Dana White and UFC Working on Expansion Into Mexico, Talking About Japan
by Kid Nate on Jul 15, 2009 10:03 PM EDT
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First, they're following their proven blueprint in Mexico, per MMA Junkie:
Prior to the milestone UFC 100 event, Grupo Televisa, the largest media conglomerate in the Spanish-speaking world, announced the airing of UFC 100 would "mark the beginning of a strategic alliance" between the company and the UFC. It was a huge coup for the UFC, which has long had its eye on the country and its 112 million citizens.
...
Dana White: "We start on free TV. We start educating people on the sport. We start traveling around Mexico and do doing all the things that I did in the United State from radio to television, meeting with all the different people who probably oppose it and think it's bad and start trying to educate people.
"We'll then a bring live event down there. And then we'll continue bringing live events down there."
There's also talk of doing a reality show season featuring Mexican fighters. White is also talking about eventually doing a Mexico vs the U.S.A. or Mexico vs Canada season of The Ultimate Fighter. I really hope he doesn't do that. Maybe Mexico vs Canada, but tensions tend to be too high for me to be comfortable with a Mexico vs the U.S.A season of TUF. Otherwise though, I think the Mexican and U.S. Hispanic markets are natural targets for the UFC and I'm very excited to see the work they're putting into it. Now if they can just get Roger Huerta to pull his head out of his ass...
I'm also pleased to see that Dana is now talking like he can't be stopped from bringing the UFC to Japan:
Dana White said the Ultimate Fighting Championship is heading to Japan.
To date the organization has hosted just four events in the country, the most recent of which was "UFC 29: Defense of the Belts," held in Tokyo eight-and-a-half years ago.
Although "dirty, sneaky, bad guys in Japan" allegedly don't want him there, White said they'll need "to kill me" to keep him out....
"They're going to have to kill me," White said. "That's where they're going to have to do. We're coming there no matter what. We're coming there. We're going to break through this thing. We're going to get past these dirty, sneaky, bad guys in Japan, and we're going to make it happen.
I still think the signing of Akiyama (and his and Stun Gun Kim's success in the Octagon) plus the failure to sign Satoshi Ishii makes South Korea a more likely first Asian destination than Japan, I will be rooting for Dana to risk his life to bring the UFC to Japan.
The Cro Cop signing gives them another legitimate draw in Japan, but I honestly think he'll be valuable enough just on European cards even if there is no move to Japan. Micheal Bisping's bad, awful, terrible no good day at UFC 100 has to crimp the UK plans just a tiny bit, but I expect their prospects there are more seriously impeded by their failure to get a good TV partner. It could be a very very long time before there is a British champion in the UFC.
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still no news about the Philippines.. :(
And I thought they’d go here first before any other Asian country.. It’s an easier market to build. In fact, it’s already a slamdunk that they’d sell.. I still don’t get what happened to UFC Philippines 09 to no news at all..
Hows the economy in the Philippines my fellow Filipino? I’ve always been under the impression that it isn’t great. I figure the UFC probably doesn’t feel they’d be able to draw the kind of gate they usually get by going to the Philippines.
by filipinomix2oo0 on Jul 16, 2009 12:31 AM EDT up reply actions
the economy is sort of the same... (not good still. haha)
but everytime celebrities, singers and bands come here, people flock to them and spend like there’s no tomorrow.. 40000 or 60000, im not sure exactly, went to watch Chris Brown..
Sure they won’t break any of the million vegas gate records, but i’m sure they’d sell out the Araneta Coliseum..
by Anton Tabuena on Jul 16, 2009 3:43 AM EDT up reply actions
It seems like they would be there first if Vera and/or Nover would have had more success.
I dislike Matt Hughes and Twidder.
by MonkeyCHops on Jul 16, 2009 12:45 AM EDT up reply actions
Latino Market is that last frontier in North America and Zuffa is gobbling it up… 25 million tuned into UFC 100 south of the border.
by mmalogic on Jul 15, 2009 10:04 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
Wow. I really thought Huerta bitching out would’ve hurt that market. Thank God for Cain, right?
How's the weather up your own ass? - Stephen Colbert
by Derek Suboticki on Jul 15, 2009 10:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Huerta bitching out is bupkus… Diego the “nightmare” sanchez is taking mexican classes as we speak. err I mean spanish classes.
He doesn’t know Spanish? Dude has an accent lol.
GSP: I pulled my groin.
Greg Jackson: I don't care Georges! HIT HIM WITH YOUR GROIN!
by xFenixKnightx on Jul 16, 2009 12:13 AM EDT up reply actions
Banuelos should get a promotion too. He’s fun to watch. Maybe bring back Buentello if he beats Yvel.
How's the weather up your own ass? - Stephen Colbert
by Derek Suboticki on Jul 16, 2009 12:22 AM EDT up reply actions
Wow.
