Hispanic Market Loves MMA, Except Not Really

by Mike Fagan on Jul 25, 2011 10:00 AM EDT in MMA Analysis

LOS ANGELES CA - OCTOBER 20: UFC Heavyweight title challenger Cain Velasquez at the UFC 121 pre-fight press conference at the Walt Disney Concert Hall on October 20 2010 in Los Angeles California. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Sports Business Journal has a report on the sports-viewing habits of the Hispanic market in the United States, using data from a 2009 ESPN survey. The results of viewers (found in this image) that do not exclusively speak English caused MMA Payout to declare that "[t]he numbers reveal that MMA is one of the most watched sports by the demographic."

Except that the study has two giant flaws.

First, MMA is grouped together with pro wrestling (or "lucha libre" south of the border). This would be like grouping cricket with baseball (they both have sticks and balls!), and then declaring that cricket has penetrated the U.S. market. Pro wrestling, like here in the States or over in Japan, has deep cultural roots in Mexico. It's no surprise that first- or second-generation immigrants would maintain ties to it.

Speaking of sports with cultural ties, the study seemingly left boxing out of the study. Saul Alvarez drew 36 million viewers in Mexico last month for his fight with little-known Ryan Rhodes. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. brought in the highest Boxing After Dark ratings in 4 years (about 1.5 million viewers) opposite Sebastian Zbik. Oscar de la Hoya holds the pay-per-view record with Floyd Mayweather Jr. with 2.4 million buys in 2007. Boxing is big business in the Hispanic market. Its exclusion is a glaring oversight.

I'm not sure where MMA would stand without the tie to lucha libre and with boxing's inclusion. I feel it would fall behind a top 5 of soccer, boxing, lucha libre, the NFL, and MLB. MMA, specifically the grappling component, does not hold any cultural significance in Mexico, and the sport contains no legitimate Mexican stars despite the success of multi-cultural fighters like Cain Velasquez, Tito Ortiz, and Dominick Cruz.

Tweet Comment 41 comments | 1 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

hispanic market

is more into WWE and boxing imo

by P86 on Jul 25, 2011 10:05 AM EDT reply actions

Boxing, then WWE, then MMA.

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 10:07 AM EDT up reply actions

I say Lucha Libre, then boxing, then fishing, then fly swatting, then staring contests, then mustache growing, then MMA.

by IRodC on Jul 25, 2011 10:26 AM EDT up reply actions 5 recs

rec’d for awesomeness

by dropkick101 on Jul 25, 2011 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions

im a mexican american and a huge fan of lucha libre and mma…not so much boxing but know whats going on with saul alvarez and the fact that mexicans love boxing as much as wrestling, pro wrestling that is….i think mma is probably behing the above mentioned along with baseball and soccer in my opinion….mma = no mexican stars….ortiz, cruz, benavidez, torres, velasquez, and many more in the sport are not viable across the border because they were born and raised in the states and speak spanish as either their second language or dont speak it very well…..

by da sywent kiwwa on Jul 25, 2011 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions

Too bad Torres

Had his nice Title run in the WEC and not now in the UFC. Dude comes out to Chente and I think he would have been a breakout star the way he was fighting back then. I remember him being on top 3 lb for lb lists. Now, I doubt he’ll ever get it back.

Also, Cain getting hurt didn’t help. UFC didn’t get to gain in the momentum that Cain had when he beat Brock. I still think that was one of the loudest sustained crowd reactions in MMA I’ve ever seen.

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 10:06 AM EDT reply actions

Here’s a better question – what does it say about MMA that SBJ thinks it should be grouped in with professional wrestling, a non-sport?

by VirtualBalboa on Jul 25, 2011 10:12 AM EDT reply actions 3 recs

My thoughts exactly...

"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -John Wayne
Death before dishonor, drinks before lunch.
Never send sheep to kill a wolf.

by The American Ronin on Jul 25, 2011 2:00 PM EDT up reply actions

I really don't see the relation

between Mexico and MMA appreciation. I mean, boxing is huge down there, as is Lucha Libre, and the UFC kind of contains aspects of both. But as you said, the grappling part really holds no significance and their really aren’t that many true mexican-bred mixed martial artists.
I agree that Velasquez and Torres are great draws, especially judging by the reception Cain got in LA from the hispanic community.
The American hispanic community loves the UFC, but the actual mexican community located in mexico doesn’t seem to think the same.
The UFC needs to break away from being grouped with WWE or Lucha Libre. They are not real sports. The UFC needs to break away from just entertainment to true sport to the casual fan and to all the haters.

by tlowden on Jul 25, 2011 10:15 AM EDT reply actions

the ufc is not a sport either, just a business

by antone04 on Jul 25, 2011 10:29 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs

Personally I think the whole “reception” that Cain Velasquez got in LA was more about the UFC huge marketing push than anything else.

Torres a great draw? Where? Throughout the states?

The American hispanic community loves the UFC

I don’t know, I don’t know if the love exist across all American hispanic communities in the U.S. That remains to be seen.

