In 1989 when Vince McMahon was battling the New Jersey senate over the regulation of pro wrestling as a regular competitive sport, he coined the term “sports entertainment” in an effort to classify wrestling as entertainment and have it be exempt from state regulation. Today McMahon has mandated that everyone on WWE payroll refer to wrestling only as “sports entertainment” and while some of his corporate shills comply, many inside the company still refer to it as wrestling as do just about everybody outside.
When we launched Fightful.com as the first true combat sports crossover website, what I wasn’t expecting is that some diehard MMA fans would rip the site for including wrestling content, and some wrestling fans would do the same due to the MMA content. I’m a fan of both of those genres and I see a lot of parallels between them, but not everyone feels that way. “You're really trying hard to make this "It's Real To Me" and MMA page work, eh?” said one person on Reddit. Of course he was quickly countered and roasted by a number of fans in support of pro wrestling, but he made his point.
Last weekend CM Punk stepped into the UFC octagon, ironically enough in the very arena in Cleveland, Ohio where he had walked out on WWE in January of 2014. He got a mixed reception from fans and colleagues alike; some wished him luck and respected his courage while others - notably bitter wrestling fans or other MMA fighters – expected him to get destroyed and wanted to see it. One UFC fighter and former Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir said this on his Phone Booth Fighting podcast (transcript courtesy of MMA Fighting):
I’m gonna be honest, it pisses me off. I don’t like it. I’m trying to be impartial and not be a dick but the more we talk about this the more I’m getting angry at the situation because it’s bullshit. This is not a legitimate fight. This is not a legitimate UFC fight. We have these kind of fights in boxing; they have those celebrity matchups where it’s a name guy that shouldn’t be in there getting in there with somebody that has a novelty to it and people might turn it on for the novelty act behind it but you wouldn’t have it on the undercard of a Mayweather fight. They wouldn’t put those two together and the fact that we are putting that on there doesn’t sit well with me.
Punk not only received heavy promotion for his fight, with documentary specials and tons of media coverage, but he also earned a guarantee of $500,000 whereas for Mir’s last fight this past March against Mark Hunt, he earned a reported $220,000. So you can understand Mir’s frustration when a guy new to the sport like Punk is paid double the guarantee that a main event guy with 12 years of UFC experience like Mir is paid.
Ironically enough, Punk himself had similar frustrations which he vented on the famed Colt Cabana podcast after he quit WWE. He wasn’t happy that part-timers like The Rock were coming in and getting top spots on a Wrestlemania card while Punk and other full-timers were featured lower down the card.
The fact of the matter is MMA and boxing, very much like pro wrestling, are forms of entertainment and more importantly, are both businesses. Sure the fights are real athletic contests but if people didn’t buy tickets or order the events on PPV, they wouldn’t take place. And if fighters don’t display colorful personalities and/or exciting fighting styles to draw the crowds in, they don’t get booked regardless of their record. Most promoters of course will deny this, but it’s true. Jon Fitch, who was released from the UFC in February of 2013, was actually ranked #9 in the UFC welterweight division at the time of his release. UFC President Dana White received a lot of criticism for the release, and tried to downplay the situation by claiming that Fitch’s career was on a downward spiral. But speculation has long been that Fitch was truly released because he wasn’t a charismatic fighter or a ticket mover, yet he was dangerous enough to win big fights or potentially win the title and White didn’t want that.
Bellator President Scott Coker understands the importance of the entertainment factor in MMA and while he is somewhat criticized for promoting “freak” fights like Ken Shamrock vs. Kimbo Slice or Slice vs. Dada 5000, he understands what he needs to do to draw especially when the UFC is so synonymous with MMA and is such a juggernaut of a competitor.
Pro boxing is no different. Floyd Mayweather is arguably the greatest PPV draw and most successful fighter in boxing history with a 45-0 record, but did people pay to see him because his fights were that phenomenal? Absolutely not; Mayweather was mostly a boring defensive boxer who didn’t fight to win, but rather he fought not to lose, especially in his later (biggest money) years. But Mayweather was a talker. He was a showman. He was a natural heel and he knew what to do and what to say to get people talking, and to piss people off. People paid to see him lose. And as he continued to win fight after fight - mostly by decision for the last decade of his career – people became more and more interested in seeing the big talker get beat. But outside of Mayweather and his top rival Manny Pacquiao, boxing has struggled for years to find its next big box office superstar not because there is limited talent, but rather there is limited talent with charisma. Wladimir Klitschko was the dominant heavyweight champion for years but his fighting style left a lot to be desired as did his interviews, and so he chose to fight mostly in select European markets where he was popular and many of his fights didn’t even air live in North America. Canelo Alvarez is Mexico’s golden boy currently but he doesn’t speak English and so his biggest money fight to date was due to the marquee value of his opponent, Floyd Mayweather. And Gennady Golovkin has a lot of potential but his performance hasn’t translated to big box office as of yet.
The biggest money earners are not necessarily the best fighters/performers but rather the best entertainers, always. Especially with the American audience. Ask Conor McGregor. Ask Floyd Mayweather. Ask The Rock, or Hulk Hogan, or even John Cena. And for the most part, people that make their living in wrestling, boxing or MMA have a short shelf life and need to maximize their earnings. They do what they do for the money; sure they may also love it, but they certainly wouldn’t do it for free. And so guys like Demian Maia need to wake up. Guys that are asked by Joe Rogan after a UFC victory who they want to fight next and they respond with, “whoever the UFC asks me to fight,” they need to wake up. WWE performers that walk on egg shells afraid to ruffle any feathers and happily recite the scripted crap they’re handed without offering up any changes, need to wake up. And Canelo Alvarez needs to learn English (I hear he’s trying)!
And to that Reddit guy that called CM Punk’s UFC booking a sham – I appreciate your passion for your sport but the bottom line, is the bottom line.
P.S. – kudos to Mickey Gall, because he gets it. He called out CM Punk which led to the fight and major mainstream publicity for him. And after last weekend’s victory when he was asked the inevitable question by Joe Rogan, he didn’t say, “whoever the UFC asks me to fight.” No, he called out Sage Northcutt who is on a similar trajectory – a young, talented, personable kid who’s gotten a lot of attention. Good for Mikey Gall. And I’ll say it again just because his comments were so stupid when you’re a paid fighter – wake up Demian Maia.
