Should ESPN cover UFC/MMA?

[derekshank]

I only follow 2 sports closely. Football (NCAA and NFL) and MMA. So I get bored by ESPN coverage quicker than most... but I don't understand why they don't give UFC more coverage.

Shows like Around The Horn and PTI spend a great deal of time talking about Hockey, Golf, Soccer, Swimming, and even Boxing. UFC is much more popular than some of those sports... and dwarfs all of them in the men under age 40 demographic.

I was just thinking with personalities like Brock Lesnar, Chuck Liddell, and Tito Ortiz, the mystique of Fedor... and even the antics of Forrest Griffin at UFC 101, that would make far more interesting discussion than whether a swimmer smoked pot.

Besides, ESPN UK just made an agreement with UFC. Why can't we get better coverage here in the U.S.?

[Kazkal]

It would be nice to see them cover some,Could maybe draw in more fans seeing highlights on espn...

[BengalszoneBilly]

I only follow 2 sports closely. Football (NCAA and NFL) and MMA. So I get bored by ESPN coverage quicker than most... but I don't understand why they don't give UFC more coverage.

Shows like Around The Horn and PTI spend a great deal of time talking about Hockey, Golf, Soccer, Swimming, and even Boxing. UFC is much more popular than some of those sports... and dwarfs all of them in the men under age 40 demographic.

I was just thinking with personalities like Brock Lesnar, Chuck Liddell, and Tito Ortiz, the mystique of Fedor... and even the antics of Forrest Griffin at UFC 101, that would make far more interesting discussion than whether a swimmer smoked pot.

Besides, ESPN UK just made an agreement with UFC. Why can't we get better coverage here in the U.S.?

Spike TV covers it very well for me. I get to see it many times a week.

[derekshank]

I only follow 2 sports closely. Football (NCAA and NFL) and MMA. So I get bored by ESPN coverage quicker than most... but I don't understand why they don't give UFC more coverage.

Shows like Around The Horn and PTI spend a great deal of time talking about Hockey, Golf, Soccer, Swimming, and even Boxing. UFC is much more popular than some of those sports... and dwarfs all of them in the men under age 40 demographic.

I was just thinking with personalities like Brock Lesnar, Chuck Liddell, and Tito Ortiz, the mystique of Fedor... and even the antics of Forrest Griffin at UFC 101, that would make far more interesting discussion than whether a swimmer smoked pot.

Besides, ESPN UK just made an agreement with UFC. Why can't we get better coverage here in the U.S.?

Spike TV covers it very well for me. I get to see it many times a week.

I loved watching Inside MMA on HDNet before Time Warner cut the channel. Spike is great for watching fights, but I don't know of any actual news coverage or any type of discussion type programming like ESPN has for every other sport.

Not that I would really respect what Tony Kornheiser thinks about any UFC fighter... but it would still be entertaining. Exactly like anything he says about the NFL.

[Kazkal]

spiketv only seems to cover it the day before a UFC event,tend to get most of my mma info from sherdog.com

[Ickey44]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me. Then again, ESPN has become pretty useless in it's own right. I wish the NFL Network came on cable.

[Kazkal]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me. Then again, ESPN has become pretty useless in it's own right. I wish the NFL Network came on cable.

Boxing is a sport too

[Ickey44]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me. Then again, ESPN has become pretty useless in it's own right. I wish the NFL Network came on cable.

Boxing is a sport too

Not in my book.

[derekshank]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me. Then again, ESPN has become pretty useless in it's own right. I wish the NFL Network came on cable.

What is your definition of a sport? It's not as if we're talking about a couple drunk guys in a bar entertaining us with haymakers.

Every sport boils down to an athlete competing against another athlete. Some sports involve geting a ball into a net, hoop, or carrying it over a goalline. Some sports involve swinging a bat or a club, others are about outrunning, outrowing, or outjumping your opponent. But it always boils down to a competition of athlete vs. athlete. MMA very well may be the purest form of that ideal.

I have been doing MMA for a short while, and anyone with any experience doing so understands how technical it is... not just guys trying to beat eachother to death. Some view it is barbaric, but it truly is an intelligent man's sport. Boxing skill and technique is just the tip of the iceberg. After all the stand up fighting, the groundwork is second to none. There are countless ways to lock and twist and turn. Anyone with any MMA experience would agree with me. Behind the big knockout punches that take place is a finely tuned science. It's really a perfect mix of mind and body. A physical chess game. Learning the value of patience as you wait for your opponent to make a mistake, and then the presence of mind, calmness, and quickness to take advantage of that mistake.

