There is no doubt Dana White is taking a few pages out of the Vince McMahon playbook when it comes to marketing the UFC. The post UFC 96 showdown between Qutinon “Rampage” Jackson and Rashad Evans was one of the most entertaining, pre-fight spots fans have witnessed in quite some time. It had shades of Ortiz/Shamrock and appeared like a quality main event for UFC 98 was on the horizon. But then came the disappointing news (or exciting news for the hardcore Brazilian fans, I’m looking at you Mr. Barbosa) that because of injuries to Rampage, Lyoto Machida would be facing Rashad Evans for the light-heavyweight title instead.  For many fans, Machida’s title shot has been long overdue and really highlights the value of entertainment in the sport. More and more, MMA pundits complain the UFC is becoming more like the WWE and argue that its “bad for the sport”. 

It’s these same people who have this pipe dream of the UFC being this classy, suit and tie event similar to boxing, and trust me I don’t think the president of any boxing organization sounds like this. There are many elements within the WWE that I believe could prove successful for the continuing growth of MMA. For starters, I mentioned the post-fight trash talk at UFC 96, which brought many fans a sense of unprecedented intrigue. Would it hurt the UFC to do a spot like this at every card? Pit the two competitors in an upcoming main event at the center of the ring (or in the crowd) for some pre-fight trash talk? Even a fighter with no charisma when given the chance to speak on the mic, is far more entertaining, that the typical Mike Goldberg event plug in between fights. Also, while the UFC Countdown shows are a nice touch prior to an upcoming card, why produce storyline profiles on all the main card fighters? One of the major factors to the successful Ultimate Fighter franchise is the audience identification to the fighters as characters. A big reason for the success of the WWE is their ability to create characters and develop personalities with the fans. The UFC doesn’t need creation of characters, as many of these fighters have interesting stories and are characters in their own right  People criticized Brock Lesnar for his post fight comments after defeating Heath Herring, saying he sounded an idiot (with the whole lasso bit). If anything, the UFC needs to promote more of these antics, as having fighters with personalities is not only entertaining in creating characters, but it also generates new fans.

However don’t kid yourself, not all the facets of wrestling are positive for the UFC. When it comes to granting title shots, following the WWE model of a popularity contest is unfair to those deserving fighters.  Like I mentioned above, Machida is only getting his title shot due to a variety of fortunate circumstances. Had Frank Mir been healthy to fight at UFC 98 against Brock Lesnar (and not forced to move the fight) or Quinton Jackson been injury free to fight Rashad Evans then Machida would have found himself on the sidelines. Pretty ludicrous for a fighter who boasts an undefeated (14-0) record with wins over Rich Franklin, Thiago Silva and BJ Penn.  I understand at the end of the day the UFC needs a significant draw to generate the most money possible, but at the same time, a fighter’s reward is the ability to win fights.  It should be the UFC’s job to market its own fighters, which is pretty much what they were forced to do when a Portuguese speaking Anderson Silva became middleweight champion. Aside from losing, one of the biggest setbacks for a fighter is being labeled as the “boring fighter” Machida, while undefeated, doesn’t exactly exude the type of personality that will sell tickets and it also doesn’t help that his elusive fighting style can translate to “boring”. 

Machida isn’t alone though and joins a list of other fighters, hindered by the “lack of entertainment” bug. It was announced earlier that last week that  Yushin Okami will be fighting Dan Miller, despite reports just a few weeks earlier that Dana White had guaranteed the Japanese fighter a title shot against Anderson Silva should he successfully defend his title at UFC 97. Okami, who has been regulated most of his UFC career on the undercard (due to his boring style), is an impressive 7-1 in the octagon (his only blemish against Rich Franklin at UFC 72) and yet looks further away from the middleweight crown  more than ever. Keith Jardine’s lack of personality gave way to Forrest Griffin earning a coaching spot on the Ultimate Fighter season 8 and subsequently a light-heavyweight title shot against Quinton Jackson.  Jardine had just defeated former UFC light-heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and Griffin just months before.  While people will argue Griffin had just upset PRIDE standout Maurico “Shogun” Rua, nobody talks about his lackluster UFC 72 just months against UFC exile Hector Ramirez. Other top fighters like Matt Lindland, Fabrico Werdum and Tim Sylvia all dabbed as “boring” found themselves as marked men, and eventually out of UFC.  While Brock Lesnar after only 4 professional MMA fights is now a UFC champion.

Overall, I believe the UFC can have a healthy balance of entertainment, while providing competitive matchups, keeping fans interested. I’m not saying bring back the ramp, but I am encouraging the emphasis on fighter as characters, giving fans the more entertainment for an already exciting sport.

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