Tonight will see Titan FC put forth their latest effort, and I've got to say, the card looks great. What's really admirable, is that a little over a week ago, they willingly gave up their main event to help a fighter realize his dream of getting back into the UFC.
When a promoter comes along who puts his money where his mouth is, it's like a breath of fresh air, and people tend to take notice, especially when MMA's landscape has seemed so seedy and opaque over the last couple months, with several PED and domestic abuse issues casting a dark shadow over our fair sport.
So what separates Titan from the rest of the promotions vying for that coveted Number 2 spot? Probably the fact that the organization's owner, Jeff Aronson isn't actually trying to claim that spot. His idea is to put forth his level best effort for the fans with great fight cards and to provide a quality environment for his fighters to flourish in. His philosophy is that once those two goals are accomplished, the rest will sort itself out.
When you offer finish bonuses to every fighter that finishes a fight, no matter the method, and when you have a very liberal revolving door policy with a generous UFC out clause, the athletes start taking notice, too.
I recently sat down with Jeff where he discussed a variety of topics including the relationship he has with the UFC, what he thinks of talent exchanges between organizations, the CBS deal and more. Here's what he had to say:
Relationship with the UFC
I think we have an excellent relationship with the UFC. Obviously, the long term work at Alchemist certainly helped a lot. You know, I think a lot of promotions are very uncomfortable and feel like they have to over-complicate the contracts with the athletes and not allow them to move on because of their fear of not being able to replace their talent.
From my perspective, there is so much talent out there today, and the waters are so talent-rich, that I'm excited to help facilitate someone's dream of getting back into the UFC. It happened with Ben Saunders a week or so ago, and he was part of my main card for this week's show. Efrain Escudero happened 10 days before that.
Since I took over Titan, I would say a minimum of 10 fighters have gone to the UFC, and we're not missing a beat. We're adding new people and growing like crazy. This card shaped up incredibly well. The one coming up in Texas is going to be awesome, as well.
We're thrilled to be that conduit, and I want the top prospects in the world and the top vets in the world to know that they can come to Titan, they can perform on a national stage, they can get the best exposure, and should they want to go to the UFC, I'm going to allow them to go.
Talent Exchange
I think that's a natural progression for the sport. I think we are going to see cross-promotion superfights at some point, I think we're going to see talent exchanges happening, and I think we're going to see like-minded individuals from a business perspective that understand how to achieve what they want without being selfish.
It's okay to be "rationally selfish." In other words, I want to be as successful as I can, but I know I can't do it without the help of others, so I need to give back to them in order for them to give to me. When you deal with people that are like-minded like that, it works out incredibly well, and you wind up with this anomaly of this organization where people come in and we become the de facto place for the best prospects.
This is where the Number 1 prospect can say, ‘The UFC is bogged down at 145. I don't have to sign with an organization that's going to hold me hostage for the rest of my life. I can sign at Titan, stay there for 6 months, a year, a year-and-a-half, whatever and once they open up, I know that Titan is going to let me go if I want to.'
If World Series of Fighting wants to step up and do a challenge night, I'm in. If Bellator wants to do it, I'm in. I'm excited where we're at right now, and it's only getting better. My goal is to be the Number 1 fighter and fan appreciation promotion in the world. There are a lot of gaping holes that I see with some of the other promotions and I see them and take note so that I can go straight for that top position without making those mistakes I see others make.
RFA has borrowed fighters from me and I've borrowed fighters from them. It's been a reciprocal, mutually beneficial relationship. I'm very happy to be sitting in the position I'm in rather than where some of the other promotions are sitting right now.
CBS Deal
When you look at the MMA landscape right now, there are four network deals that are in play right now with US based promotions. You have FOX Sports 1 with the UFC, Bellator on SPIKE, WSOF on NBC Sports and us on CBS Sports. Right off the bat, we immediately became one of the Top 4 promotions.
There are talks going on right now about moving Titan onto a bigger platform within the CBS network. We've already moved from CBS Sports Network to CBS Sports, which is one of the biggest sports websites in the world. They now do our prelims and they also have a Titan library of fights on CBSSports.com now. We've moved from an 11:30 slot to a 10 pm slot.
Things are going well and CBS is completely behind Titan. I think they see that we're doing things very responsibly. Not just fiscally responsible, but for the fighters and fans, too. When I say that, I want to use Ben Saunders as an example of what I mean.
When Ben got the call to go back to the UFC, people were asking me if I was really going to let him go so close to an event he was going to be a major part of. I said, ‘Absolutely.' It's not going to hurt me one bit, but it's going to change Ben's life.
With CBS supporting my attitude and my values and the way that I represent my company, I couldn't be happier. The projectile growth of the company is on target. On top of that, I've never seen a happier group of fighters than the ones I have under my banner.
Taking the High Road
I think you achieve a certain level of success by doing things the right way. With that comes a level of maturity. I'm not in the frame of mind to feel I need to badmouth someone to make myself look better. I'm more than happy to let my actions speak louder than my words. I'm the one that has to look at myself in the mirror every night, so I try to make sure I like what I see.
There are real POS promoters out there, but what do I gain by badmouthing them? I don't want to give them one single ounce of notoriety or press. All I'm concerned with is becoming the very best organization I can possibly offer up to the fans.
Talent Scouting
From my time at Alchemist, I connected with 99% of the managers in the MMA space and I have a great relationship with all of them. They know that I'm going to do the right thing by their athletes. I have this whole group of managers that are constantly on the lookout for prospects, in addition to my group of people that work with me at Titan. We're all scouting on a daily basis. I'm watching film and looking at fighters every day.
We've been lucky. We've been able to leverage our relationships with managers, gyms, trainers and we're making incredible signings. The talent level is just crazy. There are so many great fighters out there waiting to be discovered that just need a chance, an opportunity to get to that next level. I'm constantly looking for those guys.
No matter which way you slice it, Titan FC is striving to make its mark on the sport, and if Aronson has anything to say about it, it's going to be a positive, indelible mark for all to see.
