When UFC started 20 years ago, it was nothing more than an idea, a way to see which form of martial arts was “better”. Would karate triumph over wrestling? Who would win between a boxer and a martial artist? There were some ideas that transcended every contact sport, and a few men with ideas and curiosity ventured into something that was unheard of before. Since then, the sports fans have witnessed names like Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Anderson Silva, GSP and so on taking on the world, and creating their own legacy. Worlds collided, with fighters from various backgrounds stepping into the Octagon to see who the better man was. Mixed Martial Arts took shape, and UFC became its breeding ground.
Fans from all over the world have seen and embraced UFC. It wasn’t professional wrestling; the fights were real, the emotions true and the passion unbridled. Fans from Canada, Brazil, Britain and every other major country got to witness UFC fights live, and UFC soon expanded to Asia! I was fortunate enough to have had spoken to Marshall Zelaznik, the chief content officer of UFC and the head of UFC’s Indian division about UFC’s plans to enter the Indian market, and if UFC has planned anything big for the Indian audience in the near future.
While talking about the fans’ understanding of Mixed Martial Arts, Marshall Zelaznik said, “UFC’s fan base is split into pockets of interest all around the world. We understand that MMA is not a part of Indian culture, but MMA is growing, and is a niche genre of its own. I’m sure that people will understand when they see UFC live, and that they will enjoy the product. MMA is the purest form of sport. It is regulated and safe, and is about two athletes who‘re competing with specified rules to see who’s the better man.”
When asked about UFC facing a few problems because of the kind of product it delivers, Marshall commented, “I’m confident that we won’t. We’ve been working with Sony for the past two years, and if there were any problems, we would’ve dealt with it. Before we partnered up with Sony, we met with sports ministers and media officials in India, and made sure they’re aware and educated about the sport. We met the media and government officials to make sure they understand about us. UFC may be confusing, so we made sure that they understand and if they had raised any issue, we would’ve worked hand in hand with them. There have been other MMA products in India, and we’re confident that there won’t be any issue. Although, we won’t be surprised if it was a problem with the media people; there are things I don’t like about certain things. We can’t all be on the same page, but we’re sure it won’t be a big issue.”
Marshall then discussed about the possibility of UFC opening their office in India. “It’s definitely possible. We have two offices in Asia; in Singapore and Beijing. We also have offices in London, and in Sao Paulo – Brazil. We open offices when we see some traction and the need in that part of the world. With our partnership with Sony, we rely on them and our PR team in India relies on them. If we think we have a need to open an office in India, and I know that India can be big in 4 – 5 years, then we will surely look at opening an office there. And we do think India can definitely be a good option to open an office.”
Talking about joining hands with SFL and women’s division in UFC, and if UFC would be looking at recruiting not only male fighters from India, but also some women, Marshall commented, “There is no agenda for us to join hands with SFL. The fighters in SFL can’t compete with fighters from UFC or in the UFC. SFL roster doesn’t intrigue us, and we don’t scout people from SFL. It doesn’t matter if the fighters are from India or not – Indian nationals or NRIs, we will find fighters to fit the mould and connect with the Indian audience.
We’re also starting a 115 lb division for women. If the time is right, we won’t hesitate to do it (Recruit women fighters). SFL already has it, so we won’t hesitate to do it if we find someone who will be able to do it. But for now, it’s not on our agenda.”
Finally, I asked Marshall if UFC plans to send some heavyweight names to India to intrigue the fans, and if UFC will be coming to India any time this year, to which he replied, “Of course, I wouldn’t want to dwell too much into our plans for this year, but we will be coming to India this year for sure in some capacity. We wanted to do an edition of TUF – India this year, but we are looking at something else – Probably a live event in India. We plan to send across some UFC legends or current fighters; the legends are always happy to go abroad to spread word about UFC. So someone like Chuck Liddell might be coming over to India soon.”
If UFC does deliver a big name in India this year, and follows up with a live event, you can be rest assured that UFC will not be disappointed. India has been a hub for a potential new sport for many years now, and although organizations like WWE and TNA have tried to get into the Indian market, they failed to follow up with any good work. UFC is different to professional wrestling, and the fans will undoubtedly enjoy the sport. I wouldn’t want to rule out the possibility of seeing a Sonnen or a Barao in India in the very near future!
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