WEC 42 Numbers Are In

by MMASuPreMaCy on Sep 1, 2009 7:28 PM EDT

The numbers are in for WEC 42: Torres vs. Bowles, and according to MMAJunkie:

Additionally, the live gate for the show was $175,835, Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer today confirmed in an email to MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).

The Aug. 9 show took place at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

According to the NSAC, 1,640 of the 2,082 tickets were paid (with 442 complimentary tickets distributed for the show). A total of 870 tickets went unsold. (A new and larger version of The Joint opened back in April and expanded the venue's seating from a capacity of approximately 1,500 to 4,000.)

The payroll for WEC 42, via MMAJunkie:

WEC 42, which took place at The Joint at The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, had a total disclosed payroll of $235,500.

The payroll figure does not include $40,000 in "fight night" bonuses that were handed out after the event. New champion Brian Bowles, as well as Dominick Cruz, Joseph Benavidez and Rani Yahya each received $10,000.

On a more positve note, the ratings for WEC 42 are seen as a positive for a card that did not feature Urijah Faber, which usually fall around 500K or fewer viewers.

Robert Seidman of TV by the Numbers, reports that WEC 42 brought in 670K viewers on Sunday night.

At the end of the day, WEC 42 generated a gate of $175,835 with a payroll of $275,500 and drew a paid attendance of 1,640 (2,082 total, 442 complimentary, 870 unsold). With that being said, WEC 43 was just postponed to October due to an "injury" that impacted their main event. What most are speculating is that the WEC has a 1 month timetable to allow Versus and Direct TV to work towards an agreement. Adding to the problem is that WEC 43, after being delayed and now relocated to San Antonio, does not feature either Torres or Faber on the card, which means it will be expected to get around 500K viewers and make an everage gate, though if a deal is not reached with Direct TV, the viewership numbers will be even lower.

It's a shame for MMA fans that HDNet and Versus have been recently dropped by notable names in the cable and dish industry. As of right now, only Verizon FiOS, ATT U-Verse, and Dish Network allow MMA fans to watch HDNet, Versus, Spike TV, and Showtime in the States.

The FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Bloody Elbow readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bloody Elbow editors or staff.

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Thank goodness we have ATT U-Verse.

Does Comcast not carry all those channels?

by Meshuggeth on Sep 1, 2009 7:36 PM EDT reply actions

All Comcast providers do not get HDNet, as far as I know.

by MMASuPreMaCy on Sep 1, 2009 7:40 PM EDT up reply actions

Nope, I don’t get HD Net. Fuck a Comcast.

by Zack Gobie on Sep 1, 2009 8:08 PM EDT up reply actions

Its not Comcastic at all.

by MMASuPreMaCy on Sep 1, 2009 9:15 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

Well Comcast = shit, and it’s pretty shit-tastic so maybe it actually is Comcastic.

by Zack Gobie on Sep 1, 2009 9:26 PM EDT up reply actions

I don’t get anything now that DirectTV is dropping Vs.

BOOSH

by Farthammer on Sep 1, 2009 9:05 PM EDT reply actions

1-888-825-2557

Dish Network. The best option imo.

I am stuck with Comcast for now, but I will switch back when I move again.

www.knees2thehead.com
Check it out!!

by BJJDenver on Sep 1, 2009 10:26 PM EDT up reply actions

U-Verse is awesome

Better than DTV

by banter on Sep 1, 2009 9:06 PM EDT reply actions

I am loving U-Verse too

Yes, time flies. And where did it leave you? Old too soon...smart too late. - Mike Tyson

by lovingmma25 on Sep 2, 2009 10:20 AM EDT up reply actions

Yea I thought this was a ratings record for a non-Faber WEC show. Have to wonder what they could do if they weren’t stuck on the armpit of cable tv?

Some Comcast providers have HDNet now but most still don’t. Even before losing DirectTV Versus was hard to find outside of Comcast providers (Comcast owns Versus). These small networks just don’t get good coverage.

by who me on Sep 1, 2009 10:09 PM EDT reply actions

good post. :)

I really think the WEC should either get a new deal, or merge with the WEC..

It’s their fighters that are gonna suffer because of this direcTV vs Comcast thing.. Less eyeballs = less money and sponsorships for the fighters..

Imagine if Brian Bowles and Mike Brown became ‘UFC’ champions.. they’d be getting more fans, bigger salaries, and more sponsors..

now, if they’re gonna plan on putting the WEC as a feeder circuit, then i’m all for it, as long as the top guys get the money they really deserve..

weoweoweo .deviantart .com -- @antontabuena

by Anton Tabuena on Sep 2, 2009 12:16 AM EDT reply actions

Once again, the WEC pays their athletes WAY more than they bring in at the gate. And once again, I am sure Sherdog and similar places will be flooded with threads about how the WEC pay scale is a travesty.

by Steve4192 on Sep 2, 2009 2:23 PM EDT reply actions

either way, they have the best FW and BW fighters in the world, and they deserve better exposure and bigger pay checks..

i don’t fault the WEC for this, but it still doesn’t change the fact that they need to get paid better.

weoweoweo .deviantart .com -- @antontabuena

by Anton Tabuena on Sep 3, 2009 12:21 AM EDT up reply actions

Based on what?

People keep talking about how stick and ball sports pay their athletes around 60% of total revenues and that the UFC should follow suit. Well, the WEC is paying their athletes over 100% of their revenues. If anything, the WEC athletes are OVERPAID relative to what the market will bear.

Being the best in the world at something doesn’t always translate to getting paid if nobody is interested in seeing you compete. Does the worlds greatest Lacrosse player ‘deserve’ to get paid big bucks even though there is no money in his sport? Of course not. Sadly, the same holds true for the guys in the WEC.

by Steve4192 on Sep 3, 2009 9:44 AM EDT reply actions