Interesting interview with Shonie Carter on Sherdog. He makes some very interesting points about where Iron Ring succeeded:
...it did its job. It got people knowing the minorities, the Hispanics, the blacks into MMA. Was it the most exemplary example? I'll let the fans decide. For me, it was a step into a different direction. Because now black folks know who I am. Did you know that? Black people do not know me in my hometown. I walk down the street, it's, "Hey, aren't you that dude from ‘Iron Ring'?"
This is the way I am going to break it down, honestly. White folks, you all knew me from Spike TV, "The Ultimate Fighter" and the UFC. Black folks and Hispanic folks know me from "Iron Ring."
And where Iron Ring failed:
If they had not focused so much time on the hip hop guys, and actually show what we do as athletes -- you know, focus more on the fighters instead of the damn wannabe-tough-on-the-mic rappers. You know, and those sissy bully-ass athletes that call themselves fighters, but we call them boxers -- they'd probably get a lot more positive feedback.
That pretty much sums up the Iron Ring experience. Despite my prior defense of Iron Ring, I lost interest in the show before the end of the series and so did about 1/3 of its audience. They did a good job of drawing interest to MMA among new communities, but they didn't close the sale. Hopefully they'll retool and do a better job in the second season.