For its 25 years, the UFC has decided to rank the biggest fights in the history of the organization. If the most beautiful battles are there, the order intrigues. The United States discovered the UFC with the event “The Ultimate Fighting Championship”. Since then, the organization has been bought by the Fertitta brothers and then sold to WME-IMG for 4 billion in 2016. For 25 years, the UFC has allowed the MMA to move forward. If everything was not perfect, far from it, the organization became the true banner of this sport. Over the years, the public has discovered stars and rivalries are born: Edgar vs. Maynard, St-Pierre vs. Penn, Cormier vs. Jones, McGregor vs. Diaz. You can now watch ufc fights in Miami perfectly.
In short, these 25 years have been very dense for the organization
Signed in 2013, Conor McGregor quickly became the biggest star in the organization’s history. He even surpassed his sport by facing Floyd Mayweather in boxing. It is also he who holds the record of pay-per-views (unit purchase), economic model on which the UFC is reproached for the vast majority. Owner of the title lightweight since November 12, 2016, he still has not defended his belt. He also occupies the top 2 places in the ranking of the 25 biggest fights of the organization.
For this clash between trucks, the poster of this “UFC Fight Night”, the sold-out box with 16,000 spectators has turned into a real tour of Babel.
What delight the leaders of the Ultimate Fighter Championship (UFC), the main organization of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), which pursues a broad strategy of expansion to ensure its supremacy at the global level after being bought in 2016 for 4 billions of dollars.
And when we have views of the planet, what better than a city-world like London?
“This is completely in line with the diversity of our athletes but also that of our fans,” confirmed David Shaw, Vice President of the UFC.
- Its 500 fighters, men and women, currently under contract, represent about forty nationalities. Their exploits are broadcast in 152 countries to a billion viewers annually, according to the organization.
- Since its creation in 1993, the UFC has tried to get rid of the sulfurous image of MMA, a sport using various techniques (boxing, wrestling, karate, judo, sambo, muay-Thai and jiu-jitsu).
- Accused of promoting an ultra-violent spectacle by allowing strikes on an opponent on the ground, the organization has put in place protocols to secure the health of athletes, including monitoring the impact on the brain of blows to the head.
- It also claims to impose strict anti-doping regulations and fights are regularly canceled following positive controls.
The UFC also relies on a very strong presence on social networks.
First in Shanghai
Star of the discipline, the Irishman Conor McGregor account for example more subscribers to his Twitter account than Lewis Hamilton, Valentino Rossi or Tiger Woods.
- Hollywood stars Ben Affleck and Mark Wahlberg, tennis players Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams, quarterback Tom Brady, singer Adam Levine, and comedians Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Kimmel have all invested.
- “This transaction has also completed professionalizing what has become a sport like any other,” said a wise observer from the UFC.
“A big market like Brazil is already a preserve and the UFC has successfully made its first foray into mainland China in Shanghai on November 2017,” the source said.