UFC's entire PR strategy regarding Elite XC on CBS, Affliction, and all other companies is to dismiss them as irrelevent. Dana seems to believe that by calling UFC the equivalent of Nascar, it makes it true:
"It's like us sitting on my couch on a Saturday afternoon watching NASCAR, okay? We're watching NASCAR and I'm like, "Holy ****, look at all the people that are at that race. They must be making a lot of money. They've got a network deal with Fox, too. You know what we should do? We should get a couple of their drivers and go out and start our own race league, and we'll compete head to head with NASCAR."
The most obvious problem with this kind of analogy is that NASCAR didn't first get popular 2 years ago. Dana's attempt to act like he is the top dog, has always been the top dog, and will inevitably be the top dog is little more than wishful thinking. If Elite XC does a 4 or 5 rating this weekend, Elite XC will almost immediately be a serious number 2.
I'm loathe to bring politics into things, but UFC's position right now reminds me of where Hillary Clinton was in the Democratic Primary a little over a year ago. The entire strategy was to act like victory was simply inevitable, and to ignore the legitimacy of the opposition. It worked for a long time, but as soon as the dam broke in Iowa, the myth of inevitability was destroyed. If Elite XC hits it big this Saturday, UFC's myth of invincibility is going to be shattered. At that point, it will be up to them to keep ahead on the merits, and once they are forced to do that, we're all going to benefit.
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