Last September TKO Group Holding was born. The company was initially valued at $19.7 billion. The company was the result of the merger between Endeavor (parent of the UFC since 2016) and WWE. Endeavor’s value was estimated at 10.4 billion and WWE at 9.3 billion. It was a winning deal for both, but Endeavor was side A, which is why its value was 51% of the new company. The figures are dizzying because they are two references in the sport. UFC, therefore, lives its best media and economic moment, But if we look back 20 years, things were very different.
Businessman Art Davie and fighter Roiron Gracie created Ultimate Fighting Championship in 1993. The original idea was to confront different fighting styles to choose the best one. The plan worked and the company grew to the point that in 2001 the brothers Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta bought it for two million dollars.. At that point, everything had changed. From the beginning, the UFC was seen as an event “without rules”, but that has been changing since 1997. Progressively, working with the athletic commissions of the different states of the United States, some rules were outlined that would end up forming the regulations of what Today we know it as Mixed Martial Arts.
The Fertitta brothers, after forming Zuffa, put Dana White as CEO. At 31 years old, the American was a promoter of several fighters and had different businesses. He notified the Fertittas of the possible sale and they gave him the power. He was a visionary, but the path was complex. From 2001 to 2005 the company opted to grow, but at the beginning of 2005 they had a debt of approximately 35 million dollars. They earned some money from PPV and DVDs with which they gave a second life to their events, but almost all the investment was the Fertittas’. Bankruptcy loomed, so they came up with a final plan. They invested 10 million more in a new format that was all or nothing. If he succeeded he would save the company and if he failed they would have to close.
Inspired by the reality show ‘American Casino’, they came up with The Ultimate Fighter. The program would bring together eight fighters of the same weight (they opted for medium and light heavyweight) in a house fighting for a contract with the UFC. The idea was good, but visibility was needed. They had to reach the television convention in the United States and reached an agreement with Spike TV (currently Paramount Network). They had to deal with the entire production of the program, but Television offered to place them behind their flagship, WWE RAW. The first episode aired on January 17, 2005. managed to retain more than 50% of the wrestling audience. It was a success because it greatly improved the chain’s numbers.
The public liked the format, but the true salvation of everything came on April 9, 2005. Recorded episodes were broadcast on Mondays and the final was live on a Saturday. For the first time, the UFC would reach the homes of Americans on conventional television. Diego Sánchez, knocking out Kenny Florian in the first round, won the middleweight tournament. In the light heavyweight Forrest Griffin and Stephen Bonnar collided. The two, and their teams (led by Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture), were very nervous. They were aware that the company was risking everything. The fight between Griffin and Bonnar was a physical waste. One of the best that had been seen until then. Griffin won on points, but the real winner was the company.
“It’s incredible to think how close we came to not being here today. If it weren’t for what these guys did, I don’t know if there would have even been a UFC. I will never forget these guys. Never,” Dana White said years later. “It’s a good fight, but it’s more than that. It was the right time in the right place. A confluence of circumstances made it what it is. And for me and Stephan, it changed our lives“says Griffin. The TUF 1 finale had a rating of 1.9 on US television. It was an absolute success and prompted a renewal for two more seasons on Spike.
The agreement between the company and television lasted six years. At that time the sponsors did not stop arriving and the agreement with Fox saved the company. The debt disappeared and the growth was exponential until today. The Ultime Fighter continued to have a very important weight in the following years. The confrontation of countries was introduced (United States vs. the United Kingdom), popular figures such as the king of street fights on YouTube, Kimbo Slice, were used, or the Latin American version was opened. Currently, hundreds of fighters have come to the UFC through this program (among them the Spaniards Enrique Marín, Abner Lloveras and Juan Espino) and in 2024 season 32 will take place, which will start this June 4. UFC does not forget the format. It still works and was the key to the company being where it is today. A last attempt saved them from bankruptcy.
