For the past ten years or so, it has been UFC He had an iron-like grip on the MMA market. However, this grip has begun to be tested over the past several years with the continuous improvement of organizations such as Bellator And ONE Championship Especially shaping Professional Warriors League Also known as PFL. This article explores three reasons why creating a PFL should be such a huge headache for Dana White And how the UFC found itself a contender for its throne.
Three reasons why Dana White should worry about the Premier League
UFC history and competition
after receiving it hitting power In 2011 and the brand eventually dissolved, the UFC eliminated what were its last major competitors from the MMA market. UFC owners, Quarrelacquired several rival companies during their time as owners of the UFC. That included WEC (World Extreme Cagefighting), Pride Fcand finally Strikeforce. Ultimately, the only competition the UFC was left with was small promotions like those of then Bellator on and off that usually drew from an entirely different market anyway (one championship). This takeover of the MMA market has continued to this day, but while the UFC is still considered the pinnacle of the sport today, the presence of other organizations is the largest in a long time. The continued emergence of Bellator and the formation of the PFL are mainly attributed to this. While Bellator remains somewhat in the shadows of the UFC, there are a number of key reasons why the PFL has the potential to break out of the industry giant.
Reason #1: individuality
Part of the reason organizations like Bellator, Cage Warriors And countless others have failed to truly challenge the UFC because they all feel less of a UFC clone. They all follow the same structure, rules, and layout, so when watching one, it’s hard to shake the feeling that you might be watching a better product if you simply changed the channel to UFC.
However, the PFL showed it They are different in the way they act. They are the first MMA organization to use a seasonal format as opposed to the individual events that the majority of the competition puts on.
A group of 12 fighters of a certain weight class will participate in a single season with each fighter competing twice. Points will be awarded based on the outcome of the match with 3 being the criterion for victory. Bonus points are awarded based on circumstances such as the round in which the finish occurred, as well as penalties awarded for misdemeanors such as losing weight. The Big Four advance at the end of the season to what are called the “Playoffs”. The play-offs consist of two semi-finals and, of course, the final. The winner is crowned champion for that year’s season.
Not only does the PFL differ significantly from the majority of other MMA organizations in the actual structure of its bouts, but more fundamental visual differences can be noted. Not having an octagon eg. Instead, the PFL uses a 10-sided “smart cage”. The smart cage is capable of generating amazing levels of data in real time, analyzing the fighters’ stroke speed, power output, heart rate and many more.
One of its most impressive technologies is FPR or Evaluate the fighter’s performance which takes into account the strength and size of strikes thrown, damage received and success in grappling exchanges to determine a specific score out of 100 for each athlete based on their performance in that round. This technology has never been used to this extent in any other MMA promotions and really proves how the PFL is a unique entity and something different from the UFC rather than just a lesser quality imitation.
Reason #2: money
Even though it may look raw, in the end there is no other way to look at it. Anyone who wants to take on the UFC will need money, and large amounts of it. Luckily for the PFL they seem to have gotten it through the boatload. Fighter purses are much more than other similar promotions such as Bellator and in many aspects are similar to the UFC. What’s also notable is that the PFL is offering a $1 million prize to whoever wins the season on top of their regular purse in the four fights it would have taken to get there. Many fighters also earn much more in the PFL than if they were in the UFC. The UFC often offers fighters contracts that can be as high as 20k to appear and 20k to win, the PFL can offer a fighter 3x in each field who may only get a 20k/20k contract if he signs with the UFC. The PFL’s financial strength was already evident in the short time it had been around with the UFC’s top featherweight Shane Burgos He left the organization to sign with the PFL, citing money as the main reason for doing so.
.@employee 🤝 PFL
Go behind the scenes at the biggest MMA recording in history on the PFL MMA YouTube channel https://t.co/PixVt9WpvS pic.twitter.com/0c3w6xQOb1
– PFL (PFLMMA) May 17, 2023
The most obvious example of a fighter leaving the UFC for the PFL can be seen with the former UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Nganu. Ngannou and the UFC engaged in months-long contract negotiations and the two were ultimately unable to come to an agreement. Ngannou was leaving the organization and signing with the PFL. In his contract with the PFL now, it is stated that Ngannou will receive a high 7-figure figure from his primary purse alone, along with earning a portion of event earnings as well as retaining the right to pursue his own sponsorship, participating in boxing matches and even guaranteeing a minimum fight purse for his opponents speculate In millions of dollars. That’s a lot more than the UFC could have offered Ngannou, and while they’re unlikely to spend that much money on all of their fighters, the PFL has shown they have more than enough financial muscle to lure the big boys out of MMA.
Reason #3: Superfights
In the first few days of 2023, the PFL made a huge announcement. They signed Jake Paul In what was the first acquisition of the new Superfight division. online personals like Jake Paul, Logan PaulAnd KSI, and countless others have made strides in the world of combat sports in the past few years, and it looks like the PFL is aiming to capitalize on that. The success of Misfits Boxing, an organization run by KSI and featured in Dazen It has shown that successful events of this kind can be produced. These online influencers have millions upon millions of followers on various social media platforms, and if the PFL started promoting MMA bouts featuring these individuals, it would undoubtedly expose their brand to millions of people who might not have heard of them otherwise.
In the modern world of marketing, online presence is absolutely everything when it comes to expanding the brand of a company or organization, and this would be a sure way for PFL to achieve that. If they become the only MMA organization involved in this segment of celebrity or influencer fighting, then soon they will develop a very profitable segment of the market and have it all for themselves. If a small portion of the eyes brought in by the likes of Jake Paul linger and decide to watch a regular PFL event, the company will find its viewership skyrocketing. All of this would spell serious trouble for the UFC.
All in all, it should not be underestimated that the UFC is by far the most popular MMA organization in the world right now. Both in forms of revenue and prestige. However, this article has outlined several possible ways and paths that the PFL could use to expand its sphere of influence further which ultimately leads to a real struggle for supremacy between the two promotions.
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