General UFC Chit Chat/News

scudzilla

Deleted User wrote: »

I'd love to see a situation where Forrest Griffin, Rich Franklin, Lil Nog, some more of the older "Legends" can head over and compete against each other.
And the Ultimate fighter rejects from the last few seasons can challenge them. Would make Strikeforce a good proving ground.

I've said this before on another thread a few months ago, a 'Legends' division would be superb, imagine some of the fights that could happen, and would be a sure fire hit on box office/ppv takings

scudzilla

scudzilla wrote: »

I've said this before on another thread a few months ago, a 'Legends' division would be superb, imagine some of the fights that could happen, and would be a sure fire hit on box office/ppv takings

I'd pay to see some anyway

Richy06

I'd prefer to see the top names used as they are being used without creating a standalone division for them. Those who are retired should stay that way as well I feel. Wouldn't want to be tarnishing their legacies! I'm not talking about a permanent switch either for the ones I mentioned.

scudzilla

They could even put on a legends card over here or in the UK, better than the crap they give us now for sure.

Some names off the top of me head

Randy, Chuck, Tito, Big Nog, Wandy, Rich Franklin, Forrest, Arlovski, Herring

Those guys still have a lot to offer and would never get a titale shot again, some retired because that was the case, sure they'd all love to take part in a legends tourney of some sort as once a fighter, always a fighter

Ian Whelan

Ian Freeman - One more time please.

MrStuffins

Deleted User wrote: »

I'd love to see a situation where Forrest Griffin, Rich Franklin, Lil Nog, some more of the older "Legends" can head over and compete against each other.
And the Ultimate fighter rejects from the last few seasons can challenge them. Would make Strikeforce a good proving ground.

I'd have thanked your post but I know Scudzilla has been saying this for ages :P

It's a great idea. I'd really live the idea of having the "older" lads all competing against each other. I mean, i've absolutely no interest in ever seeing Cro Cop fight again. But put him in a Strikeforce main event where he's fighting Randy Couture while Chuck Liddell fights Tito in the Co-Main and i'll bring the popcorn!

Ian Whelan wrote: »

Ian Freeman - One more time please.

Lol! Rematch with Arlovski. He might actually have a chance this time :P

MrStuffins

Leo Dowling wrote: »

They won't be on Facebook anymore?

I presume not.

If UFC now have a platform on which to show their pre-lims, I doubt they will be on Facebook now (although i'm guessing at first they will be on UFC.tv)

MrStuffins

MrStuffins wrote: »

I'd have thanked your post but I know Scudzilla has been saying this for ages :P

It's a great idea. I'd really live the idea of having the "older" lads all competing against each other. I mean, i've absolutely no interest in ever seeing Cro Cop fight again. But put him in a Strikeforce main event where he's fighting Randy Couture while Chuck Liddell fights Tito in the Co-Main and i'll bring the popcorn!



Lol! Rematch with Arlovski. He might actually have a chance this time :P

Yeah I must've picked that up subliminaly haha

Fear Uladh

MrStuffins wrote: »

I'd have thanked your post but I know Scudzilla has been saying this for ages :P

It's a great idea. I'd really live the idea of having the "older" lads all competing against each other. I mean, i've absolutely no interest in ever seeing Cro Cop fight again. But put him in a Strikeforce main event where he's fighting Randy Couture while Chuck Liddell fights Tito in the Co-Main and i'll bring the popcorn!

With pride rules please!

scudzilla

Not going to paste the whole story, link is below if you really wanna read it

MANILA, Philippines (AP)—Manny Pacquiao’s camp says there is no economic sense in setting up a bout with Floyd Mayweather on May 5 after the unbeaten American publicly challenged the Filipino champion via Twitter.

Pacquiao’s financial adviser Michael Koncz told The Associated Press on Thursday that a 45,000-seat boxing arena being built in Las Vegas won’t be finished before the end of May and staging the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight in a smaller venue is “foolish from an economic standpoint.”

Linky : http://sports.yahoo.com/box/news?slug=ap-pacquiao-mayweather


Sure they'll be using that for UFC Events, would more than double Gate Receipts from what they already get in Vegas

El Guapo!

