It started out innocuously enough, just another lost pay-per-view main event thanks to Cain Velasquez’ ailing frame. Disappointing, though the news was, fans were assuaged with the hopes they’d still get to see Fabricio Werdum, the arguable “baddest man on the planet”, compete at UFC 196 in February. The UFC even managed to line up a semi-suitable dance partner for Werdum, as surging contender Stipe Miocic quickly raised his hand for a chance at the title.
But then it all really went to sh*t. Soon after Miocic was penciled in as a late-replacement for Velasquez, Werdum revealed he too had been training with a few nagging injuries, and would elect not to defend his title against a brand new opponent on less than two weeks’ notice. Though sensible, the champ was roasted in the court of public opinion over his refusal to “just bleed” and fight whoever the UFC puts across from him.
Now, with no real main event and a heavyweight title picture that seems nebulous at best, Zuffa has done what many fans had been calling for, but had never actually followed through on. UFC 196 will be the second scheduled PPV, which, though not cancelled, will never be made available for purchase.
I know what you’re thinking; shades of Jon Jones and “sportkillers” abound in everyone’s memory when it comes to cancelled events. How could they not? The ghost of UFC 151 will forever haunt the Las Vegas offices of Zuffa, LLC and anyone else unfortunate enough to be mentioned in the same breath of the “PPV that never was”.
Ironically, in some Kafkaesque turn of fate, it was “Bones” Jones himself who offered to lend his services in an attempt to save the crumbling 196 card. As many pointed out on Twitter, it was the drawing of a full circle; the first man to bring a PPV crashing to the floor was also one of the first attempting to save UFC 196. But Jones’ offer came with strings attached; he’d only accept the fight if it was for the “real” heavyweight strap. Interim titles be damned, Jones was scratched off the list with the same haste that brought his name into discussion in the first place.
But instead of repeating the same mistake they made back in 2012, Zuffa wisely transplanted UFC 196 onto FOX Sports 1, thus taking advantage of their existing contract, and offering fans the third consecutive fight card “live and free” on FOX. Even from the outside, it was a no-brainer. You couldn’t cancel the card without facing the fallout that would inevitably follow, and you couldn’t ask fans to fork over $60 for a PPV that is weak even by current UFC standards.
Now headlined by a five-round main event between former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson, the card seems like a good fit for FS1; it doesn’t have the name power necessary for PPV or even “big” FOX, yet it’s a little too flashy for FightPass. On a subsidiary like FS1 that only hardcore fans seem to know about in the first place, it could actually end up pulling semi-good numbers.
But at the end of the day, UFC 196 still stands as just the second PPV in the UFC’s 24 year history that had to be cancelled due to main event fallout syndrome (MEFS, if you nasty). Astute though their reshuffling was, this was not planned by the UFC, and, arguably, it was avoidable.
Whether or not you subscribe to the mantra that Cain Velasquez’ home gym of AKA in San Jose is “stuck in the stone age”, injuries are a major problem in mixed martial arts. Whether it’s because of antiquated training techniques or general ignorance on the part of many trainers, it’s hard to stay healthy in the UFC. But training injuries are becoming a widely accepted part of the game when it comes to modern MMA. It will hopefully become less of a problem over time, but right now we have to live with the caveat that accompanies all tickets: “Fight card subject to change”.
What can be avoided, though, is the UFC producing such lackluster cards. Looking back at UFC 151, it’s easy to see why Zuffa chose to can the PPV as a whole; the co-main event saw Jake Ellenberger meet Jay Heiron in a fight that sounds as exciting now as it did then. The card was so thin that as soon as Jon Jones’ name disappeared from the marquee, so did the many fans who had bought tickets and booked hotels.
UFC 196 is not dissimilar in this way. While there are certainly some excellent fights on the card, it was obviously a victim of Zuffa’s world domination scheduling; outside of the main event, there wasn’t much incentive for fans to give up their Saturday night and cough up more than fifty bucks.
That’s why something has to change in the UFC offices this year. Let the blockbuster that was UFC 194 be their blueprint. Any number of fights could have been cancelled on that card and it still would have sold like hotcakes. When the UFC stacks a card they buy themselves a built-in insurance premium. If there are multiple fights on any card that fans are willing to pay to see, losing one won’t completely shatter any hope of selling it down the line.
Zuffa already had their first lesson in this course back at UFC 151, and they just got a refresher from UFC 196. Let’s hope they don’t need a third reminder.
