Mailbag: The UFC's Affliction
If the UFC was worried about Affliction's potential as a competitor in the mixed martial arts business prior to Saturday, the stakes were raised considerably after Affliction did an outstanding job with its first show.
The card at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., was solid and featured a litany of the world's elite heavyweights.
The television broadcast, while not perfect, was far superior to CBS' first effort with MMA when it televised an Elite XC event on May 31. There didn't appear to be enough television lighting and the picture on the pay-per-view broadcast came out a bit dark. Additionally, play-by-play man Jay Glazer was frequently way over the top and needs to tone down the shilling about 10 notches.
All in all, though, it was a superb first effort. But the key factor wasn't how good the fights were or how well the broadcast was produced. It was money.
The UFC has been banking on making things so difficult for Affliction that it would lose oodles of money and be forced to cave.
So far, that hasn't occurred. Saturday's show did a gate of nearly $2.1 million, though a source close to the situation said Affliction purchased $500,000 of those tickets itself. Affliction vice president Tom Atencio conceded the company did purchase a large number of the best seats for use for friends and family of the fighters and the company employees, as well as VIPs, but he would not confirm an amount.
But he said the pay-per-view results, which most analysts were expecting to come in around 75,000, was well better than expected.
"I don't have everything on that yet, but for the people who felt this was going to be a total flop in that regard, I have news for them," Atencio said. "It's already done a lot better than what I've heard people speculating. I'm not going to release the (official) number, but it's already well beyond what people have been saying. Well beyond."
Atencio would only say the final number "definitely" would be beyond 100,000.
He already is at work planning a November show and expects to have a site firmed up by the end of the week. While many of the same fighters are expected to appear, Atencio said he's received great interest from fighters from all promotions.
"A lot of the guys are telling us they're not happy with they way they're being treated by whatever promotion it is they're with now, and they're looking at us as a possibility when their contracts run out," Atencio said. "They're telling us they want to be treated as equals and not as just workers and nothing more. It's all about relationships and I have great relationships in this industry."
The salaries disclosed by the California Athletic Commission were higher than those generally released by the UFC, including an unbelievably high $800,000 paid to Tim Sylvia.
Sylvia was never popular in the UFC, but he was willing to fight Fedor Emelianenko, the highly regarded Russian widely considered the world's best heavyweight. Emelianenko, who made $300,000, submitted Sylvia in just 36 seconds in an awesome performance.
Atencio joked that he may have caused people to fall over when they saw what Emelianenko made, since they were aware that the UFC offered a significantly higher purse.
But he said the pay scale was artificially high because Affliction needed to make noise in the industry.
"We had to come out swinging and make a big splash and we did," Atencio said of Saturday's card, which featured five of the world's top 10 heavyweights. "Having said that, we realize this is a business first and that if we don't turn a profit, we're not going to be around. We need to have the guys understand that.
"We know (fighters) want to be treated well and we're willing to work with them, but they have to be willing to work with us. We just can't go out there and throw money around without thought. The guys have to be willing to work with us and can't simply look at us as a cash cow."
The UFC's show on Spike did a 2.1 household rating and peaked at 4.46 million viewers. It dominated in the coveted young male demographic and bested all shows on broadcast and cable television among men 18-34 (903,000 viewers), men 18-49 (1.55 million), men 25-34 (622,000) and persons 18-34 (1.326 million).
Atencio said he realizes the UFC is formidable competition, but he's understandably confident after his highly successful first show.
"You can't deny what they've done and to try would be arrogant and myopic," Atencio said of the UFC. "Listen, I've been a huge fan of the UFC since Day 1. I have loved the UFC for years. The UFC built the brand, they built an organization and they built those fighters. You can't deny that. They're the Q-Tip of this industry. When lay people or new fans run into a fighter, most of them ask, 'Are you an Ultimate Fighter?' And they have to say, 'No, I'm an MMA fighter,' and most people have no idea what MMA is.
"That's a credit to the UFC for how they've built that brand. You can't deny what they've done for the sport. But there is also an opportunity there now. You have to do it right, because they've set the bar very high. But I think there is a good opportunity to go forward and have a successful (promotional company)."
Now, it's time to hear what you thought of the dueling UFC and Affliction cards, who you feel is the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world and the future of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in this week's edition of the mailbag.
My answers are in italics following the questions.
WHO'S THE BEST?
After seeing Saturday night's fights, where do you stand with the best "pound-for-pound" fighter in the world? I think I was brainwashed by the UFC in thinking it was Anderson Silva, but after seeing Fedor take care of business, I don't think he can be beaten.
Rhett Reswick
Arlington, Texas
Over the last few months, I've been voting B.J. Penn first pound-for-pound because of his phenomenal all-around game. After watching Fedor's destruction of Sylvia, I'm inclined to go with Fedor No. 1 followed by Penn, Silva and UFC middleweight champion Georges St. Pierre. Any of the four of them are good enough to be considered No. 1, but I think I'll go with Fedor next time. But it's a fluid and constantly changing process. St. Pierre has a chance to make a big statement against Jon Fitch at UFC 87 on Aug. 9.
FEDOR RULES
Fedor is the best. Period. No one has ever shown such dominance. Like most MMA fans, I have always wondered who would be "The Champ." Now I do know. I don't have to see
Randy Couture vs. Fedor to know the result: Fedor wins hands down, anytime, anywhere.
Randy is one of the greatest but Fedor is the greatest in MMA.