I tend to be biased towards strikers . . . exciting strikers.
- - - - -
VEe is ANIMated!

by VeeisAnimated on Jul 25, 2011 10:47 AM EDT up reply actions

And, in addition to all the problems with the study Fagan laid out, the fact that’s from 2009 is problematic. While MMA, and the UFC in particular, is definitely behind things like baseball, boxing, and pro wrestling. But the UFC has spent considerable energy over the past few years trying to break into the market, so I’d like to see a recent study to see what sort of progress has been made.

by dropkick101 on Jul 25, 2011 10:38 AM EDT reply actions

Why would pro wrestling be included under sports?

Anyway I’m surprised it(wrestling) is so popular down there.

by HaterSlayer on Jul 25, 2011 10:39 AM EDT reply actions

as a hispanic man that has a lot of hispanic friends, i am THE ONLY one among them that follows MMA. They just do not understand the appeal of the sport and often view the grappling aspect of MMA as b.s..

The attitude that almost all of them have is that real fighting is standing up and banging “like real men.” so many are caught up in silly machismo that grappling is viewed as two men rolling around with each other and nothing more

I’m not making this up.

MMA promotions have a real uphill battle reaching that market…as much as i love it, i really cannot see it ever being as big as boxing among hispanics

by phantom5691 on Jul 25, 2011 10:39 AM EDT reply actions

I also am the only MMA diehard among my group of friends. They dont understand much of the grappling but they recognize awesomeness when they see it (Oliveira-Lentz, McDonald-Maia). They really love dynamic scrambles, even more than standnbang

by IRodC on Jul 25, 2011 10:42 AM EDT up reply actions

standing up and banging "like real men"

thats not just hispanics, thats everyone that i know that watches ufc, ive seen more fans get educated when it comes to the ground game, but for the most part, americans, which most hispanics are if not all of them, want to see knockouts, thats why you hear alot of booing when the fight goes to the ground, i really think taking a group of people and trying to survey who watches what is useless, what does this prove or not prove?

by antone04 on Jul 25, 2011 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions

actually, its not useless…its called marketing

by phantom5691 on Jul 25, 2011 9:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Cant really go by that. I’m Hispanic as well and all of my friends love MMA equally if not more than Boxing. We hardly ever miss a major MMA event. Though Boxing has made a comeback as of late with Rios, Ortiz, Canelo, Chavez Jr and Marquez looking good.

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions

I heard Phantom5691 story often on boards. I am the lone shark that appreciates MMA amongst family and immediate friends. Crap, they suck because they could care less for boxing unless there’s a big money match that they should care about.

Crap, out of 400-500 Facebook friends, I think I only know 5-8 that appreciate MMA. So basicallly I think you’re really fortunate because I don’t have cool friends like you.

(Side Note:) I think Vicious Victor Ortiz will give Mayweather some serious competition. I know Mayweather will not walk through him, the kid has too much power.

I tend to be biased towards strikers . . . exciting strikers.
- - - - -
VEe is ANIMated!

by VeeisAnimated on Jul 25, 2011 11:09 AM EDT up reply actions

I guess you could be right. It really started out as just me and my buddy being into it. Then it just kept catching on with everyone else and before we knew it we were all having to see the next fight.

I’m hoping Ortiz beats the crap out of Mayweather. Money wont be able to pull the same crap he did on Marquez by showing up heavy. Ortiz looks significantly bigger than May and it should show on fight night that’s for sure.

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 11:18 AM EDT up reply actions

mayweather is gonna pick apart ortiz

ortiz has too many holes in his defense, dont read too much into the berto win, i will say that this fight is more dangerous for mayweather than pac has taken since cotto, but its probably gonna be an easy night for mayweather, unless mayweather fights someone like the old cotto or someone who is bigger (weight class wise) and is in their prime, i dont see anyone beating him, i believe may would beat khan also, i wish may and cotto would have fought about 4 years ago, i really think cotto was the man to beat him

by antone04 on Jul 25, 2011 12:55 PM EDT up reply actions

Ortiz has a decent chin, am I right?

Who do you think packs more power in their punches, Berto or Mayweather?

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 12:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Berto probably punches harder

But mayweather wears down all his opponents, which makes a ko easier, with victor’s come forward style, I think mayweather gets the ko in round 10, the straight right is gonna kill victor because of his southpaw stance, a lil lesson for you mma fans, the right cross is the southpaw killer

by antone04 on Jul 25, 2011 1:50 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions

Too much STAR POWER

What everyone needs to do is calm down, take a deep breath, and prepare their bodies for the Thunderdome.

by lowellthehammer on Jul 25, 2011 11:33 AM EDT up reply actions

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 11:45 AM EDT up reply actions

Cool stare down

While Ortiz definitely looks bigger than Mayweather Jr., he’s faced a number of physically bigger guys . . . I try not to factor in size.

If Ortiz cuts the ring off and force Mayweather Jr. against the ropes, it will be a very long night for Money Mayweather Jr.