"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito Ortiz on Vitor Belfort at Affliction:DOR
by Rundownloser on Jul 16, 2009 12:07 AM EDT up reply actions
25 million? Holy crap!!!
I bet they loved Hendo KTFO of Bisping lol!
GSP: I pulled my groin.
Greg Jackson: I don't care Georges! HIT HIM WITH YOUR GROIN!
by xFenixKnightx on Jul 16, 2009 12:12 AM EDT up reply actions
Good for exposure in Mexico but the 25 million watched stat . . .
It’s Mexico. 100 million tune in for the national news cast because it’s virtually the only channel with programming. It’s great to be on in Mexico TV because they have less channels than we had in the 60’s so you get a huge audience but touting the number of people who watched is sorta giving a false statistical impression. I’m convinced 20 million would have watched if Grupo Televisa decided to air Manswers.
First off absolutely nothing you said is accurate…
Second off let me give you some context:
The only reason boxing is still alive in north america is because of the Latino Market. 25 million viewers in the mother land is way more than necessary for the “UFC Indoctrination Process”.
by mmalogic on Jul 16, 2009 4:16 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
I don’t get UFC’s obsession with Japan. Are they trying to make up for the Pride collapse, even though that wasn’t exactly their fault? Why keep pressing Japan so hard? Go set up camp in some other Asian country and wait until it’s easier to get things done in Japan.
South Korea seems like a much better, and more receptive, option. The UFC already has one mega star, with a tremendous cross genre appeal, in Akiyama, and two other pretty big stars in Stun Gun and Kang. And, from what I understand, the passion for MMA is palpable in SK these days.
The Japanese market is way way bigger than S Korea
Korea is a decent mid-size market but Japan is bigger. About 50million peeps in SK, almost 130million in Japan.
Follow me on Twitter @KidNate
That’ll do it.
Still doesn’t seem like it would be worth the trouble trying to break into the Asian market having to deal with the mob and the countless other intermediaries which are omnipresent in Japanese MMA. Building up demand in Japan by starting off in a close-by market that seems ready and willing for a UFC invasion just seems smarter to me.
Do more people in Japan try to watch a UFC show than, say, even a Sengoku show? Regardless, those fans aren’t filling up the Tokyo Dome anymore. That’s for sure.
by a tommy point on Jul 15, 2009 11:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Yeah but in Japan they have to compete with the all tentacle rape all day channel.
I dislike Matt Hughes and Twidder.
by MonkeyCHops on Jul 16, 2009 12:47 AM EDT up reply actions
A pimp sometimes needs to bitch slap the ho’s to get shit done…
by mmalogic on Jul 16, 2009 12:04 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I think Smoogy was right
Was in Hawaii all last week and saw a state full of Japanese divas and those were the men. Akiyama is dressed like a beer guzzling, ditch digger compared to what I saw. I got the impression the culture was paying more attention to the runways in Milan than any sort of fight game.
Akiyama is dressed like a beer guzzling, ditch digger compared to what I saw
Take it back or else I will unleash a sexy avalanche upon thee!
by a tommy point on Jul 16, 2009 2:22 AM EDT up reply actions
Ya he’s got nothing on the Versace peacocks who were laying siege to the shops at Waikiki. Those suits are old school, but I did see that beige scarf a couple of times.
Clearly, you are attracted to wildlife of some sort. That can be the only answer for your continued denial of the sexy.
And that’s a tangerine scarf. No finer garment has ever been worn… ever.
by a tommy point on Jul 16, 2009 4:53 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Efrain Escudero is Mexican.
Keep firing Assholes!
Thanks to Bisping's reenactment of the Battle of Cowpens, walla walla walla I'm an idiot.
Who? Kidding, but most people wouldn’t be.
How's the weather up your own ass? - Stephen Colbert
by Derek Suboticki on Jul 16, 2009 12:23 AM EDT up reply actions
This is really cool stuff here. I still don’t know if I get the move to Japan, but there have been more than a couple of things Zuffa have done that I wouldn’t have suggested, and so far their batting average is quite a bit higher. Which is to say: I’ll just shut the fuck up.
"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito Ortiz on Vitor Belfort at Affliction:DOR
Don’t they already have some MMA in Mexico? I’ve heard several fighters say they’re having a fight in Mexico and that really came as a surprise to me. I can see MMA blowing up quickly over there. Especially WEC with Torres and the lighter fighters.
GSP: I pulled my groin.
Greg Jackson: I don't care Georges! HIT HIM WITH YOUR GROIN!
is there a zuffa explanation ...
… on why they haven’t ventured back to brazil? just curious. you’d think with all the stars from that region, and the friendly time zone, that it woulda happened by now.
Not to sound slanderous to Brazilians when I say this...