Jeff
Los Angeles
Fedor was extraordinarily impressive, but Couture dominated Sylvia as well. The only difference was that Couture couldn't finish and so he pummeled Sylvia over 25 minutes.
WEAK SHOW
I thought the Affliction card was relatively weak, but was impressed initially by Andrei Arlovski's return as well as Fedor's domination. However, upon more thought, is it fair to say their opponents were overrated? Sylvia hasn't had a solid showing in a while and Ben Rothwell wasn't known outside of the serious fan. The Megadeth performance made it feel too much like a circus, a la Elite XC. I did record the UFC fight and watched it later and felt much different. To me it seemed like a serious sports event without all the chicanery of metal bands rocking between bouts. Will Affliction become a contender and what changes should be made?
Matt Mascari
Valencia, Pa.
I found it a little humorous how many of the hard-core fans dogged Sylvia for so many years, but that when Fedor defeated him suddenly he became this awesome opponent. Sylvia is a good heavyweight, but he's in the lower half of the top 10, in my opinion. Still, Fedor deserves full credit for what he did. And while I agree with your comments on Rothwell; I think Arlovski was sensational. I could do without the music, too, but I think Affliction's show was good overall. The UFC has set a high standard and is going to make it tough on competitors.
WORST REF
After the Anthony Johnson "TKO" debacle at the UFC show on Saturday, is there any question that Steve Mazzagatti is the worst referee in MMA right now? How do you warn a guy multiple times during a fight to watch the poking of the eye, and then award him a TKO decision when he does it so hard that the other guy can't continue to compete?
Bob Marlow
Birmingham, Ala.
I wouldn't say he's the worst referee, but he made a bad mistake on Saturday. For those who missed it (including Steve), Burns threw a jab with an open palm and his finger inadvertently went into Johnson's left eye. Johnson, who was ahead in the fight, went down in obvious pain. Mazzagatti didn't see it and, after a brief hesitation, Burns jumped on Johnson and did a brief ground-and-pound before Mazzagatti stopped it. A referee can't call something he doesn't see, but that's one of those things the referee needs to be in position to see. Burns had done that all night, so it's not like it should have been a surprise to Mazzagatti.
WEIGHT CUT
With clearly no competition at heavyweight, do you think Fedor could actually try to cut weight and make 205? It sure would be nice if the UFC could sign him and add him to their deep 205-pound weight class. Imagine the fights they could make.
Fletch
Orange County, Calif.
Fletch, a lot of fans are talking about this, but I haven't heard a word from Fedor or his people about it. It would be a tough cut for him, I'd think, and I just don't see it happening. Fedor has two more fights on his deal with Affliction, in partnership with M1 Global. I suspect we'll see him fight Josh Barnett and Andrei Arlovski, both of which would be outstanding battles in their own right.
UFC RULES
The fighters in the UFC are the best in the world. I watched a bit of the free televised Affliction event, which was on FSN (two fights only). Everything from the production, the announcing, the huge ring size, etc., was subpar. These other leagues are filled with UFC rejects – former UFC fighters who lost continuously in the only true MMA league, the UFC. There is no other MMA league. UFC is the greatest.
Doug Tuma
Phoenix
Competition is a good thing, Doug. I agree that the UFC has the deepest roster of talent, but certainly not at heavyweight. That may change down the line when Cain Velasquez, Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin are fully developed, but Affliction owns that class now. But with Affliction pushing the UFC for fan and media interest, it's only going to make for better fights and the fans are the winners in that regard.
SET BAR TOO HIGH
Do you think Affliction set the bar too high for its first card? I've heard nothing but good things about the card and overall event, but will they be able to produce event after event with the same excitement?
Noah
Colorado Springs, Colo.
I think they needed to show they are a legitimate organization capable of competing with the UFC and they did that. But it was one fight and the UFC has been doing it for years. The key is being able to do it show after show. That remains to be seen, but have no doubt that many fighters are aware that at least there is an Affliction out there.
LOUSY ANNOUNCERS
Maybe I'm being a bit too critical, but the announcers for this Affliction pay-per-view and the last Elite XC show need to be more in tune with the action and keep their analysis focused on the fighting. During the Matt Lindland-Fabio Nascimento fight on Saturday, Jay Glazer kept repeating that Nascimento was fighting in his own backyard. He must have said this about five times during action. Jay, we heard you already. Also, after the fight "Big" John McCarthy asked Fabio how hitting his head on the outside of the ring affected him. This happened with a minute left in the third round. I seriously doubt it played a role at all, considering the fight was pretty much Lindland's from the start. Big John is a joke announcer and couldn't hold Joe Rogan's jock strap.
Daren
North Massapequa, N.Y.
I wasn't wild about Glazer's performance – he loves MMA, but he does way too much shilling for my taste – but I thought McCarthy was good after a slow start.
FUTURE FOR RAMPAGE
Last week, ex-UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson was arrested for felony evasion and hit and run. Up until this point, he has been a good role model for kids, and a seemingly decent and jovial person. It was obvious that he was going to get caught (he was driving a truck with his picture, name and sponsors on it). Why do you think he would go to the trouble of trying to get away when he knew he would be caught? Is this a sign of psychological issues, or did he just panic?
Matt Nathanson
Boston
Jackson was admitted to a Southern California mental health facility a day after the incident, though he was released and was seen at the Affliction show on Saturday. Jackson has long been a good guy and last week's incident was far out of character. Perhaps it indicates a mental issue of some sort. I simply wish him well and hope he fully recovers, regardless of whether he ever fights again.
