Saturday night the long awaited debut of the UFC on network television will finally be delivered to potential MMA fans across the country. FOX will air Cain Velasquez versus Junior dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight championship. The telecast will air at 8 PM central time on our local channel FOX 4.
The match up is great. Both men are two of the most skilled fighters in the heavyweight division and should deliver a top-notch bout for potential fans. The fight is where questions stop, with presentation being where they begin.
Dana White told Jim Rome earlier this week that the show would feel like a FOX sports presentation but will feature UFC action. He also indicated that the first part of the show would contain an introduction to MMA as well as the competitors. We have seen this before with both Elite XC and Strikeforce.
While it is good to educate the fans of what is going on in the cage, is there really a need to devote an entire segment to it? There is no doubt that some of the audience will be experiencing MMA for the first time but will there actually be that many new viewers on their first foray? It seems that offering more action and less analysis has always been the UFC’s strength.
Analysis is important, but there will be plenty of time for the commentators to provide ample analysis during the fight. Do you remember some of the early Elite XC shows that had a total of 30 minutes of explanation and analysis before the first bout? That always seemed to bring the mood of the show down. Plus those who are not enthralled with anything UFC or MMA will likely look to surf during this period.
Another downer for those who are used to a typical UFC broadcast is the fact that only one bout will be aired. It has been mentioned in the past that it was the call of FOX to only air one bout. Thus, the undercard, which offers some exciting match ups, will have to be viewed on Facebook.
In a nutshell we know that the bout will be great and that the UFC always delivers in that area. What we do not know is if FOX can deliver a solid MMA show. Will it be FOX presenting MMA or the UFC presenting MMA?
Should the bout end in the first round, will fans stick around to hear post fight analysis like they would if prelims were aired to fill time? Do we even know for sure that prelims would not be aired should the heavyweight bout end early?
Questions, questions, questions.
One thing is for sure; the pressure to deliver is on the presentation side not the fight side. Fans of MMA know the product is solid. The fear here is the potential amount of control FOX may have on the presentation side of things with there lack of experience in MMA. FOX knows how to present football and baseball. We will find out tomorrow night if they can present MMA in team effort with the UFC.
Comments