Zelaznik says the UK may get an extra event this year.

LINK

RIO DE JANEIRO – To all the MMA fans in the U.K., get ready: August is a big month for you.

That's when the UFC's deal with ESPN expires, and that's when the UFC could score a new TV contract that could significantly impact the number of events the regions hosts.

Right now, the U.K. is promised one event in 2012. But depending on the TV negotiations, a second could happen before year's end.

"We know fans there are eager," Marshall Zelaznik, the UFC's managing director of international development, today told MMAjunkie.com while in Rio De Janeiro for Saturday's UFC 142 event. "We're working on it."

The U.K. hosted three events in both 2007 and 2008, and it became the first real international-expansion target for Zuffa. But the number dwindled to just two shows in 2009, and a single event in both 2010 and 2011.

While the U.K. shows fewer and farther between, countries such as Canada and Australia hosted more. But Zelaznik said the U.K. could get a reprieve in late summer. One show is already promised for the third or fourth quarter (details TBA), but he said there could be a second.

"The thing that's happening in the U.K. is that our ESPN rights expire in August, so we're in deep negotiations with television networks, and depending on where those go, there might be a real interest in the new partner to say, 'Bring another event,'" said Zelaznik, who recently relocated from the U.K. to the UFC's Las Vegas headquarters. "We're committed to making that mark bigger and bigger (in the U.K.)."

And though some fans have taken the limited offerings as a sign the UFC is ditching the U.K.'s expansion plans, Zelaznik said that's not the case.

"The U.K. can easily take three or four events per year," he said. "We have no doubt it."

Great for us if it works out like that, but then Zelaznik is generally full of shít so you never know!

scudzilla

Dean09 wrote: »

Great for us if it works out like that, but then Zelaznik is generally full of shít so you never know!

Never truer words spoken in this thread, the guy is a complete fcukin tool

El Guapo!

Kenny Florian might have to retire due to injury. It'll be sad to see him go and I always hoped he'd get a title someday. But at least we might see him in the commentary booth a lot more now. He's a quality commentator and analyst.

http://www.mmafighting.com/2012/01/12/kenny-florian-may-retire-from-the-ufc-due-to-back-injury/

Kenny Florian's mixed martial arts career may have come to an end.

The 35-year-old Florian, who three times fought for a UFC belt, told the Boston Herald that a herniated disc in his lower back could prevent him from ever fighting again. Two doctors, one an orthopedist and one a neurologist, have told him that quitting MMA would be the wisest course of action.

"It's possible, unfortunately," Florian said. "I've kind of been going back-and-forth with some of the doctors, so it's possible. I'm going to see. As of right now, obviously I can't compete and train like I was at all. I'm just kind of doing what I can and hoping that things heal up and get better. I'm just kind of in a holding pattern. That's why I decided to do this commentary for the time being and take this next six months to really heal up and try to make some money on the side. It sucks. The last couple of months I've just been figuring out what's going on and what I'm going to do."

Florian last fought on October 8, losing to featherweight champion Jose Aldo. There was some talk immediately following that fight that Florian could retire, but at that time Florian said he still wanted to compete, likely back at lightweight.

However, things changed when Florian suffered a back injury while lifting weights in November. Florian says he has been dealing with tingling and numbness in his right leg since then.

If there's any silver lining for Florian, it's that he has started to build a second career in broadcasting. In other sports, it's common for former athletes to get jobs as announcers after they walk away but in MMA, where broadcasting jobs are scarce, Florian could become something of a trailblazer. He's a natural on television, and the UFC's new deal to put shows on Fox, FX and Fuel means there are more opportunities available for former fighters to make a living behind the microphone.

"It's not good," Florian told the Herald. "That's why I'm trying to stay hopeful. We'll see. I've been out here in (Los Angeles) doing this show every week for UFC Tonight for Fuel TV and doing some other things. I'm just hoping that it can heal up and get better and then see if I can go back to doing what I was doing. So far, I still need to rest. If I go to do something physical, I'm just not able to do it. That pain is coming back."