Whether or not some find it entertaining or watchable is fine... but it is certainly a sport. In my opinion, it is the purest of all sports.

[Ickey44]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me. Then again, ESPN has become pretty useless in it's own right. I wish the NFL Network came on cable.

What is your definition of a sport?

Some sports involve geting a ball into a net, hoop, or carrying it over a goalline. Some sports involve swinging a bat or a club, others are about outrunning, outrowing, or outjumping your opponent. But it always boils down to a competition of athlete vs. athlete.

That about sums it up. Punching and kicking have no place in sports in my mind. MMA and boxing are more of a contest than a sport. In my opinion sports involve teams, not individuals. I don't think any sport should be about the intent to hurt the opponent.

I guess by definition it is a sport, but I don't think of it that way. Just like I don't think golf or poker are sports, but ESPN shows it anyway.

[derekshank]

That about sums it up. Punching and kicking have no place in sports in my mind. MMA and boxing are more of a contest than a sport. In my opinion sports involve teams, not individuals.

Well to each his own. As long as you understand that your definition is completely subjective and arbitrary and based simply on your opinion, I guess I have no problem with it.

I'll bet there are plenty of people who play Tennis would have a real hard time with your opinion of team vs. individual in the definition of the term 'sport' though.

"Sport" as defined by dictionary.com is: "an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc."

I don't think any sport should be about the intent to hurt the opponent.

I guess by definition it is a sport, but I don't think of it that way. Just like I don't think golf or poker are sports, but ESPN shows it anyway.

There again, I think you miss the point. In grappling competitions the intent is never to hurt your opponent, but to submit them. In karate competitions, the goal is not to hurt your opponent, but to score points with quickness (similar to fencing).

When you mix every style of martial arts into one competition, yes people will get hurt. When the UFC started, it was about finding the most effective fighting style. The best way to do so is to make a knock-out part of the game. Violent? Yes. Barbaric? That's subjective.

People also get hurt in a game where the goal is to knock the person holding the ball on the ground. It's a contact sport. Injuries will occur. In MMA, the goal of "most" fighters is not to hurt their opponent, but to win the match. Like I said previously... some find the sport too barbaric. Some also find the NFL too barbaric. The fact that a sport is physical and/or violent doesn't determine whether or not it is a sport.

[Ickey44]

Well, in wrestling and karate, the object is to score points. There are rules in place to keep you from hurting or injuring the opponent. In MMC or boxing, the object is to get your opponent to submit, and that normally means inflicting pain. I just don't see that as a sport or derive any entertainment from it. To each their own, though. I'm in the minority on this one and I know that.

[derekshank]

I just don't see that as a sport or derive any entertainment from it. To each their own, though. I'm in the minority on this one and I know that.

Fair enough on the entertainment aspect. I know it's not for everybody... and is mostly only for men between 16 and 35. So I understand there is a niche demographic for it.

That said, I don't think something's entertainment value has any bearing on whether it is a sport. I find baseball painfully boring. I'd rather watch CSPAN for entertainment than Tennis. That doesn't make either one of them less of a sport. And given that the ratings for UFC Pay-Per-View events get far better ratings than almost every sport other than football, I think it's time for ESPN to acknowledge it.

If a few people think it's a waste of time, then you know how I feel when ESPN covers anything that isn't football (especially hockey).

[BengalPimp]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me. Then again, ESPN has become pretty useless in it's own right. I wish the NFL Network came on cable.

What is your definition of a sport?

Some sports involve geting a ball into a net, hoop, or carrying it over a goalline. Some sports involve swinging a bat or a club, others are about outrunning, outrowing, or outjumping your opponent. But it always boils down to a competition of athlete vs. athlete.

That about sums it up. Punching and kicking have no place in sports in my mind.

Obviously you've never played football, and been on the bottom of the pile....kicking punching,biting,shots to the nads.....i've seen it all.

[BengalszoneBilly]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me.

C'mon Ickey. Hockey is useless to me, as is soccer, but both remain sports. Just not the ones I watch.

Now if the WNBA started playing "shirts vs. skins", I'd be watching the s**t out of that!

[Kazkal]

That about sums it up. Punching and kicking have no place in sports in my mind. MMA and boxing are more of a contest than a sport. In my opinion sports involve teams, not individuals. I don't think any sport should be about the intent to hurt the opponent.

You like Roy WIlliams & Rey Maualuga don't you? You want them to crush the steelers don't you?

[Ickey44]

That about sums it up. Punching and kicking have no place in sports in my mind. MMA and boxing are more of a contest than a sport. In my opinion sports involve teams, not individuals. I don't think any sport should be about the intent to hurt the opponent.

