UFC is coming to FOX

[StickyGreenGamer]

If I had a dollar for every time someone made a comment about men groping each other...

And Saturday night on FOX, not FOX Sports is a great time. FOX is the number 1 cable channel in homes. If you think about it, a UFC PPY event on Saturday nights reaches 1.5 million people. Imagine, if a 50 dollar PPV on a night that isn't supposedly "prime tv", what the most watched channel can do for the UFC. If it were FOX Sports Network, I'd totally agree with you about Saturday night.

I didn't mean it was on the Fox Sports channel. I was referring to the quality of the anchors and commentators Fox uses for sports.

There is a huge difference between PPV and Fox though. For one, commercials. Fox is also the #1 channel in homes because of the programming offered through the weekdays, and Sundays. Saturday is their weakest lineup, almost always has been. They won't be satisfied just drawing in the UFC regular crowd, they'll want more, and on Saturdays they simply don't have the programming to lead into with, or keep the viewers around after.

I just watched two guys beating up eachother, do I really want to stick around after and watch Cops?

 

[GRColin]

It isn't happening until 2012 so they may be making some lineup changes to their Saturday programming? Who knows? For the UFC though, it has the potential to draw in more viewers than they did on Spike. Spike was a predominantly male demographic channel and FOX is more robust, so I can see the appeal of it to the UFC. And I mean, yes it is "two guys beating each other up" but there's a level of skill involved and it's a physical chess match of sorts. It is a craft. I think this deal could work to bring in more viewers to the UFC. Remember, people used to watch boxing on network TV.

 

[daverabbit]

I don't watch much of the UFC or MMA in general but Dana White seems to be incredibly smart when making these kind of business decisions.

 

[Diabolus]

Emelianenko isn't overrated, he is outdated. Just like Chuck, Wand, Tito, Coleman, etc.

 

[StickyGreenGamer]

It isn't happening until 2012 so they may be making some lineup changes to their Saturday programming? Who knows? For the UFC though, it has the potential to draw in more viewers than they did on Spike. Spike was a predominantly male demographic channel and FOX is more robust, so I can see the appeal of it to the UFC. And I mean, yes it is "two guys beating each other up" but there's a level of skill involved and it's a physical chess match of sorts. It is a craft. I think this deal could work to bring in more viewers to the UFC. Remember, people used to watch boxing on network TV.

I'm not trying to trivialize the sport by referring to it in such a way. Just a simple categorization I like to use. I understand the skill involved, how much training and work goes into it. I may not personally care for it, or the style its presented, but I'm in no way bashing or meaning to get down on it.

As far as Fox changing the programming though...I don't think so. Cops has been the Saturday Fox staple for a LONG time. They canceled AMW, though no one is truly quite sure why. But Fox also appeals to a lot more of the...well, I don't know, I don't think sandwiching UFC fights inbetween "special" episodes of Glee or American Idol will do any three of those programs justice as far as viewer tune-in.