If Florian is done, he'll leave MMA with a career record of 14-6, including 12-5 in the UFC. Only 10 fighters in UFC history have more career wins than Florian.

DrPhilG

scudzilla wrote: »

Never truer words spoken in this thread, the guy is a complete fcukin tool

You seem to have laid off him on Facebook though buoy should come back. It's great gas sticking the boot into him in there.

Useless hit didn't even update Facebook with the announcement that the Fox shows are going to be on ESPN, I posted it on his page for him.

unknown13

Dean09 wrote: »

Zelaznik says the UK may get an extra event this year.

LINK


Great for us if it works out like that, but then Zelaznik is generally full of shít so you never know!

After the bullshít that has come from Zuffa about the Irish and UK markets in recent years it wouldn't surprise me if Zuffa went with Sky Sports and put the cards on Sky Box office

MrStuffins

unknown13 wrote: »

After the bullshít that has come from Zuffa about the Irish and UK markets in recent years it wouldn't surprise me if Zuffa went with Sky Sports and put the cards on Sky Box office

Again, REALLY can't see this happening. There's 1 million reasons for it.

The market doesn't exist.

UFC don't want it. They want to build the market here.

Sky don't even have Boxing on PPV anymore because they couldn't get the numbers. The only reason they still have WWE is because they have it in their contract. I can't imagine the WWE buy rates are big.

Realistically, the amount of people who will pay for a UFC PPV starting at 3am is way too small to justify putting it on PPV.

The only way I can see UFC on Sky Box Office is if UFC is moved to Sky, they give their programming massive air-time, they show their regular PPVs on Sky Sports 1, UFC put together a massive title fight, possibly featuring a British fighter, and they hold the event in the UK.

But right now, seeing UFC on Sky Box Office is at least 5 years away.

DrPhilG

MrStuffins wrote: »

Again, REALLY can't see this happening. There's 1 million reasons for it.

Exactly. This comes up again and again with people suggestingthat the UK/Irish market is headed for PPV and while I can understand the reasons, (Zuffa constantly screw us, and PPV income is their bread and butter in the US), the reasons against PPV here are overwhelming.

the_doctor199

Worth noting also that the figures for the 3am big fights (Silva/GSP) on ESPN are only at 60k, that would drop significantly if it were a PPV. Would be happy enough to see it go to Sky Sports 1.

MrStuffins

the_doctor199 wrote: »

Worth noting also that the figures for the 3am big fights (Silva/GSP) on ESPN are only at 60k, that would drop significantly if it were a PPV. Would be happy enough to see it go to Sky Sports 1.

Barring a miracle, UFC will be moving from ESPN in August. Where, I dunno, but I wouldn't be surprised if they moved it to FX (due to the FOX deal and the fact that it already has UFC content over here in the form of TUF). And considering FX's schedule consists of 80% re-runs, i'd bet that if that DID happen that FX would also carry the pre-lims too. And from now on (almost) all of the pre-lims are gonna be carried by FOX affiliates in the US so we might be seeing 6 hour UFC broadcasts on TV............. that would be awesome!

DrPhilG

MrStuffins wrote: »

Barring a miracle, UFC will be moving from ESPN in August. Where, I dunno, but I wouldn't be surprised if they moved it to FX (due to the FOX deal and the fact that it already has UFC content over here in the form of TUF). And considering FX's schedule consists of 80% re-runs, i'd bet that if that DID happen that FX would also carry the pre-lims too. And from now on (almost) all of the pre-lims are gonna be carried by FOX affiliates in the US so we might be seeing 6 hour UFC broadcasts on TV............. that would be awesome!

I think they would prefer Sky Sports, although they did make a bit of a poor attempt when they had TUF for a season. I can't see them going exclusively to FX here, they're just not high profile enough. Going from a dedicated sports channel like ESPSN to FX would be a step back. Fine for us as fans, but not great for the UFC's profile in the UK & Ireland.

I think Sky would be a likely destination but it depends on the finances of course.

El Guapo!

