be possible without larger-than-life figures at the top of the sport, fierce warriors who are fascinating to watch inside the ring and often in the news for their behavior outside of it. Athletes such as Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor are fantastic competitors who earned championship belts in their respective weight classes, but they are also media celebrities on par with the tennis stars or Formula 1 drivers. Thanks to their visibility and name recognition, MMA has leapfrogged less visually attractive full contact sports such as grappling or judo and joined the elite group of professional athletic competitions that bask in the limelight -- and create tons of money for everyone involved.
Since UFC events draw millions of viewers from around the world, there is a significant amount of betting action of top matches. If you are regularly checking the odds at William Hill and other major bookmakers, you already know that every UFC event is represented and usually prominently positioned on the site. Since placing a bet on an individual fighter is easier than predicting a performance of a whole team, an army of interested bettors are lining up to pick the winner and collect some easy cash every time two top-tier fighters collide. There may be a positive feedback loop between these two aspects of MMA fandom -- dedicated viewers might be tempted to place a bet on the bout they intend to watch anyway, while people who mostly bet on other sports could be motivated to follow UFC fighters more closely if they have a financial stake in their success.
While the long-term prognosis for UFC looks very optimistic, we shouldn’t forget this sport has only been around for a short time and still doesn’t have Olympic status. In the eyes of many purists, mixed martial arts is just a quirky combination of more fundamental fighting disciplines, and it will take some time before it gains universal acceptance. New generation of stars is breaking important barriers in this respect, winning over fans and motivating youngsters to start practicing mixed martial arts and potentially join the professional circuit one day. Without a doubt, this exciting sport is here to stay and it will likely continue its stellar growth in the coming years, while its storied champions can count on even more lucrative business opportunities and mainstream popularity that knows no geographic limits.
