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  This study analyzed some cases of rapid weight loss procedures in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and athletes linked to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), currently the largest promoter of the sport. Therefore, printed sources were used, such as specialized magazines or not; documentaries, television programs, interviews, articles on websites; documentary sources, regulations and protocols. It was noted that the rapid weight loss represents overconformity deviances, which are part of a code of conduct valued by athletes, but sometimes become problematic. The cases listed here obtained relative repercussions in the media and resulted in acute damage to the athletes, financial and marketing damage to the event promoter. There was also a certain malpractice among athletes and teams, event organizers, and the North-American Athletic Commissions to try to prevent extreme procedures for rapid weight loss from occurring more often by putting athletes at risk, causing damage to the event itself. Resumen: El presente estudio analizó algunos casos de procedimientos de pérdida de peso rápida en atletas de Artes Marciales Mixtas (MMA) vinculados al Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), actualmente el principal impulsor de este deporte. Por tanto, se utilizaron fuentes impresas, como revistas especializadas o no; documentales, programas de televisión, entrevistas, artículos en sitios web; fuentes documentales, normativas y protocolos. Se observó que la pérdida rápida de peso se configura como una desviación supraconformativa que forma parte de un código de conducta valorado por los deportistas, pero que en ocasiones se vuelve problemático. Los casos aquí enumerados obtuvieron relativa repercusión mediática y resultaron en daños agudos y crónicos a la integridad física de los atletas, pérdidas económicas y de mercado para el promotor de los eventos. Se observó que existía un cierto descuido entre los atletas y equipos, organizadores de eventos y comisiones atléticas norteamericanas para tratar de evitar que los procedimientos extremos para la pérdida rápida de peso ocurran con mayor frecuencia, poniendo en riesgo a los atletas y causando daños al evento en sí.

The Khabib Nurmagomedov versus Conor McGregor Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 229 battle was among the most controversial mixed martial art fights of the past decade. In this study, the author examines how the various popular media outlets from the Eastern and Western world portrayed Khabib Nurmagomedov after UFC 229. The author used Huntington’s clash of civilization thesis by grounding it in the Orientalism and Occidentalism paradigms to examine the phenomenon. Fairclough’s model for critical discourse analysis was employed to investigate the various Western and Eastern popular press and digital media platforms (i.e., newspapers, blogs, and sporting news websites). The author analyzed 57 (Western n = 38, Eastern n = 19) media reports per the inclusion criteria. The study results unveiled conflicting predispositions present in the Western and Eastern media for Khabib Nurmagomedov. This study contributes to the limited knowledge of how a Muslim man athlete with diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds is portrayed contrarily by some Western and Eastern media outlets. Finally, the author discusses the theoretical implications of the study.

Sport demand literature notes multiple sources of demand for a sport product. Two forms of direct demand come in the form of live attendance by patrons and purchases of pay-per-view (PPV) to watch sporting contest through a television set (Borland & Macdonald, 2003). That is, attendance and PPV purchases are both direct consumption of the sporting product. Recent theoretical discussion has noted the importance understanding both live attendees and television viewers of sport events in order for organizations to behave more strategically (Budzinski & Satzer, 2011). This study attempts to examine two sources of direct demand for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), one of the most popular combat sport organizations in the world. Prior research into the UFC has provided individual examinations of single sources of demand for televised events (Watanabe, 2012) or attending events in person (Tainsky et al., 2012). This research examines events from 2001 through 2012 and finds that an individual sport product may have different determinants for live attendance and television viewership.

In contrast to research examining the social-psychological aspects of how sport fans perceive rivalry games in team sports, far less is known regarding the impact rivalries have on mediated consumer demand, a marketing outcome of interest to sport researchers and practitioners. Guided by economic demand theory, the current study developed a model to empirically examine the impact of Tyler and Cobbs’ (2015) rivalry antecedents (conflict, peer, bias) on fan interest for an individual sport. The three-dimensional framework provided the foundation for the selection of thirteen rivalry-related variables, in addition to control determinants established from prior literature. Results from the estimation indicate rivalry conflict is the primary driver of demand for Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view buys, while peer and bias are less influential dimensions. Short-term performance similarities (recent winning percentage) and long-term performance dissimilarities (historical winning percentage) among the main and co-main event fighters are significant to generating increased buyrates. Organizational marketing activities (i.e., event poster - defining moment) were the strongest overall predictor of pay-per-view buys. Conceptual discussion and practical implications are provided, including recommendations for future research.

Howcast - Learn how to become a UFC fighter from kickboxing champion Phil Nurse in this Howcast video.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Senior Vice President Digital Edward Muncey discusses UFC YouTube subscriptions with Jon Erlichman on Bloomberg Television's Bloomberg West.

In Detroit, the politicians tried to stop one of those more-violent-than-boxing, more-real-than-professional-wrestling events. They used a 130-year-old law against fighting for money (boxing is exempt), and they complained about Detroit's image. The mayor said, in an affidavit, that he is `absolutely and morally opposed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship,' which he said `will project a negative message across America regarding Detroit.'

The hottest craze among fight fans is under attack from states attempting to ban future shows because of their violent nature. The Ultimate Fighting Championships - which popularized the no-holds-barred style of combat held inside a caged ring - may have to move a Dec. 16 pay-per-view show from Denver because of protests from three city council members. Last month, a New York senator succeeded in banning an Extreme Fighting show in Brooklyn. The promotion then moved their pay-per-view show to North Carolina, which has hosted two similar fighting events. But in January, that state will have an athletic commission that would give it power to ban those shows.

Millions of Americans know UFC's mixed-martial arts from television and matches in arenas across the 48 states where its fights are legal.