But aren’t they pretty much a third world country? Would they be able to shell out money for a live gate? This is pure ignorance on my part, not a lame attempt at humor.
I agree
Don’t think the tickets could be sold for a hell of a lot down there. Could be wrong though.
Do Brazil get the UFC PPV’s at all?
by Well Read Idiot on Jul 16, 2009 7:16 AM EDT up reply actions
yeah, that's been my assumption as well...
… just wondering if they’d ever gone on the record about it. regardless, it’s a shame those guys don’t have the opportunity to fight in front of their home crowd.
Rec’d for “Bisping’s bad, awful, terrible no good day”
I dislike Matt Hughes and Twidder.
by MonkeyCHops on Jul 16, 2009 12:47 AM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Damn, how can they talk about Mexico when this is going on?
Drug violence in Mexico at unprecedented levels
July 15: Gunmen have been attacking police and federal forces across the state of Michoacan in retaliation for the arrest of an alleged member of La Familia drug cartel. Msnbc.com’s Keva Andersen reports.
Hopefully this is a long term plan.
Haven’t the attacks and violence mostly been focused on the American border? I think it’s safe to go into Mexico City. The opposite is true in Brazil. I’m sure UFC has looked into it only to find a logistic and dirty institutional nightmare. The Philippines has issues too, again a couple bad apple groups and their whacked out political agendas ruining it for all.
It’s getting pretty bad in Mexico. I think its the beginning of a small civil war over there between the right wing religious drug cartel and the government. Supposedly, this family has close to 10K members ranging from political figures, police, drug traffickers, waitresses, prostitutes, and f’ing churches. Its becoming very similar to the Taliban. Oh yeah, and all of this is happening because the elections are coming up too, and they are trying to scare people into voting who they favor. Crazy stuff man.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31909590/ns/world_news-americas/
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jul 16, 2009 2:59 AM EDT up reply actions
I wonder what you would choose if given the options of ‘Zuffa success in Mexico’ and ‘civil war in Mexico’.
Besides, by the end of Obama’s second term we’ll have legalized everything :-D
How's the weather up your own ass? - Stephen Colbert
by Derek Suboticki on Jul 16, 2009 3:16 PM EDT up reply actions
Damn dude, now you are just stretching and making yourself look pathetic.
A man should never waste an opportunity to keep his mouth shut.
Huh? My concern for Mexico is pathetic?
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jul 16, 2009 1:47 PM EDT up reply actions
I dont want the UFC to spread itself to thin across the world. And Dana should not be calling out japanese yakuza to come and kill him becuase they will do it. Ninja assasins wll come and kill his ass.
He’s got some metal ones to go into drug cartel territory in Mexico and Yakuza territory in Japan, thats for sure. Either that, or a death wish. Not to mention the economy in those two countries are pretty bad.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jul 16, 2009 5:04 AM EDT up reply actions
Even if they can get 25million people in Mexico to pay $1 each for the ppv, that would certainly help them to pay fighters a little more now wouldn’t it.
Got to build interest in these markets sometime, as the economy will not be bad forever. People also need things like sport to escape from worries such as the economy, as well as governments being more receptive to this type of venture due to the economic stimulus attached to hosting a UFC event.
by Well Read Idiot on Jul 16, 2009 7:22 AM EDT up reply actions
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![Brazilian TV Exec Says UFC Coming To Brazil in 2011
Danilo Lavieri of Abril.com interviews Terence Paiva, RedeTV! sports director (translation by Chris Nelson):
While (RedeTV!) has been increasing the exposure of MMA, have you looked into broadcasting national events?
In truth, we can't. The agreement with the UFC doesn't allow us to show other fighting championships. But the way around this is to create something here, something like a selective (feeder) for the UFC. That we could broadcast.
Hence the idea of bringing The Ultimate Fighter to Brazil?
When we did the deal with the UFC, they wanted us to broadcast TUF. But our experience with The Contender showed that it doesn't do much. People watch, but it doesn't have the necessary impact. Brazilians want to see Brazilians in action. Brazilians don't like things captioned. So we want to bring TUF here, yes, with Brazilian fighters. But they're different ideas. One does not preclude the other.
Canal Combate's contract with the UFC ends in 2011. Do you really want to get this contract for yourselves?
Not quite. This makes it sound like RedeTV! is the enemy of others. It isn't. We want to broadcast something, something that goes beyond our current deal [21 days after the event takes place]...
And RedeTV! will be partnering with the UFC to bring fights to Brazil?
Also not so. People exaggerate, saying RedeTV! will bring (the UFC to Brazil) and things like this. We're a partner of the UFC and we're going to give them full support so they come here. In fact, they'll be here in 2011. That's for sure. There are some details missing, like where it will take place and whatnot. Now they view us as a market.](http://cdn0.sbnation.com/fan_shot_images/133278/redetv_small.jpg)
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