You like Roy WIlliams & Rey Maualuga don't you? You want them to crush the steelers don't you?

On the scoreboard, yeah. I want them to beat the Steelers so bad that Hines loses that prissy smile. I want them to beat the Steelers so bad that after the game Ben says he'd rather fly face first into a windshield at 50mph again than lose that bad. But I don't want them to intentionally hurt anyone.

[Ickey44]

I really don't consider it a sport. It's just two people beating the crap out of each other. Much like boxing, it's pretty useless to me.

C'mon Ickey. Hockey is useless to me, as is soccer, but both remain sports. Just not the ones I watch.

Now if the WNBA started playing "shirts vs. skins", I'd be watching the s**t out of that!

I wasn't implying that it wasn't a sport because it's useless to me. I was saying that I don't consider it a sport because it's two people fighting. Fighting is just that, fighting.

But as I've already admitted, by definition it IS a sport. Just not in my opinion.

[COB]

Fighting can be a sport. There's still room for lots of combat sports on tv.

I'll be pitching my new sport to ESPN pretty soon. I'm hoping for just half an hour a week, to get started, probably late on Wednesday night after they show a baseball game.

My league is called the TDL, stands for Throwback Dueling League. We'll go around to small towns and find two locals who hate each other. Then we'll spend about 15 minutes of the show following them around as they show what douchebags they are. Like, one guy will let his stripper girlfriend go to work, then he'll leave to go drink and do random vandalism, leaving his two-year-old home alone in the trailer. Bad parenting!

And the other guy will be like beating his girlfriend, getting tattoos all the time, and just annoying the whole town as he drives around in his sled 1983 camaro with hardly any muffler left.

After 15 minutes the audience completely hates these guys. Then we show about 4 minutes of beer and pickup truck ads.

Finally, we get these two guys together. They do their usual macho posturing, spitting all over the place as they yell threats at each other. We get a few local townspeople to look on in a horrified fashion. Finally, one challenges the other to a duel. The other guy knows he's on tv, so he can't be a p***y and say no.

Then out to the Dueling Grounds outside town! It'll usually be the site of the local industry that went out of business ten years ago. Cracked pavement with weeds growing through, derelict buildings, tumbleweeds blowing by, you get the drift.

Like if we're in Michigan, it will be an old abandoned chrysler plant. If we're in New England, it'll be the old abandoned textile mill. If we're in West Virginia, it'll be the old abandoned factory where all the hillbillies had sex with their relatives.

Here's where the fun starts. The two duelers won't know what weapons they'll be using until we get them out to the dueling grounds. One episode, we'll make them use pistols. Then swords. One day we'll surprise everyone by making them hack each other to death with sharpened grapefruit spoons.

Then my favorite: We give them both old 32 inch tube style televisions plugged in with long extension cords. Both TVs will be playing something totally offensive, like a Julia Roberts movie. Then they both charge each other and try to bash each other to death with the TVs still playing, say, Pretty Woman on one, and Steel Magnolias on the other.

They both are allowed to come to the dueling grounds with seconds. Since they're both retards, one guy will probably bring his toothless cousin, and the other guy will bring him Mom or his grandma. We'll let the seconds babble some incoherent s**t to the camera before the duel.

Then right before we start the duel, we cut away and show like 5 minutes of ads for that "How To Pickup Girls" dvd series that Agreen talked about a few months ago, and more beer and truck ads also. Cha f**king Ching.

Then back to the duel. Our contestants fight to the death. The audience hates them both. So after one kills the other, we have the audience vote on their sprint phones or however American Idol does it, (second revenue stream) and if the audience votes NO, the guy who won the duel gets killed by all the local townspeople who came out to watch the duel, and all probably hate the guy anyway. If the voters let him live, we give him the Aaron Burr award, which we will explain to him.

Monster ratings will be forthcoming. I'll ace out American Idol, and probably hire Paula Abdul to get high on our show and slur all her words for everyone's amusement.

Take that Dana White. Take that Simon Cowell. Take that all other tv people who's names I can't think of right now.

[redsbengalsbucks]

Fighting can be a sport. There's still room for lots of combat sports on tv.

I'll be pitching my new sport to ESPN pretty soon. I'm hoping for just half an hour a week, to get started, probably late on Wednesday night after they show a baseball game.

