How hot is MMA?
According to Eddie Goldman, ever the skeptic, not as hot as you may think:
Nevertheless, Goldman raises a good point. MMA is on an upswing, but it still has a long way to go.
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Don’t think mixed martial arts is as hot as some of its promoters (or those hired to shill for them) pretend, as they have taken a grand total of three months of sanctioned shows to oversaturate the market in California. The empty seats and tickets heavily discounted by Ticketmaster and others speak much more loudly than the parrots who warbled that last Saturday’s UFC at the Staples Center was sold out. One report claims that fewer than 8000 of the about 14,000 fans announced in attendance actually paid for their tickets, with many of those buying them at deep discounts.The UFC ticket sales problems also had to do with outrageous ticket prices and the fact that the show was held on a holiday weekend (both of which are issues that lay at the feet of UFC management).
Nevertheless, Goldman raises a good point. MMA is on an upswing, but it still has a long way to go.
UFC 59 held in Anaheim was a very successful event, so coming off of this momentum, Dana White decided to (substantially) increase the UFC 60 prices.
This turned out to be a really bad idea, for the reasons you mentioned. I'd like to add that there was a really big Madonna concert that weekend as well.
In a meeting with Ticketmaster, who they turned to after realizing their tickets were moving abysmally slowly, Dana White admitted that they had fucked up, and began searching for ways to discount tickets and get them moving.
Of course, this was way after I had bought my tickets :(
Posted by themonkey | 6/02/2006 4:58 PM