The UFC + Tito Ortiz = ...
by Luke Thomas on Mar 18, 2008 10:16 AM EDT
in MMA News
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The two fights with Shamrock were the gateway for Ortiz to earn a second go-round with Chuck Liddell. The UFC parlayed the matchup into what was at the time, the biggest fight in MMA history. Liddell-Ortiz 2 at UFC 66 in December 2006 produced the top MMA gate ever in Las Vegas ($5.4 million) but the real take came in a record of more than $40 million in pay-per-view buys.
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And while Ortiz , who intends to fight another three years, is no longer a top-flight contender at 205 pounds or the drawing card he once was, he's still one of the top five "name fighters" in the sport today. He's a polarizing figure capable of stirring the pot, selling a fight and generating ticket sales.
There's no doubt in my mind a fight with Machida does three things for Dana White's aims: it undercuts the name value of Ortiz since Machida isn't much of a draw, it creates the serious potential for an Ortiz loss given Machida's talent, and in the event of a win, does little for Ortiz since Machida is, well, not much of a known quantity to fans. White couldn't have created a better sabotaging agent in the laboratory with Dr. Frankenstein.
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Re: The UFC + Tito Ortiz = ...
Seems to me that every time the UFC has a main event it is billed as the "biggest fight in MMA history."
Wasn't that Chuck vs. Rampage? And then Rampage vs. Henderson? And then Silva vs. Chuck? And then Silva vs. Henderson?
Re: The UFC + Tito Ortiz = ...
by Richard Wade on Mar 18, 2008 5:33 PM EDT up reply actions
Re: The UFC + Tito Ortiz = ...
Re: The UFC + Tito Ortiz = ...
I'm often amazed at how many "hardcore" fans write the last portion off with a "Tito sucks," statement. While Ortiz hasn't convincingly beat anyone of note in quite some time, as the article points out he's very much a known quantity (probably even more so after his stint on a network television reality show). In the end the UFC makes its money on the backs of the casual viewer and the casual viewer probably knows who Tito Ortiz is, so why didn't they (translation: Dana) put their personal issues aside and cash in on his recent reality show television fame? I'm sure a lot more eyes saw that gigantic bleached dome on Trump's horrible reality show than during the 3rd Shamrock fight on Spike (because Network > Cable).
I think the UFC is making a financial mistake here no mater what. Not signing Ortiz means that the 10 year anniversary fight of Ortiz/F. Shamrock will most likely happen, and that has the potential to be the biggest non-UFC event ever (again, because it's not about what the hardcore fans want, it's about the casual fan--additionally both of those guys can and will sell the shit out of that fight). If they do re-sign Tito, they've diminished his stock (regardless of the outcome) in the eyes of the casual fan--which means less money for them.
All that said, I really like the match-up. Tito needs to fight someone to show whether or not he can still cut it, and Machida has yet to face someone (in the UFC) who will try to put him on his back and keep him there (i.e. a big wrestler).
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