If it went to FX that'd be great for us but I can't see it happening (hope I'm wrong though!)
It'll probably move to sky and they'll be able to market the shíte out of it which will hopefully improve the sports popularity and drive it towards mainstream sports coverage.
As MrStuffins said they won't have it PPV unless it's a huge fight with a British fighter involved. Until then it'll just stay on Sky Sports 1 probably.

The downside is we'll have to put up with the usual Sky bullshít and they'll portray Bisping as the greatest fighter to ever walk the earth. :rolleyes:

DrPhilG

Dean09 wrote: »

The downside is we'll have to put up with the usual Sky bullshít and they'll portray Bisping as the greatest fighter to ever walk the earth. :rolleyes:

Is he not?

I thought Gareth A Davies said he was the dog's bo11ocks?

Or maybe it was just that he's a bo11ocks...

MrStuffins

DrPhilG wrote: »

Is he not?

I thought Gareth A Davies said he was the dog's bo11ocks?

Or maybe it was just that he's a bo11ocks...

You owe me a new laptop screen.

Whenever I see this name I punch something with rage!

DrPhilG

MrStuffins wrote: »

You owe me a new laptop screen.

Whenever I see this name I punch something with rage!

GARETH A DAVIES

You need a new keyboard too?

pauldoo

hopefully sky get it, then hype the **** out of bisping, then he beats maia, then ufc want to take advantage of the new found bisping hype and give him silva, then we see hendo v bisping mark 2(thats bisping getting his head taken off-mark 2!)

That would be class!

PPV will eventually happen, but not for a good few years, and not for every event, different culture in UK/Ireland and people wont pay that every 3 weeks or so

pauldoo

http://mmajunkie.com/news/26989/how-to-watch-ufc-on-fx-1-in-canada-u-k-australia-and-international-markets.mma

We can watch the fights this weekend anyway

scudzilla

Kenny Florian has officially been tapped the color commentator for the UFC's second broadcast team.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) today confirmed the new position with UFC officials.

Florian, a current UFC fighter and three-time title challenger, debuts with play-by-plan man and fellow recent hire Jon Anik at Friday's UFC on FX 1 event.

Anik and Florian will handle all broadcast duties not taken by the primary team of Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan. Most of the "B team's" events will air on FX, such as Friday's show at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena, and FUEL TV. Both are FOX-owned channels that have taken over the small shows that previously aired on Spike TV and Versus.

Florian, 35, is no stranger to the broadcast booth. The fighter, who previously hosted "MMA Live" on ESPN (with Anik) and now anchors "UFC Tonight" on FUEL TV (with Todd Harris), previously has filled in for Rogan. For example, when "Fear Factor" taping prevented Rogan from attending this past August's UFC 134 event, Florian filled in as the night's color commentator.

"It's really a vision I had since we started working on 'MMA Live' together – that'd we d be calling UFC fights together," Anik said. "I just really think he's such a natural at it, and he's got a gift of simplyfing things. ... He's going to make my life much easier."

In addition to Florian, fighters such as Frank Mir, Rich Franklin and Stephan Bonnar were considered for the open broadcaster's slot.

Recently, Florian has hinted at a possible retirement from fighting due to a back injury.

Florian (14-6 MMA, 12-5 UFC), who first joined the UFC as an undersized middleweight runner-up on "The Ultimate Fighter 1," twice fought for the lightweight title and once for the featherweight belt. Outside of title fights and title eliminators, he owns a 12-1 UFC record, which includes a 9-1 mark from 2005 to 2008.

Linky : http://mmajunkie.com/news/27000/kenny-florian-tapped-color-commentator-for-ufc-broadcasting-b-team.mma


Good news, He's a really good commentator and knows his shit

Mellor

This was always going to happen with retirement approaching, the back injury only made it happen sooner.

CageWager

scudzilla wrote: »

Kenny Florian has officially been tapped the color commentator for the UFC's second broadcast team.

Awesome news, it's going to be amazing not to have to hear the Goldie canned verbal diarrhea and Rogan losing the run of himself like last weekend. Anik and Florian make for a nice change of pace. An entire evening of fights without the words "slip and rip" being mentioned after every strike sounds just the ticket.

SevereMMA

I prefer Frank Mir