The UFC on Fox features only one fight, a heavyweight title clash between champion Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos, but it may be the most important fight in UFC history.
Even more so than just bringing the UFC and MMA to a diverse range of fans, the fight is likely to make a superstar be born overnight.
The amount of media attention and coverage of the event has been more than any fan can remember. There literally hasn't been one day within the past month that went by without a story related to the UFC on Fox event.
Both Velasquez and Dos Santos are viewed as great fighters but not necessarily the best draw. If you ask the casual fan about who Velasquez is, they will likely tell you he is the guy who beat Brock Lesnar.
Likewise, Dos Santos is known to casual MMA fans as the other coach along with Lesnar on The Ultimate Fighter.
Although both men remain relative unknowns to casual fans and non-fans, that all is likely to change after their historic fight.
That begs the question, who does the UFC want to win more?
Dana White may be one of the biggest fans of MMA, but he's also a shrewd businessman. This fight will give the UFC a very popular champion.
The challenger, Dos Santos, comes from Brazil and from a well-respected camp. Training with such fighters as Anderson Silva, the Nogueira brothers and Lyoto Machida, among others, provides Dos Santos with elite-level training partners.
Dos Santos is one of the nicest guys in MMA and always has a smile on his face. If you've seen any of the behind-the-scenes videos or clips of him from the countdown show, you've likely seen him laughing with teammates.
"Cigano" isn't going to do anything negative that would impact the UFC's public perception, and he is a "safe" champion in PR terms.
He also possesses an exciting fighting style that features some of the best boxing MMA has ever seen. Dos Santos always looks for the knockout and puts everything behind his punches while still maintaining excellent technique.
Velasquez also has one of the more exciting styles in MMA. His wrestling background is well known, but he also uses punches and kicks. His ability to grapple and strike gives Velasquez one of the most complete games in MMA.
The champion also is considered one of the nicer guys in MMA and has been about as soft-spoken of a champion as possible. Velasquez had plenty of opportunities to respond to Lesnar's pre-fight talk and simply replied with the standard, "I'm training hard" response.
Velasquez comes from one of the best camps in America, American Kickboxing Academy, but Dana White has had problems with the gym in the past. White's issues with Josh Koscheck, Mike Swick and Jon Fitch are all well documented.
Although that situation isn't likely to repeat itself with Velasquez, the possibility exists. Daniel Cormier, a teammate of Velasquez's, may soon be joining the UFC heavyweights and could be a few fights from a title fight.
Perhaps the most logical way of looking at who the UFC stands to gain the most from winning is demographics.
Dos Santos hails from Brazil, which has historically been a very rich community for MMA and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Unless White goes on a Chael Sonnen-ish tirade against Brazil, they will always be fanatical for MMA and the UFC.
Velasquez brings a relatively unknown demographic into MMA. The Mexican community hasn't had a true star to follow like they have had in boxing. Velasquez could be their star in waiting.
When Velasquez was challenging for the title, the UFC ran promo after promo citing Velasquez's quest to become the first Mexican champion. The UFC clearly wants to tap into the Latino market.
I don't mean to incite any racial issues because that's not what this is about. As the saying goes, "It's just good business."
Be sure to stay tuned to Bleacher Report for all things UFC on FOX. B/R is your home for complete coverage of the November 12 fight card, from pre-fight predictions, to in-fight coverage, results and post-fight analysis, which you can find out at our event hub page.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com
No comments:
Post a Comment