My league is called the TDL, stands for Throwback Dueling League. We'll go around to small towns and find two locals who hate each other. Then we'll spend about 15 minutes of the show following them around as they show what douchebags they are. Like, one guy will let his stripper girlfriend go to work, then he'll leave to go drink and do random vandalism, leaving his two-year-old home alone in the trailer. Bad parenting!

And the other guy will be like beating his girlfriend, getting tattoos all the time, and just annoying the whole town as he drives around in his sled 1983 camaro with hardly any muffler left.

After 15 minutes the audience completely hates these guys. Then we show about 4 minutes of beer and pickup truck ads.

Finally, we get these two guys together. They do their usual macho posturing, spitting all over the place as they yell threats at each other. We get a few local townspeople to look on in a horrified fashion. Finally, one challenges the other to a duel. The other guy knows he's on tv, so he can't be a p***y and say no.

Then out to the Dueling Grounds outside town! It'll usually be the site of the local industry that went out of business ten years ago. Cracked pavement with weeds growing through, derelict buildings, tumbleweeds blowing by, you get the drift.

Like if we're in Michigan, it will be an old abandoned chrysler plant. If we're in New England, it'll be the old abandoned textile mill. If we're in West Virginia, it'll be the old abandoned factory where all the hillbillies had sex with their relatives.

Here's where the fun starts. The two duelers won't know what weapons they'll be using until we get them out to the dueling grounds. One episode, we'll make them use pistols. Then swords. One day we'll surprise everyone by making them hack each other to death with sharpened grapefruit spoons.

Then my favorite: We give them both old 32 inch tube style televisions plugged in with long extension cords. Both TVs will be playing something totally offensive, like a Julia Roberts movie. Then they both charge each other and try to bash each other to death with the TVs still playing, say, Pretty Woman on one, and Steel Magnolias on the other.

They both are allowed to come to the dueling grounds with seconds. Since they're both retards, one guy will probably bring his toothless cousin, and the other guy will bring him Mom or his grandma. We'll let the seconds babble some incoherent s**t to the camera before the duel.

Then right before we start the duel, we cut away and show like 5 minutes of ads for that "How To Pickup Girls" dvd series that Agreen talked about a few months ago, and more beer and truck ads also. Cha f**king Ching.

Then back to the duel. Our contestants fight to the death. The audience hates them both. So after one kills the other, we have the audience vote on their sprint phones or however American Idol does it, (second revenue stream) and if the audience votes NO, the guy who won the duel gets killed by all the local townspeople who came out to watch the duel, and all probably hate the guy anyway. If the voters let him live, we give him the Aaron Burr award, which we will explain to him.

Monster ratings will be forthcoming. I'll ace out American Idol, and probably hire Paula Abdul to get high on our show and slur all her words for everyone's amusement.

Take that Dana White. Take that Simon Cowell. Take that all other tv people who's names I can't think of right now.

Wow, remind me when this is coming on I dont want to lower my perception of TV this much just yet.

[Ickey44]

That's, unfortunately, pretty close to a lot of garbage on TV these days. Remember what TV was like before "reality" shows? It wasn't much better, but it was definitely better.

[Kazkal]

Well watched my first Women MMA and probably be my last just not all that impressive outside of Gina being hot...

Seemed like her and Cyborg both gassed 2minutes in too the fight.

[derekshank]

Well watched my first Women MMA and probably be my last just not all that impressive outside of Gina being hot...

Seemed like her and Cyborg both gassed 2minutes in too the fight.

I don't know. It was entertaining while it lasted. Them being tired was just because of Cyborg's strategy. She knew Gina was a better technical fighter, so she wanted to come out and overpower her early hoping to keep it from going the distance. It was disappointing, but just like with the men... the headliner is almost never the fight of the night.

Did you see Babalu? That was brutal!

[Kazkal]

Ya he got destroyed fast,Guess gina/cyborg wasn't that bad gina had some nice striking & cyborg had some nice submissions just surprised how fast they gassed....Gina it was alittle more understandable be cause she constantly had her arm locked around cyborg's neck which I know guillotine drains the power out of your arms

btw some pics for billy

[COB]

I listened to an mma fighter on Sirius yesterday talk about this fight. He said it is very obvious to him and the rest of the MMA world that Cyborg has taken significant steroids in the past. He also said she appears to have been into weightlifting. He didn't criticize her for it, and didn't come off sounding even bothered by it. Also said at the weigh in Gina looked physically overmatched by the much larger Brazilian.

Just as an aside he also talked about the reverence that most MMA guys have for BJ Penn. He said Penn has unreal ability, and mentioned in regards to his loss to GSP that the only people who can hang with Penn are guys who are 20 pounds heavier and totally lubed up.