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Give us those other 4-5 UFC PPV fights for our $50

By Rod Hood | April 22, 2008

Every time I discuss the fight results after a UFC event I hear my friends say they feel cheated out of the under card fights. They pay anywhere from $40-$50 for the PPV and only get to see 5 of the fights and there is always a quick knockout or submission and rarely but once in a while a disappointing fight that wasn’t as good as a couple of the under card fights. This past UFC 83 event was a perfect example where we all wasted 15 minutes of our life that we’ll never get back again watching Kalib Starnes retreating around the cage and Nate Quarry chasing in hot pursuit while the submission of the night took place un-televised. But don’t worry you can go on line and buy those other 4 fights on UFC on-demand.

Some interesting UFC financial information was revealed recently, I’m sure the source was reliable but understand I’m only sharing what I saw. After I read this I found myself thinking “come on Dana share the love man, the fans are what made the UFC successful give us all 9 fights for the money.”

Here is the UFC rags to riches summary.

Fertittas paid $2 million for UFC in 2001 and it is estimated to be valued at over $1 billion-plus today. UFC estimated 2008 sales are $250 million. The growth in pay-per-view buys in 2001 was 145,000 UFC pay-per-view buys in 2007: 5.1 million and today the average UFC pay-per-view event will draws 3 million male viewers the same as a big college football GAME.

The average ticket price of a live UFC event in 2007 was $250. Typically 10,000 to 14,000 fans will fill the arena, paying an average of $340 for a ticket to witness nine mixed martial arts fights. Another 500,000 fans paid $45 ($55 for high definition) to watch five of the nine fights at home. The total haul from the event: $25 million.

This year UFC is likely to generate $250 million, capturing perhaps 90% of mixed martial arts revenue. The majority of UFC revenues come from the monthly pay-per-view events.

Makes you ask the question why the viewers of the PPV are only getting 5 or 6 fights for their money. The UFC is a great success because of the fans and now it is time to give back to those who made it successful. With the other venues on Showtime and HD Net and free TV entering into the picture how long can the UFC continue to short the Fans and charge $50 for 5 fights.

What’s your thoughts on this?

Topics: UFC |

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