I tend to be biased towards strikers . . . exciting strikers.
- - - - -
VEe is ANIMated!

by VeeisAnimated on Jul 25, 2011 12:19 PM EDT up reply actions

'Rec-ed

The exclusion of boxing is a major fail.

I’ve don’t think I will ever see the local guys crowd in a small bodega to watch:

Tito Ortiz (who’s been waving the flag for years)
Dominic Cruz – really!?!
Cain Velasquez – Chael Sonnen probably speaks more Spanish than he does.

I tend to be biased towards strikers . . . exciting strikers.
- - - - -
VEe is ANIMated!

by VeeisAnimated on Jul 25, 2011 10:42 AM EDT reply actions

I know the Cain thing is hyperbole, but they did push him hard before his fight with Lesnar. He did interviews in primarily mexican channels like Univision and if I’m not mistaken Telemundo. His Spanish is not as bad as people say it is, it’s just his secondary language.

by IRodC on Jul 25, 2011 10:46 AM EDT up reply actions

I just don’t think any of those rep Mexico. I’m not saying that there’s a specific criteria that you need to represent Mexico. But they’re just as significant to Mexican combat sports fans as Frank Juarez, who changed his name to honor his adopted father to Bob Shamrock.

I tend to be biased towards strikers . . . exciting strikers.
- - - - -
VEe is ANIMated!

by VeeisAnimated on Jul 25, 2011 10:52 AM EDT up reply actions

I think with the UFC marketing push, Cain got new fans, not from Mexico but from the Mexican American community. People that can relate to Cain’s background a bit more than Mexicans who live in Mexico.

by IRodC on Jul 25, 2011 10:55 AM EDT up reply actions

Exactly

I don’t think he has all that much of a following in Mexico itself, but in SoCal the local joints are packed whenever he’s fighting. Clearly at least in some regions he has quite a bit of draw amongst the American Hispanic community.

"Nine-tenths of the people were created so you would want to be with the other tenth." - Horace Walpole

by CasualMMAFan on Jul 25, 2011 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions

Cain speaks good Spanish, not great. I've seen his interviews.

Its just that he doesn’t give a good interview even in English so I would imagine its twice as hard for him in Spanish.

And agreed, Cruz, really? lol

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 10:52 AM EDT up reply actions

I am Hispanic out of all my family and friends that are Hispanic, 5 are hardcore fans, the rest don’t watch it. For the se reasons said above. It makes no sence to me, because I love the ground battles when they are action packed and scrambles galore. But I think everybody hates when a wrestler just holds top position for a boring ud.

by J smooth 420 on Jul 25, 2011 11:32 AM EDT via mobile reply actions

MMA, specifically the grappling component, does not hold any cultural significance in Mexico

Maybe not in Mexico, but growning up in the freestyle/high school wrestling community in California, Hispanics were very involved. Even this year something like 5 of the CA state champions were Hispanic. I know quite a few multi-generational wrestling families with roots in Mexico.

by insamniac on Jul 25, 2011 1:11 PM EDT reply actions

Yeah, the overall Hispanic market may not be into grappling or MMA, but in SoCal it's pretty big

The Hispanic turnout for the Cain Velasquez fight was absolutely nuts, and every time there’s a good UFC or boxing card the local sports bars are packed with them.

I don’t see too many Hispanic guys at the jiujitsu clubs in the area, but they definitely have a lot of great wrestlers at the high school level.

"Nine-tenths of the people were created so you would want to be with the other tenth." - Horace Walpole

by CasualMMAFan on Jul 25, 2011 1:20 PM EDT up reply actions

yep

Central Valley area too, which is where I’m from. Hell, just look at all the Mexican fighters in the Lemoore based Palace Fighting Championship..

by insamniac on Jul 25, 2011 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions

The MMA and wrestling audience in Mexico have merged

Since Dos Caras, Jr., started fighting in MMA.

by Wonderjudas on Jul 25, 2011 1:16 PM EDT reply actions

ALBERTO DEL RIOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

by IRodC on Jul 25, 2011 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions

But you already know that!

Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."

@xFenixKnightx on the Twitter

by xFenixKnightx on Jul 25, 2011 1:42 PM EDT up reply actions

The hispanic demographic has been boxings top demo for the last 20 years or so it seems.

Alos, I think the UFC kind of figured oh we have a mexican heavyweight champion all mexicans will now love the UFC. Stupid reasoning considering the hispanic boxers that ammassed huge followings were warrior types like Julio Cesar Chavez (whos win over Meldrick Taylor propelled him to superstar/god status).

by TheBirdsDen on Jul 25, 2011 5:13 PM EDT reply actions

So

The UFC has an american born champion with hispanic roots, and automatically expects that they will generate a huge mexican/hispnaic fanbase. Wrong again.

Cain has a terrible personality, and never engages with the hispanic community like Ortiz, or Manuel Marquez does. He is boring. Also, they no he is not really from Mexico, he is American.

I can’t help but feel terrible for Ricco Rodriguez. He was just as hispanic as Cain, but Cain was hailed as the first ever HSIPANIC UFC Champion.

by Dalton Jones on Jul 26, 2011 1:09 PM EDT reply actions